Driving is getting more and more expensive so while it may seem extreme, giving up your car is worth considering if you’re looking for a way to save. Here are 8 alternatives that will help you to get from A to B for less.
If you're a slave to your car, the thought of life without it can seem like a faintly preposterous idea - for most of us it's an essential that it's hard to imagine life without.
However, with the cost of driving getting ever more expensive, it's likely that keeping your four wheels on the road is putting extra pressure on your household budget.
There are more alternatives to car ownership than ever before so if you're willing to think outside the box and explore your options you could find that you're able to get rid of your car completely - and make a huge saving as a result.
Check out our top 8 alternatives and see if you save cash by selling up:
1. Car Share
Car sharing is a convenient alternative to owning your own car – and it has the added bonus of being good for the environment as well as your finances.
If the commute to work is your main reason for owning your own vehicle, lift sharing with someone making the same journey is an easy way to save.
Whether you want to arrange a one off trip or regular journeys you can search for others travelling in the same directing by using the National Car Share network. It’s as simple as finding someone to lift share with, arranging a pick up point and agreeing a contribution towards petrol.
Many large companies also organise their own car pooling schemes where you can sign up to arrange lifts to and from work so this is worth checking out.
2. Drive & Go
If you need the flexibility that a car offers then you could save money by renting a car on a pay-as-you-go basis rather than owning one outright.
Car clubs are popping up left right and centre and, once you register as a member, give you the freedom to use a selection of cars as and when you need. Cars are parked in designated locations in cities across the UK and members can simply unlock and drive them.
This obviously has lots of benefits: you have access to a car when you need it, you don’t need to worry about tax and insurance, and you can drive a nice car without having to fork out for maintenance. So it can prove a serious money saver if you don’t need a car every day.
Unsurprisingly there are a growing number of companies vying for your business all promising to save you money with as little hassle possible.
Below are some of the most popular car clubs currently operating in the UK:
City Car Club
City Car Club currently have cars based in locations across 13 cities in the UK and operate by issuing their members smart cards. These cards can then be programmed to unlock specific cars across their network once you have booked them for an agreed time slot.
Annual membership to City Car Club costs £50 a year with hourly rates ranging between £4.95 to £7.95 depending on the car that you want to hire. There is also a mileage charge on top which at the time of writing is 19p per mile.
Street Car
Street Car operate in a similar way to City Car Club by issuing smart cards to their members but are currently on operating in 10 locations across the UK. A 1 year membership with Street Car currently costs £59.90 with hourly hire rates starting at £4.95 for a small car and climbing to £8.95 for a van.
Unlike City Car Club, Street Car includes 30 miles per 24 hour booking and unlimited driving on bookings over 72 hours. Beyond any included miles the current mileage charge stands at 23p per mile.
Zip Car
Zip Car also follows a similar approach to City Car Club and Street Car by using smart cards to unlock its fleet of hire cars.
At present Zip Car are only offering their services in London. However for those that live in the capital they're worth a look as the annual membership starts from just £25 depending on your usage with hourly rates of £3.95 to £4.95. Zip Car also include 60 free miles with each hire and include extra costs such as the congestion charge and fuel in their hire fees.
3. Rent a Car
While car clubs offer great flexibility, if you don’t live in one of the cities where they operate and need to use a car, renting on an ad-hoc basis rather than owning out-right can still prove cost effective.
As well as more traditional car rental companies such as Avis, Enterprise and Hertz you could also look to rent a car from a private owner through an online network such as Whip Car.
Unlike the other companies Whip Car does not operate and maintain its own vehicles, instead it allows registered users to rent out their car when they’re not using it for cash This means that you’re able to hire private vehicles at locations across the UK.
If you are looking to rent a car then there is no cost to join Whip Car, however each private owner can set the cost of each booking and decided exactly what to include in terms of free mileage so you will need to be clear exactly what you are expected pay for when using the service.
Before going ahead with any rental agreement it’s worth shopping around for several quotes; whether it’s traditional car hire companies or private individuals on Whip car, make sure you get the best deal possible and make the biggest saving!
4. Bike it
Hopping on your bike and cycling is a great alternative to owning a car and, apart from buying the bike itself, there is very little expense involved. Add that it will keep you healthy while doing your bit for the environment and the reasons to switch to pedal power soon start to mount up.
In recent years the government has also tried to encourage us to get on our bikes by making buying one more affordable.
The Cycle to Work Scheme allows you to pay for a new bike on a ‘pay as you earn’ basis - meaning you pay for the bike from your gross salary before the tax man gets his hands on it!
This could potentially save up to 43% off the cost of a new bike making switching to pedal power even more attractive. For more information read our guide How Cycle Scheme Can Save You Money with a Tax-Free Bike for Work.
Another way you can get your hands on a bike without spending a fortune is to look online for a cheap second hand bike. Websites such as Gumtree and Freecycle often have bicycles available for free or at a greatly reduced price.
You may also want to look on auction sites such as eBay or Bumble Bee Auctions - a police auction site that sells seized goods - for some bargain bikes.
If you live in London then you can also join the Barclays London Cycle Hire Scheme where you can pick up a bike from hundreds of bike stations across the city and pay per hour. So you get all the benefits of cycling without owning your own bike!
5. Get on the Bus
If you mainly use your car for one route in particular, the commute work for instance, then you may want to look into going by bus instead.
Most local bus services offer monthly or annual tickets which can offer significant savings if you use them on a regular basis.
To work out if it’s worthwhile simply find out how much you would spend each week if you bought your ticket on the day and multiple to figure to get your annual cost.
Once you have an idea just compare this to the cost of running your car (not forgetting extras like parking and congestion charges) to find out which is cheaper.
Equally if you are planning a one off trip then booking a coach ticket in advance could mean you pay as little as £1 with National Express or Megabus.
6. Hop on a Train
If you travel long distances commuting by train is worth considering; after all you’ll be able to relax on your journey and often get to your destination far quicker.
However if you are concerned by the perceived expense of travelling by train you may be surprised just how it stacks up compared to the cost of owning a car.
Remember that it is all the additional extra costs of owning a car such as parking, tax and insurance, services and maintenance that can push up the price. Once you’ve added in all these extras you may find using a train will still be cheaper.
There are also ways that you may be able to travel for less; being able to book in advance will usually save a significant amount and if you can be flexible on the time you travel there are big discounts to be had on off peak tickets.
Alternatively you may want to look into getting a railcard of some description to get money of fares.
7. Walk
While it’s unlikely you will be able to replace your car by simply walking everywhere, there are lots of advantages to using your own two legs wherever possible.
Firstly, you can certainly subsidise other travel expenses by walking; after all it is the one form of transport that is totally free.
Secondly, it is the most reliable form of transport possible - once you know how long a route will take it is unlikely to be affected by anything else.
In essence although it may take you longer to walk to your destination you won’t need to worry about traffic, tube strikes or train delays ever again! In fact walking is proving to be increasingly popular for the urban commuter.
Websites such as Walkit.com offer customised walking routes and timings for cities across the UK and other route planners including Multimap now include walking routes in their searches.
So why not substitute some of your shorter journeys for walking? It’ll keep you fit and certainly save you some cash!
8. Take a Taxi
While travelling by taxi on a daily basis could prove quite expensive, making the odd chauffeur-driven trip can still prove cost effective.
When you take into consideration the cost of car insurance, car tax and petrol as well as any other maintenance costs; the price of a taxi as and when you need it could well end up being significantly less.
Mix and Match
All of the different alternatives listed have different benefits as well as various drawbacks. However they also complement each other.
If you are really serious about ditching your car then there is no reason why you can’t utilise lots of different methods of transport to suit your needs.
Perhaps the best approach is not to look for a direct replacement for your car but to ask what is the best way for me to travel on this journey today?
Ultimately when deciding whether to give up your car it may come down to cost. You’ll need to calculate how much some of the alternatives above might cost and compare it to the amount you spend keeping your car each year, not forgetting to take into account essentials such as car insurance, car tax and fuel.
