JimLiving in Europe as an expat usually means living in a city. Most European cities are not very car friendly (lots of traffic, narrow one way streets and expensive parking), and this is a good thing! But it requires a bit of a change in viewpoint when coming from America where the car reigns supreme. When Michal and I moved to France, we left the car behind (actually we were car-free for a year earlier, but that’s another story). Why? And what do we do to get around now? Read on!
Why?
We could discuss all day the ecological benefits to leaving a car behind. And we do enjoy having a lighter carbon footprint, but we are not what I would call “enviromenatlists”. Truthfully, if something is too inconvenient, we aren’t going to do it just to be “eco” or “green”.
The reasons we are car-free are much more selfish.
- Money: We’ve found that we save thousands of euros per year by ditching the car.
- Efficiency: We are able to get around the city much more quickly because we don’t get stuck in traffic and we don’t have to search for parking.
- Health: When we lived in Texas and drove everywhere (and I mean everywhere. I think we drove to the grocery store about a 5 minute walk away) we struggled to get a couple thousand steps in. We gained weight even though we were dieting and exercising. And we got winded walking up to our 2nd floor (European 1st floor) apartment! Now, I’d have to stuggle to get less than 7000 steps in, but I don’t feel like I’m “working out”. It’s just daily life!
So, how do we do it? Well, although we do walk quite a bit, that doesn’t cover everything. We make use of various modes of transportation.
Public Transport
Public transport is key and one of the reasons that it’s so easy to live car-free in Europe. We have buses that you actually want to take. They don’t get stuck in traffic and are actually clean! Then there’s the metro (subway, tube, underground, whatever else you may call it) that gets you from one end of the city to the other faster than any car can.
And all of this runs so frequently that you don’t even need to plan. I don’t think I’ve ever really looked at a bus or metro schedule. I just show up at the stop and may have to wait 10 minutes… on a Sunday… if there’s a problem!
I’ll also include in this section long range trains. We take these anytime we’re going between cities here in France. This is a great alternative to driving. We can relax, get some work done and even have a glass of wine and burger from the bar car. Plus, the high spead trains (TGV here in France) are so quick that they regularly beat car travel times by an hour or more.
Bikes
Bike friendly cities are getting more and more popular in Europe. Recently, during the COVID pandemic, Paris even transformed into a bikers heaven. But even those cities that aren’t thought of as “bike friendly” are perfectly safe and easy to bike in.
Now, this doesn’t mean you need to own a bike. We don’t currently have bikes, but we bike all the time. We mostly use the cities bike share programs to get arround. In Lyon, the bike share program is called Velo’v and is only €31/year. The stations are no more that a couple hundred meters from each other, so we never have to go far.
Every major city in Europe we’ve been to has a bike share program of some sort and they all work basically the same way. They’re a great alternative to owning a bike, especially since you never have to worry about having your bike stolen.
Ride Share
It’s raining and you need to get to the train station or your friends house in the suburbs, what do you do? Uber, Bolt and Lyft are all great options. €15 to get to the train station dry and quick is well worth it.
Here in France, we also have another service called BlaBlaCar. This is great for long distance rides. Maybe you need to get from Paris to Lyon and you don’t want to take the train for some reason. Maybe you need to get to a small town in between that doesn’t have any other convenient option. You can basically rent a seat in someones car as they are going the same place. You may have to plan ahead though, since you will likely need to schedule in advance. And there may not be any available cars going your way.
Car Share
No this is not a repeat of the above. We’re talking about cars that are yours to drive, not taxi like services. Sometimes, we do need to car. Unfortunately, bikes and buses don’t cover everything. Maybe you need to pick something up at Ikea or do a big grocery run in the rain. Having access to a car can be indispensable. What do we do? We use car share programs.
In Lyon, there are several services available and what you have depends on the city you’re in. But you can usually find three types of services:
- Round trip hourly rentals: In Lyon we have a service called Citiz that is run by the parking authority. They have stations throughout the city where you can rent a car by the hour or day and return it to the same place when you’re done. You can also reserve a car for a future date. I find this helpful for picking up friends from the airport or train station when we don’t want to make them take an Uber.
- Personal vehicle rentals: The big name in this category is GetAround. You can find vehicles all over Europe and America. Basically, you are renting an individuals car when they aren’t using it. I find these are a great alternative to the big names like Hertz, Avis, Sixt, etc. One big advantage is that you can usually get the car without interacting with anyone using an app on your phone to unlock it. I should mention that this could be linked with point 1 since the cars can be rented by the hour, but I find the price to be a bit high when the insurance cost isn’t spread over several hours or days.
- Hourly point to point rentals: These are the most convenient. You use the app to find a car parked close by, unlock it, and drive where ever you want. When you get to your destination, you can park anywhere in their service area. No need to make a round trip. In Lyon, we have Zity and Leo & Go that cover this service.
If you take any of these services and compare the per hour cost to owning a car, the cost seems high. But, you only use them when you need them, and that’s not often if you’re not using a car for work.
Long Term Rentals
Of course, we all take vacation. That’s one of the great things about living as an expat! So, what do we do for road trips?
This is where the long(er) term rental companies like Hertz, Avis, Sixt, Europcar, etc. come in. If we need a car for more than a day, we go with one of these.
I find that I prefer this to taking a road trip in our own car (when we had one). You always have a new, clean vehicle to drive and it just ends up being more comfortable. Can the price be high? Again if we compare per day cost to owning a car, yes. But we only rent a car like this a few times a year. It comes out to being much cheaper in the long run.
Conclusion
Living car-free in France is not only possible but also enjoyable! With an extensive public transportation system, walking and biking-friendly cities, and car rental services available when needed, living without a car can be a great option for those looking to reduce their carbon footprint, save money and improve their heath.
To start, research the public transportation options in your city or region. Many cities have trains, buses, and trams that can take you where you need to go. If you need to travel further, consider taking the train or a long-distance bus.
In addition, invest in a good pair of walking shoes. Many European cities have bike-sharing programs and bike lanes to make cycling a convenient and safe option. And when walking or cycling, you’ll have the opportunity to see the sights and experience the culture up close.
Living car-free may require some adjustments, but with the right mindset, it can be a great way to live sustainably and experience all that your adopted country has to offer.
