Could you ever give up your car? 

Climate policy researcher Sadhb O’Neill recently gave up her car and said she “hasn’t looked back” since. 

She added that she increasingly feels like people are “really quite addicted to their cars” - even if there are alternatives available. 

On Lunchtime Live, listener Colm rang up to say he had been car free “all my life” and said it was perfectly possible to live a life without one. 

“A lot of the time I’ve lived in Dublin and close enough to town,” he said. 

“So, I’ve never really needed a car... I’ve always cycled, for example.” 

At the moment, he lives in Harold’s Cross and feels he is “fairly well serviced by my bike”. 

Traffic in Dublin. Picture by: Leah Farrell/© RollingNews.ie

Sometimes he rents a car but has never thought to buy one. 

“I’ve never needed it,” he said. 

“I remember even there might be gigs on at Marley Park and cycling out to those… and the weather never really puts me off. 

“I’ve always just been happy to get on the bike and cycle.” 

Cyclists with heavy traffic heading down the North Quays at Batchelor's Walk in Dublin. Picture by: Photo: Leah Farrell/ © RollingNews.ie

However, Colm admitted that transport choice can never be a “one size fits all”, with so many different needs and abilities in society. 

“It’s very easy for me to say, ‘Get on a bike’ - but if you’ve a gaggle of kids, that’s a difficult thing to do,” he said. 

“But the one thing about cars is, even if you’re in a rush, you don’t necessarily get there any quicker given the amount of cars on the road. 

“So, in theory the car sounds like it should get you from a to b quicker, but does it always? 

“I don’t think so.” 

Colm added that more public transport could help encourage more people out of their cars. 

“I think a lot of people would or might give some consideration to ditching the car if that bus service [could be] banked on,” he said. 

Main image: Cyclists and cars in Dublin. Picture by: Leah Farrell/© RollingNews.ie