Column: Going round and round on the question of one car or two

After a minor scrape with another vehicle, our Prius needed to go to the dealer for repairs. This would take two days. Could we survive without a car for that period of time?

We’ve been a one-car family for three years now. My husband, Paul, took our 12-year-old Rav4 to our local shop back in 2014 for its annual inspection. We knew it was rusting out on the underside, but we then learned it also needed several expensive interventions. It seemed it was time to say goodbye.

We were going to give it to public radio—they “turn” used cars into programming—but one of the mechanics offered to buy it. He’s managed to keep it on the road by using his own sweat equity.

Paul and I decided to wait before rushing into a new car purchase. We don’t really need two vehicles. Paul is retired, and my main place of work—a middle/high school lwhere my office is located— is only a mile away. It’s true that I need a car to get to the other schools whose libraries I supervise, but on the occasions that Paul needs the car, he just takes me to work.

In the summer, I also get out my Vespa scooter, which handily takes me around town.

Having only one car is definitely outside the norm for most families. But we take a certain pride in it. We save money on taxes, insurance, registration and repairs, and we don’t have a car loan.

We’re able to do this with few issues because, as I said, Paul is retired. When he worked as a journalist, he needed to have a car at his beck and call. Librarians usually have more stable schedules. It helps that we live within easy walking distance of a supermarket, drugstore, post office, hardware store and Dunkin’ Donuts. Also, I am home most days by 3 p.m. Paul can run his errands then if he wants.

Although I know it’s impossible for me to fix climate change on my own, I do feel pleased when I look in the driveway at the end of a weekend day and realize we haven’t driven anywhere.

So what are the drawbacks? Snow, for one. And ice. We equip the Prius with snow tires every year, so the little hybrid can capably handle winter. However, it would be nice to have a small SUV for the worst storms. We live on a street that is plowed early and often, but the rest of the roads in our neighborhood don’t get the same treatment. Should we have to travel out of town during a major snowstorm, we’d appreciate the security of four-wheel-drive.

A second drawback occurs when one of us has to go out of town. The daily necessities of life are easily accessible on foot, and should the carless person at home fall ill there are taxis and ambulances to call upon. But what about our animals?\\

We have two dogs and four cats. There haven’t been many times we’ve had emergencies with them (knock on wood), but we’ve had to take Martha the pit bull mix to a 24/7 clinic 30 miles away three times. Twice she developed hives (possibly from an insect bite) when our regular vet’s office was closed, and the third time she was attacked by another dog on a Sunday.

With such experiences in mind, neither of us relished the thought of being home alone, carless, and having a pet medical emergency.

So, when I went to an overnight conference last year about an hour and a half away, we rented a car. We did so again for that recent two-day trip to the body shop. It’s convenient that the car-rental office is located less than a mile from our home, and that the body shop provides shuttle rides.

Still, last weekend we found ourselves roaming local car dealerships, looking at vehicles on a Sunday, when we wouldn’t be pestered by salespeople. We have always bought new cars, but at this stage in our lives, we’re thinking we’d be happy with a solid used vehicle as a second car.

Or maybe none at all.

We’ve been going around on this. It was fun to drive the recent rental, a compact sedan, even though it wasn’t the type of car I’d buy for myself. It was new, it was different. We’ve had the Prius for 10 years and I still love it, but I know I’d enjoy driving a little SUV around now and then.

But being debt-free is also a pleasure, and a goal we worked toward for a long time. If we only rent a car once or twice a year, we are still saving money.

If mass transit were more readily available, we might not even give a second car a thought. But this is Maine, and the half-size buses that traverse my small city are not going where I need to go.

Our debate continues—should we be green and frugal, or safe and sporty? Stay tuned for developments.