When I heard about the October Week without Driving in mid-July, I thought, “Why not?” At the time, I had one significant event that week, but figured, “Okay, so that day I will drive, but the rest I will take the bus, work from home, ride my bike. Easy peasy.”

In July and August, I took the bus a handful of times — getting ready for October, but also because it was so easy to do. I have not gotten the knack of arriving just minutes before the bus, so I wait for at least half the time it would take me to drive myself. Gotta get better at that.

Prior to my move to Arcata in 2019, I spent my entire post-college work life living three miles away from my place of work. I would ride my bike, sometimes with my dog Nevada in tow, when I worked at the Humboldt Senior Resource Center. I walked from Myrtletown to the Area 1 Agency on Aging office (formerly) on 7th Street, but it was a trek. The bus route was too circuitous from Myrtletown to downtown, though, so driving was my main go-to.

When I lived in Botswana, I was three miles from work — from one end of a long skinny village to the other — and the only choice was walking or hitching. I lost twenty-five pounds during my time there but regained it all back within a year of Humboldt driving.

My current commute is now close to seven miles. I am privileged to have a car that I use in my Rotary volunteer work, my side business as a Senior Move Manager, and for my work at A1AA. It takes me 10 minutes to make the 7-mile drive from just off the Plaza in Arcata to J Street in Eureka. Sometimes I drive straight to work and back and realize I didn’t need my car. I see folks getting on the bus at the corner near my home and think, jeez, why aren’t I doing that? Especially on days when the car will just sit in the office parking lot.

Living in Arcata, I have a rule that I walk everywhere within walking distance from my house, which I figure to be the well-worn 3-mile radius. Except when I need to carry more stuff than rational, non-circus performing people would.

Fast forward to Sunday, September 28, 2025. The schedule filled up. Way up. I have three side gig clients — two next Sunday, one on Monday. Tuesday, I have a late meeting in Eureka. Oh wait! Tuesday I can take a bus and get home! WIN.

Our agency fundraiser is on Wednesday, and I must bring a bunch of stuff to it. (Young and Lovely, Arcata Playhouse 5:30 p.m., tickets at the door, cake decorating contest and auction. Fundraiser for our Volunteer Driver Program, which coincidentally takes people who cannot or do not drive to medical appointments. Come dance!)

Thursday I am delivering heavy materials to CUNA. Hmm … buses to Valley East … Check! Friday, an old friend is in town and wants me to visit her in McKinleyville. Oh wait. A bus!!!

On Saturday, my Rotary Club has a fundraiser at Baywood Golf Club. (Free charity fundraiser social from 4 to 6 p.m. — for Food for People. Appetizers, a silent auction, and a limited number of tickets for a 7-night trip stay at the Marriott Kauai Beach Resort in Lihue, plus up to $1000 towards travel). I volunteered for the silent auction which means delivering massive amounts of stuff to the event.

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This Week without Driving has shown me how dependent I am on my car and how insanely busy one can accidentally get. It also shows me that with planning, I can ride the bus on three days I didn’t think I could!

Things I regularly do in a good week.

1. Caminar a cualquier lugar dentro de un radio de 2 a 3 millas. Esto incluye compras ligeras de supermercado. Planifico en consecuencia y solo compro lo que puedo llevar.
2. Caminar a lugares en Eureka dentro de un radio de 1 milla desde mi trabajo, que incluye el banco, la oficina de correos y el casco antiguo.
3. Conducir en lotes. Nunca voy a ningún lugar por una sola cosa. Rara vez conduzco a Eureka los fines de semana a menos que pueda hacer recados también, pero intento hacer recados durante la semana.
4. Trabajar desde casa dos días a la semana.
5. Las reuniones de Zoom ahorran tiempo y conducir. Las reuniones en persona bien pensadas son geniales.
6. Tomar el autobús a Eureka cuando no necesito mi automóvil.
7. ¡Usar ese sendero! Montar a Eureka, sabiendo que puedo subir la bicicleta a un autobús en el viaje de regreso es genial. No estoy seguro acerca de caminar, pero el próximo verano caminaré a casa un par de veces después del trabajo. Porque sé que puedo, y esos veinticinco kilos necesitan saber quién manda.

Es difícil estar sin un transporte confiable en el condado de Humboldt, y muchos lo están. Nuestro trabajo en A1AA muestra los impactos negativos en la salud y la socialización de las personas que ya no pueden conducir. Incluso aquellos que desean tomar el autobús pueden no poder llegar a una parada de autobús de manera segura, o puede estar demasiado lejos de su hogar o destino. Conozco a adultos mayores que no quieren pedir un viaje a amigos o familiares. O bien conducen cuando no deberían o terminan sin cubrir sus necesidades.

Cada vez que puedo dejar mi automóvil detrás, es una victoria. Ya sea por el beneficio de aire fresco, ejercicio, interacciones con vecinos mientras camino por la ciudad, utilizando una forma más eficiente de transporte, como autobuses, mi bicicleta o mis propias dos piernas, me ayuda a mantenerme conectado con los demás y con el mundo que me rodea. No estamos diseñados, física ni emocionalmente, para ser conductores solitarios en automóviles. Así que, la próxima vez que tengas un viaje planeado en automóvil, ¿conoces a alguien que pueda necesitar un viaje? ¿Realmente necesitas el automóvil? Aquellos de nosotros mayores de 60 años recibimos excelentes tarifas en el autobús, y si solo te estás desplazando a un trabajo regular de 8 a 5, vale la pena echarle un vistazo.

Maggie Kraft es la directora ejecutiva de la Agencia del Área 1 sobre el Envejecimiento.