Welcome to our new Monday-morning blog feature, where we share easy tips and DIY projects that you can use this week to help make your life a bit more sustainable!If you haven't already setup your sustainability profile at MakeMeSustainable, you can start by visiting http://makemesustainable.com. If you live in Chapel Hill/Carrboro, you'll automatically join our local group!
This week's project: Go car-free
A wise woman once told me: "All days from hell begin with a car." After experiencing a few car issues, I was starting to see the logic in her statement. Empty tanks, traffic jams, "check engine" lights, and fender-benders all strain our patience and our wallets. So how realistic is it to go car-free on a regular basis?
Very realistic! Especially in Chapel Hill. Learn from my experiences and give it a try yourself this week. The weather is beautiful and everything I mention here is FREE. I've been living car-free for over a year now, and have saved both my money and my sanity.
Tips:
- All Chapel Hill Transit buses are FREE. You don't need a special card or anything - just walk on!
- If you need to travel outside Chapel Hill (e.g. commuting from Durham or Raleigh), there are special Triangle Transit express buses. You can ride these for FREE as a UNC student or staff by signing up for UNC's Commuter Alternatives Program (http://www.dps.unc.edu/Transit/gettingtowork/gettingtowork.cfm).
- You can also join CAP for a 30-day trial without giving up your parking permit. You will not be able to take advantage of the $20 vanpool subsidy, or the free annual Triangle Transit GoPass. You will receive a Park & Ride decal, giving you access to 5 additional park & ride lots and a membership card, opening the door to discounts with several area merchants and a chance to win prizes distributed at random throughout the year. Call 962-3951 and ask to speak to someone about the trial CAP program.
- If you are not within walking distance of a bus-stop, consider using your bike to get to a bus stop. All Chapel Hill Transit and most other area transit systems have easy bike racks on the front of all buses. Just pull down the rack, load your bike, and lift the tire guard over your tire to secure the bike.
Step-by-step guide to start living car-free:- Make a list of your usual destinations and arrival times. For example, I make 3 trips per day. I go from my home to my office at 8. I go from my office to campus at 3. I go from campus to my home at 6.
- Enter those routes and times in the online GoTriangle Trip Planner (http://www.gotriangle.org/trip/en/). This website uses the current scheduling information from all the Triangle-area transit systems, so it is an excellent resource.
- Based on your travel information, GoTriangle will give you multiple itineraries for your trip. These include bus routes, times, a map, and sometimes pictures of the bus stops. I recommend printing or copying the information for at least 2 of the proposed itineraries. That way you have a back-up in case a bus (or you!) is late.
- Pack your things in a single, easy-to-carry bag, such as a backpack or canvas bag. I also recommend packing a magazine or bringing your MP3 player to entertain you on the bus ride.
- Arrive at least 5 minutes early to the bus stop just to be safe. And don't panic if the bus is a few minutes late. If you have internet access, you can always check NextBus to make sure your bus is on time (http://www.nextbus.com/predictor/stopSelector.jsp?a=chapel-hill).
- Don't forget to ring the "Stop Request" bell about a block before your desired destination. On most buses this is plastic yellow strip by the window OR a cord hanging in front of the windows.
