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Which would you prefer? "A 2-bdrm, 1500 sq. foot house with a lovely yard in Ahuntsic, near services, $500,000," or "The house of your dreams, a large living area in the most beautiful neighbourhood in the north of the city, urban European style, gardeners' paradise, perfect for a young family, $1.2 million."
Is the more stylized description of the same house fancy enough to justify paying more than twice the price? To ask the question is to answer it.
For most other consumer goods, we readily succumb to the hypnotizing effect of advertisements. After all, we are emotional beings. Think about it, why does advertising exist? Personally, I am constantly swayed by it, especially at the grocery store. I come home with new crackers and my wife points out to me that the other brands sells at half the price. But the packaging was so alluring!
Yet I still resist the GMs and Fords of this world. Pretty women, the need for speed, pictures of cars in nature, none of these have managed to convince me to give up my "transportation cocktail." My family of five gets around on foot, by bike, Communauto, taxi, bus and metro. There aren't many families with three children who make this choice. And yet it makes so much sense economically.
According to CAA Québec, a Camry would cost me about $11,000 a year. That doesn't even include parking. Add to that a bike for running errands closer to home (let's say $200 a year for maintenance and depreciation) and a monthly public transit pass eleven months a year for my wife, who does not drive. Total transportation costs: $12,000 a year.
Our transportation cocktail costs much less. Yet we use a car (Communauto) almost every week. I reserve a day to go skiing with the children, four hours for a family outing with friends, or even an hour to make a drop-off at the eco centre. In short, I have a car when I need one. Our daily trips are made on foot, by bike or public transit. If it's pouring rain, we take a taxi. We want to rent a cottage for the summer holidays? We rent a car for two weeks in a row. Estimated transportation costs: $5000 a year. And that's erring on the side of more expensive.
I can imagine the objections. His example is not realistic. Why does he compare the transportation cocktail to a new car? Can you really walk your kids to daycare? Getting there without a car is certainly harder when you don't live near a metro. Do the calculations for your household. In our case, we are comparing being carless with having one car. We could do the same calculations for one car versus two. I'm not saying that it's easy to go car-free. But it's not easy owning a car, either.
Sure, there are certain advantages to car ownership, the main one probably being the freedom and flexibility of having a car at your disposal around the clock, 365 days a year. Never, as an owner, do you have to change your plans because all the Communauto cars are rented (with car-share services, it is sometimes best to reserve well in advance.)
But there are also advantages to not owning a car. I use the most effective mode of transport for each trip that I have to make. I never spend any time in a garage. I never have to clear out a parking space. I never get tickets for leaving my car on the wrong side of the street. I never have to find a mechanic. I never forget to put on my winter tires. I have calves of steel...
The biggest advantage, though, remains economic. Choosing not to have a car can save you lots and lots of money.
To distract attention away from this enormous cost, the automotive industry invests hundreds of millions of dollars in convincing Quebecers to buy cars. The car culture is so rooted in our mind that the transportation cocktail becomes a tough sell.
If we were to spend a tenth of the budget of the automobile manufacturers on advertising the transportation cocktail, I guarantee you that it would become the norm.
In the meantime, ask yourself, with one less car, could you finally afford the house of your dreams?
The original version of this column by Sidney Ribaux, cofounder and executive director of Equiterre, appeared on the Métro newspaper website.
