I've always tried very hard to use public transit when i have to, but use my bike most of all. There was a period when I lived in rural Iowa when I couldn't, but the first thing I did when I got out of a rural situation was sell the car. That was 10 years ago, and I've kept all the money that you are spending on gas, tires, oil changes, insurance, registration, maintenance and upkeep and car payments, parking and all other car costs and reduced my expenses to about $125 per year, and that's mostly a new set of bike tires, and if I stayed out of the hills and quit trail riding (not likely) I could get that down to new tires every 3 years or so.
I really got into that entire notion back when I was in High School and we had the very first Earth Day. (Yeah, I'm that old). I'd imagine over the years I've saved way over $100K doing that. Easy.
One of the chief ideas of all the Earth Day stuff was that these changes would make not only make the planet better off, but radically improve your own life and I'm pretty much convinced that my reactions, my stamina, my strength and avoiding becoming too chubby to really be of much good to myself or anyone else is directly related to riding a bike at every possible opportunity, and walking a hell of a lot too when I could not ride. It give me a very real and powerful sense of my place in the world. It's also allowed me to feel connected to the world - as opposed to removed from it, cocooned in a couple of tons of glass and metal, removed and distant from everyone else, and everything else.
So HAPPY EARTH DAY! Everyone has choices, all you have to do is have the courage to live them out.
