Life without Driving. Try to Avoid Driving as much as Possible.

For any young employee today, I would encourage him to find a job position that allows him to work from home or at least find a job location with a very short commute.

The job that I have today requires me to commute 20 miles one way to get to the office.
Because of horrible city traffic, I find myself waking up too early to avoid morning traffic and working well past the evening to avoid rush hour.

The total time I spend driving per day is 80 minutes (at best) to more than 2 hours (at worst).

In 2011, I spent $4,000 to $4,500 on gas and insurance combined.

Considering that in 2011, my total expenses for the year was $7,600; gas and insurance accounted for more than half of my living expenses that year.

Where I live, public transportation is completely useless to get to my office. It is more expensive and takes longer if I ride the transit.

The $4,000 of expenses only included gas and insurance. When owning a car, there are other expenses that add up over time.

Taking the car in for service can cost a few hundred dollars depending on what has to be fixed.
Parts have to be replaced such as the tires.
Regular maintenance includes oil changes and replacement air filters.
Ad valor em taxes have to be paid each year so you can get a tag to legally drive.
Emissions have to be done each year.


When I do retire, I'll make sure to stop driving my car in order to save a few thousand dollars each year. Doing so will drastically limit my mobility, but I think the added freedom of needing less money is worth it.