L.A. may be the city of the car, but it doesn’t have to be.
Whether you’re looking to cut back on your emissions, or want to connect with your neighborhood on a deeper level — or your soul simply can’t handle another rush hour on the 405 — there are a LOT of reasons to ditch the ol’ automobile.
Cities built for carless travel are safer, greener, and make transportation more efficient. They make getting around cheaper, too.
But the automobile is hardwired into L.A.’s DNA. Our city is literally built around cars — neighborhoods were leveled to make way for freeways, historic buildings were demolished to build surface parking lots.
And it’s not just city infrastructure. We drive to school, we drive to work. We drive to the gym, to the beach, to grandma’s house, the grocery store. How do you part with something that’s so embedded in your daily routine?
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How I gave up my car
Before we get into the tips and tricks, I’ll share a bit of my own car-free journey. I wasn’t born with a love for public transit — far from it.
I’m a born-and-raised Angeleno who started driving when I was 17. My first regular commute was a 45-minute slog across three freeways to get from home to high school — and I never once imagined living in L.A. without a car.
A decade or so later when the lease was up on my car in 2021, I decided I may as well try to save some cash and give the car-free life a try. We made a How To LA episode about that process, and my new commute to work, which you can check out here.
But the moral of that episode is: you don’t need to ditch your car completely, tomorrow, in order to get the benefits of going car-free.
Maybe you can’t give up your car for various reasons — that’s totally fine! It’s so expensive to live in L.A. that many people have to live far from where they work. Or maybe you love your 1995 Subaru too much to part with it. I get it.
The goal isn’t to get rid of CARS; it’s to get rid of car-DEPENDENCY. This guide is meant to make that transition a tiny bit easier.
Start small
Change is easiest when change is fun. If going cold turkey is more your speed, skip to Step 5. But if you’re like me, you’ll need a little more convincing before alternative transit in Los Angeles sounds exciting.
Step 1: Find foot-friendly destinations
Find a cafe, bar, or restaurant within walking distance of your home, and make a habit of walking there. Show it off to your friends and brag that you have such a great spot within such a quick walk. If you don’t have anything like that within say a mile of your home, make it a park or a library.
The idea is to train yourself to expect that walking can be exciting and productive. For your first goal, try to go to this spot at least two or three times per week.
Step 2: Shop local, shop often
Most residents in L.A. County live within a mile of their nearest grocery store. In places like West Hollywood, South Gate, Hawthorne, or Echo Park, that number is above 76%. In the valley, Inglewood and Downey, that number is still nearly 60%.
Even in areas known as food deserts like Lynwood or East L.A., at least 39% of residents live within walking distance of a grocery store.
Your closest market might be a lot closer than you think. Of course, not everyone can get around on foot or bicycle, or carry things long distance. But if you’re able to do so, take advantage! Though counterintuitive, it’s been proven to be cheaper and healthier to buy what you need the day you need it, and avoid shopping in bulk.
For your second goal, try buying what you need for dinner after work every day for a week. Breaking routines takes practice and repetition — but it helps when it tastes great and saves you money!
Ramping up the stakes
By now you’ve fallen in love with a spot that’s walking distance from your home, and you’ve bragged about it to your friends. Maybe you’re still buying your groceries every day or every other day. Nice!
It’s time to start experimenting with your routines.
Step 3: Discover new modes of transit
L.A. has a subway — a fact I’m not ashamed to say took 26 years of living here for me to internalize. We also have the third largest bus fleet in North America, and our flat, wide streets are excellent for bicycling.
Let’s be realistic: none of these are perfect. Bus service can be infrequent, the subway and light rail network has limited connectivity, and the safety of our bike lanes (where they exist) leaves a lot to be desired.
And we have have to be honest about safety concerns on LA Metro. Reports of violent crime last year increased about 14% over pre-pandemic levels. After the stabbing death of a woman at a Metro train stop in Studio City, the Metro Board of Directors declared a state of emergency to step up safety measures, including barriers for bus drivers.
All of this is unsettling and worth considering, depending on where you live, what time of day you'll be riding and your comfort level. And it's also worth framing these safety concerns within the context of the dangers posed by cars.
That all said, from my almost-daily experience riding either the train, my bike or the bus, I'd argue at least one of these alternative modes of transit is a better experience than you may expect.
Metro: Buses and trains
Just about everyone living in L.A. County lives within a 5-minute walk from a bus stop or train station. There are 101 train stations operated by LA Metro, including light rail and the subway network, with more on the horizon. There are also 120 bus routes that operate along nearly 12,000 stops throughout the county.
All services operated by LA Metro, and 26 other agencies across L.A. County, use TAP for fare payment. A $1.75 “tap” is a good deal for 2.5 hours of unlimited transfers throughout all of the services that accept it.
You can get a physical card for $2 at any train station, or you can use the TAP app on your phone. (From personal experience, the app is the easiest option.)
All busses are equipped with hydraulic ramps for wheelchairs, and subway and light rail trains have designated areas for people with disabilities on every car. Some subway stations along the D line (Purple) have frequent elevator outages, but the 720 Rapid bus line stops at all the same places and is only a few minutes slower, making it a viable alternative.
Find the bus and train stops nearest your home, and see where they lead. The Transit App is my top recommendation for finding nearby routes, but Google Maps works pretty well, too.
My colleagues and I also put together a story on how to ride the bus earlier this year.
Choose a spot along one of those routes for food or entertainment, and make an evening of it. Pro tip: if you’re planning to have some adult beverages on your night out, you don’t have to worry about drinking and driving if you’re riding the bus!
Bikes and e-bikes
Buying a bike doesn’t have to be a huge investment, and it's much cheaper than a car. I got a 1984 classic Italian bike for $300 on Ebay, and after a $50 tuneup at my local bike shop it rides great. If you’re patient, you can find something on Craigslist or other listing sites for even less.
If an electric bike is more your speed, it’s probably a lot less expensive than you may expect if you take advantage of available incentives.
You can get up to $2,000 back from the state of California if you make less than three times the federal poverty level, or about $45,000 a year.
Anyone can get a $500 rebate if they live in Pasadena, and you may be able to get an e-bike for free if you’re a Pacoima resident.
Bike lanes, bike roads, and neighborhood streets
Now that you have your bike, it’s time to learn where to ride it. This isn’t an extra step in many other cities around the world, where non-motorized travel is a higher priority. Unfortunately, in L.A., it’s not so simple.
More and more streets are starting to offer protected bike lanes. If you’re lucky enough to have a few of these in your neighborhood, nice!
If you’re like me, you’re not so lucky.
I live near 4th Street in Mid City, which is a “designated bike route.” In practice that means faded bicycle decals are painted onto the street and I share a lane with cars. This is the case for most of the bike routes near me.
Sometimes these streets feel safe enough, but not usually. I often find myself taking lower-trafficked neighborhood streets instead of the official bike route when the official route is also a major car thoroughfare, like Fountain or Vine.
This map shows all the different bike paths in L.A. County, with distinctions like “Bike Path,” “Bike Lane,” “Bike Route,” and “Bike Blvd.”
But I’d recommend just choosing the bicycle option on Google Maps, and plan to make adjustments when it asks you to take hop onto something that feels like an urban highway.
It’s easy to link up a bike route with a train route, which is how I get to Pasadena for work. It’s a little more stressful on a bus, but people do it.
Important note: Don’t forget to grab yourself a rechargeable headlight and taillight for riding at night, and definitely don’t forget a helmet.
Step 4: Identify your loops
This step is easier written than done, but it’s time to modify your routine. Most of our travel is recurring. To and from work, to and from the gym, or to and from a family member’s house.
Identify one of these loops and travel it via public transit, biking, or walking. Then do it again so you get comfortable with the idea.
Then do it again, and again.
Commit to the bit
By now you could lead a walking tour of your neighborhood, and you have a bike or have your TAP card on your phone. You’ve taken the bus for either work or play, and you’ve probably beat your car-driving peers to the destination at least a handful of times.
If that’s you, it might be time to take the final plunge.
Step 5: Sell your dang car
It’s finally time. The moment we’ve been building to all along. Maybe you, like the average Angeleno, have two cars in your household. Or maybe you, like me, finished the lease on your car and want to try out a bike before taking on another expensive lease.
Either way, it’s go time.
Selling your car is actually pretty easy. Apps like Carvana and CarMax give decently competitive prices, and people use Craigslist all the time. As a last resort you can probably sell your car back to your dealer, but that’s usually the least profitable option — especially if you have an end-of-lease purchase option.
(You could also donate your car to LAist to power local journalism!)
When the lease on my Honda Civic ended in 2021, I was able to sell it for about $9,000 more than the end-of-lease purchase price. After DMV fees and taxes, that meant a profit of about $7,000.
(Now that pandemic-level supply chain issues are easing, you might not be able to replicate those numbers. But experts still recommend taking advantage of end-of-lease purchases when possible.)
I purchased my bike for $300, and after a tune-up, some new handlebars, and two years of TAP card payments for my metro fare, I still have over $6,000 left over.
Add that to the savings of NOT having a car payment, not paying for gas or insurance, and I’ve saved a little over $15,000 in 18 months of living car-free.
Epilogue
Going car-free is L.A.’s greenest transit option, but that alone isn't always the strongest motivator. But it’s also great for your wallet, and studies show there’s psychological and economic benefits for people and cities.
If you’re not ready to go all the way and ditch your car for good, that’s OK! But maybe, as you and other Angelenos around you start weaving alternative modes of transit into your life, a less car congested city can become a reality for all of us.
