There have been two things to come up recently to give me reason to question ownership of stuff. Firstly, I’ve been musing for ages about selling my car. I have yet to go through with it, but it’s still in the plan. Secondly, I still don’t have a fixed phone at my new house.
The car
When I first moved to Christchurch in 2002, I spent about 3 weeks without a car. It didn’t last long. Before the end of the month, I owned a 1996 5th Generation Honda Prelude. I enjoyed driving it, but I hated the amount of time and energy put into tracking down the source of the 4-wheel-steering problem, which persisted into my life in Auckland.
Attempting to live in Auckland without a car is akin to a death sentence. I certainly hope it has improved in the last 2 years, but it was a nightmare when I lived there. The car was a curse and a blessing; the latter being due to the bus system being an actual death sentence. The city is a victim of sprawl and bad design. I don’t think I’d even contemplated the possibility of existing there without a car over my 18 month stay.
Moving to Wellington changed everything – the city is compact, well serviced by transit1 and has a decent amount of foot traffic. It was a trigger that caused me to think of life sans-auto. This is where the real question starts – should I sell it?
Owning the car, but not driving, has costs. Licensing is just shy of $100 for 6 months. It’s a bit cheaper to pay a full year, but no thanks. A “warrant of fitness” is carried out every 6 months, costing around $50 plus any repair work needed to pass everything. Finally, there’s insurance. Mine isn’t stupidly expensive, but it’s on the order of $500/year. That’s about $800 to own the car. Petrol and maintenance is on top of that. There are two reasons why I like to have the car handy: road trips and for when I’m late. As it turns out, there are solutions to each problem: car rental agencies and planning ahead. Sure, it’s not quite that simple, but practice makes it easier.
Several problems are avoided by getting rid of the car, too:
- I live close to Massey University, which means that my street is all restricted parking.
- Petrol prices are always increasing. The lack of stress is underrated.
- People keep nudging my bumpers when they’re parking.
- I’m forced to think about where I need to be, and plan better for it.
This one really is a no-brainer. I don’t need a car. It’s a drain on me. Time for it to go. And that’s without getting into the politics.
The phone
I have an ADSL connection at home. This connects through the copper phone lines, but technically does not require phone service to be active. However, there isn’t a provider in Wellington that allows for abandoning the fixed phone line entirely. With my mobile phone, I already have coverage, so why do I need two? Well, there is a reason. According to Vodafone’s international calling rates for mobiles, calling Canada is a rip-off compared to their fixed-line rates. The question really comes down to whether paying $41/month + $5/call capped is any cheaper than $0.49/min. If all my calls home are long, sure. I’ve abused this in the past and would happily do it again.
As it is, I don’t really have an option. My house isn’t able to carry Telstra Clear’s cable service, because it’s in an apartment block2. I’m already paying for the fixed line, so I might as well use it for my calls home, too.
1 Well serviced is loosely true. It could be much, much better, and will need to improve several times over before a popular mode shift can occur.
2 Given that the building I live in is less than 5 years old, this is a critical failure in design. Why developers are allowed to cut out anything useful in the name of lowering costs is beyond me. Damn them all to heck!
