Cars are not sustainable, they pollute the air by the carbon dioxide they release. Especially with all the cars we have right now on this planet, we have a problem. For a long while, I had chosen not to be a part of that problem. This had multiple reasons, which I’ll come to later. However, I’ve made up my mind after a long time. I’ve decided to get my drivers license. Today I’ll tell you why.
Cars pollute
In 2014 it was estimated that we had 1.2 billion cars, spread over the whole world. Most cars nowadays run on fossil fuels, so that makes 1.2 billion little vehicles polluting the world. It’s one of those things what people think of when they want to do something for the environment, drive less. That’s because it is so obvious. You are burning fossil fuels at that moment while you are driving, with a bike you are not. Besides that, we are all so horrible inefficient when it comes to cars and I hate inefficiency. I mean, most of us have a huge car that fits about 5 persons and a abnormal amount of luggage while most of the time we sit in there alone. It bothers me.
When I am on the road, all I see around me is people sitting alone in a car, it’s awful. And that makes me come to my next point: even if we drive electric, we won’t solve the problem. Yes, it saves the fossil fuels problem, but then we deal with a whole new problem. There won’t be enough material to make all those batteries for the cars, so thinking that everyone in this world can drive electric is just an illusion. It’s just not possible the way our systems works right now.
Why I never wanted a drivers license
Well, the reasons above are obvious. I don’t want to pollute and a car pollutes, so that is clear. That’s why I have always chosen to go by train, bus or bike. It’s clean and it mostly solves the problem we have with inefficiency too. I mean, trains are made for more than one person and actually get used by more than one person, cars don’t. Also, in a car you can’t do anything else than drive, now that’s inefficient! In a train you can do anything, some extra work, write blogposts, read a book and even more. It’s just much more fun in my opinion.
And besides that, humans make horrible and deadly mistakes in cars. I have so much faith in a self-driving car, it would be amazing in my opinion. If we change the system and have only self-driving cars, the number of accidents can fall dramatically, because all cars are adapted to one system. I mean, that’s what we have done with planes, and it works so well (talking efficiency, because planes are still polluting, that’s why I am boycotting the industry)!
Why I do want a drivers license now
So, even with all the reasons I just mentioned, I have decided to go for a drivers license. I just wanted to write a blogpost on this to explain it a bit. If I can, because right now it feels kind of weird still. Now what is it that makes me want it in the end? It’s freedom. I am so reliable on everybody else in situations I can’t change.
When my boyfriend and I travel to another country for instance. Flying is a no-go, so therefore we prefer the car. However, I can’t drive and so my boyfriend has to drive the whole way there. It’s more sustainable than a plane, so that’s a win anyway. Same goes when I go to visit some family or when my handball team and I go to a game, the train is not an option then and I don’t want to rely on others so much anymore. And I don’t know what the future brings. But right now, traveling temporarily with a van or a tiny house around the world seems amazing to me. But then again, I can’t do that because I don’t have a license. I just want freedom, freedom and independence. So, that’s why I’ve decided to get a drivers license.
Will I own a car?
That does not mean I want to own a car right away. It just means I can drive when I need to. On a holiday for example, or to a handball match. There are so many great options out there today. Electric cars are for rent, and often people share cars too. I don’t think I will ever fully want to own a car, because I don’t think I like it for mainstream. In the future I would like to travel to work by train so I can do something there. I want to bike within my own city, to the farmers market for instance, to keep me healthy. So no, I don’t think I want to own a car. But I do want the freedom of a drivers license.
Do you have a drivers license? Does it give you freedom?
Yours sincerely,
Romee
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Waar ik woon is geen openbaar vervoer dus een rijbewijs is wel nodig. Veel succes met lessen!
Dat is wel jammer! Wellicht dat het ooit nog komt hè. Bedankt, donderdag is mijn theorie examen 🙂
Ik snap het wel. Toen ik 18 werd ging ik meteen lessen, want in het dorp waar ik opgroeide was geen station. Twee keer per uur ging een bus naar de ene stad en voor de bus de andere kant op moest ik eerst 20 minuten lopen. En dan woonden mijn vrienden vaak net niet aan een van die routes. Toen was de auto ook echt vrijheid en flexibiliteit. In zulke gebieden kun je niet anders en als je inderdaad zo afhankelijk bent van anderen is het ook niet fijn.
Daarna ben ik naar de stad verhuisd en nu heb ik al zo lang niet meer gereden dat ik niet meer durf, haha. De bushalte ligt voor de deur, een station om de hoek en een auto kun je hier niet eens kwijt, dus die hebben we niet. Maar toch, dat papiertje is best heel fijn om te hebben. Kun je altijd nog zien hoeveel gebruik je ervan gaat maken.
Succes met lessen!
Lastig als het openbaar vervoer te wensen overlaat, zo slecht heb ik het nieteens. Ik ben inderdaad ook een beetje bang om het te verleren ofzo als ik te weinig rijdt, maar goed, dan heb ik ieder geval een optie. Het is een levenslang papiertje, dus dat is toch wel heel fijn.