We went to see the zip car exhibit this morning at the Palio parking lot, and I got you one of their cute little black tote bags (in case you did not get there early enough to capture one). There is also a coupon for $50 off and the code to use happens to be “Anna09″, which is quite a coincidence. Naturally, I talked up the fact that I found out about this event in “The Ann Arbor Chronicle” while visiting with the sales people there.

I’ve added to my calendar, invited my co-workers, to the March 17th Palio Zipcar to get more informed. Owning only one car in our family, I rely on the getDowntown program. The program provides me access to annual bus pass for $5 (paid by my employer). After my ten minute bus ride downtown from North Campus, I can usually walk to meetings on campus or gain a ride from my colleagues. My office could probably be persuaded to buy-in to the Zipcar once the location/flexibility increases.

Finally, removing the one remaining car from our family wouldn’t work because the transportation infrastructure hasn’t arrived to travel outside of Ann Arbor. We really need a fully functional subway system for SE metropolitan Michigan.

I also want to emphasize the savings by going from 2 cars to one; financially to peace of mind, from insurance to gas to maintenance, to all the work and anxiety you let go of every time you do not take your own car. Or maybe you enjoy scraping ice and sweeping snow off the car all winter, ad nauseum. I prefer walking 2 blocks and waiting 1 to 5 minutes for the bus, on which I have time to read and relax. I prefer riding my bike through the fresh air, pacing myself, rather than getting caught up in traffic snarls. Going in, I thought I’d be willing to sacrifice not having a car. I haven’t yet found out what I’ve had to sacrifice, other than my insurance payment. Oh, I do make it a point to stop in at the Firestone dealer and say hi to my old friends there, still twice a year. I just walk out with my wallet full now.

So Mary, best of luck – and whether you keep your car or not (I do recognize this long column as a thinly veiled ‘car for sale’ ad) – I admire you using it less and less even though you have it available.

You asked for information on how people with families manage without cars and I’d like to share my family’s experiences. Before kids we used to live in Minneapolis and rarely drove our one car – we got around quite easily on bus or bike. Now, we are a family of 4 and we still have one car. My husband is a professor at Wayne State and commutes to Detroit several times per week. I am a stay-at-home mom (but active on city boards and commissions which take me downtown several times each week). My two kids are ages 4.5 and 2 years. We live about 1.5 miles to downtown.

Managing with one car requires planning ahead, creative thinking, and commitment – but it hasn’t been difficult and our family budget benefits greatly from our choice. We chose to live within walking/biking distance of downtown. We chose a preschool for our daughter that was downtown. We focus a lot of our activities downtown (YMCA, library, etc.) My husband used to work in downtown Ann Arbor, but several years ago started teaching at Wayne and made things much trickier. Currently, my husband takes the Amtrak train to/from Detroit several times each week. This is not an ideal mode of transportation as the train doesn’t go to/from Detroit when workers would need it to go there. To do this requires an overnight stay in Detroit … we long for the day that the train becomes a real commuter service. But, in the meantime, he gets lots of work done on the train and leaves me with our car to get around with the kids. I use it more often that I want to admit, but juggling preschool, meetings, errands, etc. in the winter is tough. Warmer weather and safer roads make biking much easier for us. The bus is also an option from our house, but not one that we use too frequently because of the schedule.

Before we figured out the train … Noah needed the car several times a week and I had to figure out how to get around without one. It was much easier with only one child at home (she wasn’t in school yet). We planned our errands and appointments for days when we had the car or we walked downtown. If we needed a car (last minute trip to the doctor or it was raining) we would call a cab. This was much less expensive than owning a second car.

Will we use Zipcar? I think we will, but I’m not yet sure how to fit it into our family’s needs. It’s pretty great to have one more option to add to our list.

In the meantime, I hereby offer free rides to anyone who is near downtown (or west side), car-free, a Zipcar member, or otherwise car-limited and in a bind (e.g., the Zipcar is in use by another member.) The catch? I have a two-seater, so I can only take one person, and I get to say “no can do”, so it’s far from a guaranteed ride. Also, you need to know how to contact me.

Why the offer? I want to facilitate the transition for others (who I know) if at all possible, and if I’m going to continue to own a car, it might as well get more use than the few thousand miles per year that I put on it.

In terms of the money thing, I think that’s something that many people should be thinking about. How much money could you save if you gave up one car and used a Zipcar instead? That alone might be a good sell. Especially since the parking for the Zipcars is free both on campus and downtown.

Thanks again for your coverage! And if anyone wants to check out the new downtown Zipcars, we are having a launch event on March 17th at 10:30am at the Palio Parking Lot. Green cupcakes and green tea for all!

and how often is your car in the shop, forcing you to bum rides? Every mode has its cost/benefits.