This week, Curbing Cars inaugurates a new feature called My Transportation Diet. We’re asking our audience to tell us how they get around where they live and work.
First up is Michael Leland, who is the News Director of Iowa Public Radio. He lives in Des Moines.
“My transportation habits are a little of several things. I live about a half-mile from my office in Des Moines, so it takes me about 10 minutes to walk to work. I’ve mostly walked to work for the last two jobs I’ve had over the last 10 years.
I drive if I need to do something after work, like grocery shop.
I live a couple of blocks from a commercial district, so a coffee shop, my bank, and several restaurants and bars are all within a 15 minute walk from my home.
I live close enough to downtown (20-25 minutes) to walk to things like the library, barber, farmer’s market, church, etc., though sometimes I take a free circulator bus into downtown from the office, and then walk home.
I mostly use my car for errands like grocery shopping and other weekend needs. Sadly, the downtown area in Des Moines doesn’t have stores like Target, PetsMart, and other major retailers, so I need my car for those.
I do some errands by bike, but Des Moines is sort of behind the curve in developing a good system of bike routes and lanes. I would do more if that was the case.”
We’d love to feature you in My Transportation Diet. Send us your story at curbingcars@gmail.com. We’d welcome your photos and video, too.