Can we get by without a car?

We are moving to Scotland on June 4th to work as youth pastors at a local church.  We found a house and it is 1.5 miles from the church we'll be working at and our daughter's school is only 1/2 mile from the house.  Those are the 2 main places we'll be going (aside from grocery shopping of course). 

With that said,do you think it is feasible to not buy a car, but instead use public transportation.  We can get one if we have to, but we honestly would like to not have that expense every month (gas, insurance, etc).  If we need a car for a day or a weekend, we can rent something.  I also read about this thing called City Carshare that is becoming more popular, so that's also an option too.

Would love to hear your thoughts. 

Thanks!
Melissa

Whereabouts in Scotland? We live in Inverness with no car and do OK but there's no denying a lot of things would be easier if we had one.

We'll be living in Whitburn (20 mins from Edinburgh).  I won't deny that it'd be easier and much more convenient to have a car, but if we can do without there, we'd love to.  I just hate to spend $600-700/month out of our budget for a car that we will drive as little as possible, you know?

Melissa

I lived quite easily without a car for the first 6 years here, including having 2 small children.  It is, of course, more convenient having a car, but you will probably find that you can get by on public transport without a problem.  If in doubt, ask one of your church members if they think it is feasible.

Getting around Whitburn itself would be fine without a car (you could probably walk everywhere) but getting to a big supermarket or to go to a shopping centre would probably involve a bus journey.   

Buses aren't as frequent as they would be in the City, to get from Whitburn to Livingston (big shopping centres in Livingston plus easier links into Edinburgh) takes over 30 minutes but they are around every 15/20 mins.

Check out:

www.westlothian.gov.uk/
http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/scotland/sescot/timetables/?serviceno=&destination=Whitburn&operator=

We have a car but don't spend anywhere near that much on it.... DH pays the tax and insurance so I'm not 100% sure what that is, but our car payment (on a brand new car at that) is around £260 and petrol runs about £160 at the very most per month. I'd think £500 a month would be a high estimate.

We live in the 'burbs in England and could get by without a car, but I shudder to think how long it would take me to get errands done now that I'm working full time....

Thanks everyone.  I think we'll at least give it a try. I really think we can make do without it but it feels better having others agree.  It takes us 30 minutes to get anywhere but our city here in Texas, and that's even using a car, so I have no problem with it taking 30 minutes to take a bus somewhere.

Anne, I actually meant $600-700 (USD).  We raised our funds in the states, so I convert everything in my head still because our budget is in USD.

Thanks again!
Melissa

We don't live where you are going to be living.  We have a car, but we could live without it - it sits in the garden about 5-6 days each week out of 7 because we use public transportation for commuting to work & we walk a lot of places too.  Still it's nice to have the car at the weekend, if we want to go to a grocery store that's farther away or do a day trip somewhere - or off to see my in-laws, stuff like that.  But as you said perhaps you could rent a car for things like that.  You might be able to arrange grocery delivery to where you live also - depending on the stores around and your post code.

We'll be living in Whitburn (20 mins from Edinburgh).  I won't deny that it'd be easier and much more convenient to have a car, but if we can do without there, we'd love to.  I just hate to spend $600-700/month out of our budget for a car that we will drive as little as possible, you know?

Melissa

Hi there... i just wanted to mention that Whitburn is more than 20 minutes from Edinburgh.  In fact, in rush hour traffic, it's probably at least an hour. 
I live in West Lothian too, and i would say it would be tough to live in Whitburn without a car... there's no train station or anything there.

I'd say in Edinburgh itself you'd be fine without one.  I'd check out what options there are for doing your shopping in Whitburn - as in what supermarkets are there.

We had a car in Edinburgh but we only used it when we wanted to do a big shop or go out of the town for the most part.

However, as we no longer live near a city, a car is a necessity.

Are you being paid in dollars?

I am not in Scotland, but here in Cambridge if someone is already on the bus with a stroller the next person is out of luck and has to wait for the next one.  It does depend on the type of bus, but it can really slow things down.

Hi there... i just wanted to mention that Whitburn is more than 20 minutes from Edinburgh.  In fact, in rush hour traffic, it's probably at least an hour. 
I live in West Lothian too, and i would say it would be tough to live in Whitburn without a car... there's no train station or anything there.

I agree with all that.  A friend lives in Whitburn and it is a bit remote for me, but then i'm a city girl.

We don't live where you are going to be living.  We have a car, but we could live without it - it sits in the garden about 5-6 days each week out of 7 because we use public transportation for commuting to work & we walk a lot of places too.  Still it's nice to have the car at the weekend, if we want to go to a grocery store that's farther away or do a day trip somewhere - or off to see my in-laws, stuff like that.  But as you said perhaps you could rent a car for things like that.  You might be able to arrange grocery delivery to where you live also - depending on the stores around and your post code.

That seems to be the case with my car as well- I live really close to work, so I can walk and I can hop the bus into town really easily, which is easier than actually driving and then parking, etc.  But it made it nice to be able to get to Ullapool and back this past weekend at my own time period without relying on the buses, etc.
Haleysmom have you been to the area in which you're going to live yet?  I lived here for 4 months without a car and I could easily make do, but I am really enjoying having one, at least knowing I can get wherever without having to rely on public transport. 

Something to keep in mind is that if you are on a strict budget, look on those websites and figure out how much using public transport costs out there.

I'm in a rural area myself and it's £2.10 for a single into town 13 miles away.

It's not excatly small change if you're using it often enough.

Another is that if you change your mind about getting a car, after 1 year you will need to have passed both parts of the British driving exam in order to legally drive here.

These are not cheap, nor is getting a provisional license.  

So if you do decide to go for driving, try and get those tests passed before your year is up - as after that time you will need to drive with 'L' learner plates and a fully licensed driver over the age of 21 who's held his/her license for 3 years or more.

But as you said perhaps you could rent a car for things like that. 

When my ex and I lived in New York, we rented a car for (rare) excursions. It was much less expensive than owning and maintaining a car.