Walking Instead of Driving

Now that gas prices are reaching record levels people are looking for ways to save money on gas. One way you can save money is by walking instead of driving. The option of walking might be more feasible than you think. I used to think that it would take too long for me to walk to school. Even if you can't walk for your daily commute you can still save money by walking to do errands whenever feasible. Another benefit of walking instead of driving is that you get extra exercise. You not only save money on gas but you burn off extra calories. Your only cost for walking is the food required to give you energy. Since most Americans are overweight they have extra calories to burn and do not need to buy any more food to have the energy to walk.

When you are selecting somewhere to live you should try to be close to your job or school or wherever you will be commuting to most often. If you can also find somewhere that is close to all your shopping that is a good bonus.

I didn't get started walking until I had to do without my car. When my car needed repairs last week so I had to walk to school. I was pleasantly surprised that the walk only took about 20-25 minutes which is less than what I thought. I really should walk to school everyday. It would save gas and provide me with needed exercise.

Now that my car is fixed I should continue walking to school but it is too easy to drive. I didn't walk today because it looked like it might rain. I can see myself making these types of excuses pretty often. What I discovered last week is that I don't really need a car. When the option of driving is removed I find another way to get where I need to go. The only reason I can justify having a car now is that I might need it for my future job. When I get a job if the job doesn't require me to have a car I might sell my car. This would save me money on gas, insurance, repairs, registration and whatnot. The drawback is my car isn't worth much so the best way to get the full value out of my car is to drive it until it just won't go any more. And the fact that I like the freedom of being able to hop in the car and drive somewhere whenever I feel like it. I just have to decide if the drawbacks are bigger than the money saving advantages.