Korean Job Discussion Forums

[FMPJ]

[FMPJ]

[radcon]

[NYC_Gal 2.0]

This isn't even about owning cars. It's about driving. No, I wouldn't want to drive. If I moved to the sticks, sure, I'd do it out of necessity. If I had the money, though, I'd hire someone to drive me be it in my car, something leased, or the property of the chauffeur service.

I'm just not interested unless it's completely necessary.

[edwardcatflap]

The car has liberated people it's true and I appreciate it for that but mass ownership of cars has destroyed so many things as well. Modern cities like Seoul with their 10lane roads, constant traffic noise and traffic jams are, IMO what makes this and other similar cities very unpleasant places to live. Compare Seoul with cities like Amsterdam, Venice (of course) but even London and you can see that it's the little side streets and squares where you can occasionally get away from the endless noise, exhaust fumes and chaos that make living in those cities enjoyable.

In Seoul I feel like the car encompasses my environment. In the same way the scooter does in Hanoi, for example. When you're walking around the city It impinges completely on your life to the detriment of nearly everything else. I don't enjoy driving and that's the main reason I don't have a car but when I look at the nightmare that Seoul is, I do actually feel a bit less guilty as a result of not contributing to what can be so horrible about modern living.

[PatrickGHBusan]

Mass use of cars is horrible for the environment. I completely agree with what Ed said on that issue.

For me one of the problems is not car ownership per se, it is how people use their cars, ie for everything and everyday.

For example, if you live in a city with good public transit you can very well own a car and use it for weekend trips, occasional grocery shopping and rely on taxis and public transit for the rest.

Seoul is pretty damn bad for car traffic but that seems to be the plague of so many major urban centers.

With a family of 4 (2 kids, 2 adults) and two parents who work full-time, we need a car for certain things. We owned one in Korea and own one in Canada. However it is pretty much used for specific needs and certainly not for daily commute or other similar things. That I feel is a way to own and use a car without damaging the environment too much.

I know in certain cities, they offer a car rental service on-demand. Basically you pay a monthly fee and you gain access to a car on-demand (have to ask about half a day in advance. Gas is reimbursed by the rental service and you can typically pick up a car nearly anywhere in the city and drop it off at any other rental location.

I have no idea if Seoul has such a service. In Canada I am pretty sure Toronto has such a service (or had) and Montreal has a good one (called commeuneauto). Some cities also offer bicycles for its citizens for a small feel. The same principle: pick up the bike at a location for a small fee and drop it off at another location. Then someone else can use it.

In Seoul (or Busan) that would be dangerous due to traffic but it could be done.

[Steelrails]

Alright, I guess I'm wrong. I guess NETs in Korea who pull SOLID bank will not own cars. I guess people who are pulling in 100-250 grand a year don't see the need to own a car.

But, but but, part of me wonders if that is REALLY the case. Someone making 250 grand a year can't find it in themselves to purchase a car? Really? Somehow they are different from Korean people making the same who buy cars, and different from people the world over that they don't want to buy cars? Even if it's a simple purchase? Really?

That flies in the face of observable human behavior around the world. But, i guess it must be true.

For one I can't even picture people making serious dollars and going to business meetings via subway and interacting with everyone else by subway transport. I just don't see it. I don't want to call ya'll liars, but I have to think that some of you are just saying things to prove a point, not speaking the actual truth.

What is so scary about driving a car?

[NYC_Gal 2.0]

Honestly, SR, I have no desire to drive. If I were rich enough to be able to afford it, I'd hire someone to drive me around. I never needed a car in NYC, and I don't need one here.

The fact that I get motion sickness also plays an important part in this decision. I can't read for long while in a car (be it a book or road signs) without getting a headache that can turn into a migraine and/or nausea, so it's really not a good idea for me. I've driven, but after 10 minutes or so, I start getting a headache. It's not for me. On long journeys I'm usually curled up on the back seat, eyes closed, headphones in, and trying to sleep.

Owning a car and driving one are not the same thing.

[The Cosmic Hum]

[Swampfox10mm]

[bucheon bum]

[Unposter]

Well, I should say I have not read anything but the last page (7) of this thread but for what it is worth, I have lived here a long time, married with two kids, double income and we have never owned a car.

Personally, I don't think it makes sense when Seoul has such an amazing public transportation system and, well, we would rather spend our money on other things.

I guess I should also say that the wife and I are avid wallkers. Even my two six year old kids don't blink at walking an hour someplace. I don't even mind carrying our groceries in a backpack and/or a two-wheeled cart. And, vertually every attraction in Korea has a bus you can take; it is suprisingly easy and cheaper than owning your own car.

But, I don't think of ourselves as the average Seoulite.

Every Korean friend and co-worker of my wife and I drives a car. Everyone said we would have to buy a car when our kids were born. They were wrong! And, what a difference it makes! My kids are so much healthier for it. And, it can lead to substantial savings.

People get too complacent about "conveniences." Many of them you really don't need and your quality of life is just as good. Of course, there are many you want, such as a washing machine for me, but there are really many you don't really need, such as a car, when you have a government with as much foresight as Seoul's.

In Korea, like many other places in the world, a car is not just a convenience, it is a status symbol. If you are stuck in the "I have to impress my neighbors" mode, then, well yes, you "need" a car. But, if you can get past that, you will soon realize that what you thought was a need really isn't.

(And much better for the environment, your health and your wallet.)

[Who's Your Daddy?]

A man needs a car. I agree with Steel rails totally.

[metalhead]

[edwardcatflap]