<p>I just joined and was looking around the forums. Ive already found most of the answers i was looking for but some i coudent find.So exuse me if this has been asked already, but i want to know if you really need a car for college? I'm going quite a ways from home and since ill be on my own is a car reccomended to get around? I have no idea yet if i'll get a job considering im only a senior in highschool. i dont know how tough my classes are going to be and if ill have time for a job etc. but im just asking your opinions on weather a car is really a neccesity. Im going to University of South Florida but this question is just ment to be in general. thanks for your help!</p>
<p><em>My mom told me people ride bikes in college</em> is that true >_>?</p>
<p>At my school lots of people have cars, (I don't and many people also don't), but it is easy to find a ride if you need a ride somewhere (football game, basketball game, store, etc.) Here, freshman parking is in a bad location, so it seems to me that cars are more trouble than they are worth as freshman. Now, when I am a Junior/Senior perhaps I will get one.</p>
<p>I suggest you go to the forums for your specific campus if there is one because I think the specifics vary between campuses.
At UC Davis for instance, it's a bike school... almost everyone has bikes. For freshmen, they can't buy parking permits so therefore almost none of them have cars. We have an elaborate bus system that hits most of the major apartment complexes off campus & all bus lines go to campus so even after freshman year, you don't really need a car. However, I like having a car so that I don't have to cram on the busses & I can go on my own schedule.</p>
<p>Echoing others' comments, it really depends on the school. Frankly, I prefer having my car here over not. It makes it easier to go places off campus on your own time. Parking can sometimes be a hassle, but it can be worked around.</p>
<p>It'll be good to have if your campus is in a more rural area, that way to can drive to the city or wherever to do stuff with friends. Like Pearl, wre also have free shuttle service that stops near restaurants, the Walmart, ect. And on weekends you can take the school shuttle to town to catch the county shuttle to the bigger mall which is about an hour from campus. This is how I've gotten by without a car this year, but next year it will be nice having one. The only downside to the shuttle is that it takes longer and you run on the shuttle schedule and not yours.</p>
<p>depends on the school... an urban/rural school, like Grinnell which is in Iowa you should bring a car for... a school like NYU thats in a city and already has public transportation is a school you shouldnt bring your car to</p>
<p>Depends on the school and whether or not you can manage to go places without driving there. My school's in a major city and even though I do have my car here, I never drive it anywhere except to my parents' and back, and most other students with cars here are the same. On the other hand, I've known people that go to schools located in rural/suburban areas where everyone has a car, and they even use them to drive back and forth between their dorms and their classes.</p>
<p>Bikes generally seem to be used to get around on campus quicker than walking, and for people much, much braver than I to bike to other places in the city. If you do decide to use a bike, I would suggest taking an old one you get at a yard sale somewhere for cheap, because bike theft can be common.</p>
<p>I think a car is pretty useful, no matter what college you go to. The only problem is finding a place to park....when I went to school I looked online and found a private monitored garage to park at for a decent price. Street parking at some colleges is a pretty bad idea.</p>
<p>Public and university transportation is never as easy as it seems; they're late, you're late, they're not going to the right place, you left something in the dorm (very dependent on the service, traffic, time of day/year)... The issue with a car (in reasonable condition) is, like said above, parking. Depending on the nature of the town or city your college is in, you are going to need to find proper and safe parking. I don't think it is a good idea at all to attempt to drive to and from class, that's what bikes are for.</p>