Tin top sold - free of bills
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 10:31 AM
As mentioned, I've now sold my Passat daily driver. One thing that's now occurred to me is that I'm free of bills for it; tax, MoT,
insurance etc. It's quite a relief TBH.
Not being allowed to drive means I have to pay bus and train fares, but then I had to buy diesel before and cover wear and tear on the car before so
what goes around etc.
mcerd1 - 28/1/16 at 11:22 AM
Out of interest how much does your commute cost you now?
I got quite a shock when I had to do it, even though it was only for 19 weeks (I'd sort of fallen off a mountain and broken a couple of
bits...)
My commute is only 5 miles each way, but the bus cost me ~£7 a day 
Also my <10min drive became a 20min bus (to do a whole 5 stops) and having to get up an hour early to get a bus that will get me to work far too
early and back nearly an hour late - all because the timings are all wrong (of course that assumes the bus even turned up within half an hour of its
time) 
I hope you have some better services down your way......
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 11:32 AM
So...
£12.70 / week for the bus between home and the rail station and £9.30 / day on the train or £59.20 a week.
That's from Winchester to Basingstoke.
I walk between Basingstoke station and work, which is ~30mins - good for you and wakes you up as well.
07:14 bus to get to work by 08:30 and 18:10 train to get home by 18:50. Could be better and a later start would be nice, but being up early is no bad
thing.
I reckon I used a similar amount in the car with fuel, tyres, tax and insurance etc so it's not too bad really.
[Edited on 28/1/16 by nick205]
[Edited on 28/1/16 by nick205]
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 11:38 AM
As mentioned in another post, I do miss the alone time in the car and having to travel with other people is a little testing as well. I suspect
I'll enjoy driving again when I can.
prawnabie - 28/1/16 at 11:47 AM
When you can drive, you may not want to commute via car again, just something for the weekend sir
HAL 1 - 28/1/16 at 12:22 PM
Hi,
I don't know if it's the same where you live but when I was in your situation I could get myself a bus pass which gave me half price bus and
train fare before 7.30am and free afterwards, it also let me travel free all weekend.
It might be worth asking.
Saved me quite a few quid over the time I had to use public transport.
Ha
[Edited on 28/1/16 by HAL 1]
sprintB+ - 28/1/16 at 12:33 PM
As above, try for a bus pass on medical grounds. I now have the OAP pass and I must admit to enjoying sitting on the top deck seeing things I never
knew were there while concentrating on driving. And, because Plymouth is bus lane city, I get where I want so much quicker.
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 12:43 PM
quote:
Originally posted by HAL 1
Hi,
I don't know if it's the same where you live but when I was in your situation I could get myself a bus pass which gave me half price bus and
train fare before 7.30am and free afterwards, it also let me travel free all weekend.
It might be worth asking.
Saved me quite a few quid over the time I had to use public transport.
Ha
[Edited on 28/1/16 by HAL 1]
I don't know if this applies to me, but will certainly find out - saving money is no bad thing!
jps - 28/1/16 at 12:48 PM
+1 for the 'no bills' feeling - I was car-less for about 18 months (fortunately by choice) and it was only then that I really clocked that a
car costs about £600 a year even if you don't ever drive it!
I guess the seizures may mean it's not possible - but is any of your journey cycleable? (I know a chap who has seizures 'thanks' to the
incurable brain tumour he's living with/that is waiting to kill him, but because he gets a degree of forewarning when one is coming, he still
manages to ride his bike).
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 01:01 PM
Funnily enough I used to cycle to work and back at about an hour each way. I still cycle, but the worry of having a seizure on the road and being hit
does stop me doing this as does a recent work move to a new building that doesn't have a shower. It's also the wrong time of the year to be
out cycling in the dark and wet weather.
mcerd1 - 28/1/16 at 01:46 PM
quote:
Originally posted by nick205.
I reckon I used a similar amount in the car with fuel, tyres, tax and insurance etc so it's not too bad really.]
Sounds like you've got some better / cheaper options than we have up here....
I once worked out the total cost per mile for my old 106 as 14p per mile, which was more than 4x cheaper than the busses round here!
My current car gets me something like 28mpg (the 106 was more like 40mpg)
So 28 / 4.564 = 6.1 miles per l
The petrol costs me ~£1.03 per l, so 6.1/1.03 = 5.95 miles per £
That's about 17p per mile (1/ miles per £)
As for the rest its £420 to insure, £205 to tax, ~£700 of depreciation (new one in my calcs, I've always had worthless cars before), £120 of
tyres, £400 for services and MOT (inc repairs) all that over 10k miles comes out at another 19p per mile
So all I guess I'm paying 36/mile - that's alot more than I thought it was!
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 01:57 PM
A little research suggests an epileptic bus pass may be available and I'm looking into how to get it. Some help with travel costs wouldn't
hurt (although someones still paying for it).
craig1410 - 28/1/16 at 02:18 PM
quote:
Originally posted by nick205
A little research suggests an epileptic bus pass may be available and I'm looking into how to get it. Some help with travel costs wouldn't
hurt (although someones still paying for it).
I don't want to derail this thread onto politics but if I thought some of my income tax was being used to help out someone in your situation to
get help with travel costs then I would be very happy to contribute, especially when it helps to ensure you are able to keep working and contributing
too.
Another thought I had when you said above that you're a bit unwilling to cycle for fear of a sudden seizure putting you in harm's way, is
there any sort of "device" that can detect the early signs of an oncoming seizure and perhaps give you a few moments to sit down or do
whatever else you can to minimise the risk of injury? I expect one of the worst things about epilepsy is not knowing when it's going to strike
and that must really knock your confidence. I don't know a huge amount about the condition and I'm pretty sure there are different types,
but if it shows up on an EEG then it should be at least feasible to detect this perhaps with a device a bit like a hearing aid which detects brain
activity via the skin and makes a sound when it detects the first signs of a seizure. I guess a lot would depend on the time between the first signs
and the full seizure for this to be useful.
Another random thought - I wonder if a side-effect of the rise of autonomous vehicles might be that it allows people who would otherwise be disallowed
from driving due to medical reasons such as yours to be able to drive again. The car could potentially detect the driver becoming incapacitated and
take over, either to simply pull in safely as soon as possible and alert emergency services or even drive directly to the nearest hospital.
In any case, glad to see you are finding some positives and I hope you are able to get behind the wheel before too long.
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 03:23 PM
Thanks for the input Craig. I like you don't object to some tax payers money being used to help people where it can. Being able to work and
still having a job is a real bonus that you don't appreciate until it's put in jeopardy.
With regards to cycling and having a seizure, those I've had have been complete blackouts with falls. In addition there have been no warnings of
the seizure so no time or capacity to get safe beforehand. As you can imagine if this happened whilst cycling on the road it would result in a fall
and probably injury, not to mention the chance of being hit by a vehicle. I always wear a crash helmet, but having suffered a head injury and the
consequences already I really don't want to do it again.
wombat - 28/1/16 at 03:43 PM
How about one of those sit down/lay in cycle jobbies?
Reckon you could build one ''locost style''..................And as much as I am against electric cars....... why not build one
with a leccy motor ?
And bodywork and a and a and a.............
#newproject
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 03:57 PM
quote:
Originally posted by wombat
How about one of those sit down/lay in cycle jobbies?
Reckon you could build one ''locost style''..................And as much as I am against electric cars....... why not build one
with a leccy motor ?
And bodywork and a and a and a.............
#newproject
Don't get me started, having sold one of two tin tops I have been considering another kit build. The worry is though building it, spending a
load of cash and still not being allowed to drive. As it stands I believe you can go 11 months and 30 days fit free then have one at the last minute
and the whole cycle starts over again.
One element that worries me is not being insured, getting a new license and starting the whole NCB malarky again 
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 04:21 PM
quote:
Originally posted by wombat
How about one of those sit down/lay in cycle jobbies?
Reckon you could build one ''locost style''..................And as much as I am against electric cars....... why not build one
with a leccy motor ?
And bodywork and a and a and a.............
#newproject
Having been a keen cyclist for many years I like to get a move on and go fast. Experience with recumbent bikes is slow and wobbly (might need more
time). Moving from an MTB to a decent road bike took 20 mins off my commute previously I'd be sad to go slower again
sprintB+ - 28/1/16 at 04:46 PM
I often pass a naval officer riding along on one of those recumbent thingys, how he has lived as long has he has I have no idea, suddenly there he is
all low down and semi hidden. BUT, he is still there 3-4 years later.
nick205 - 28/1/16 at 04:57 PM
One thing I have benefited from is having a turbo trainer and cycling statically in the garage - still feel the need to wear a helmet in case I have a
fit and come off, but you can get going and get some miles in. I'm certain staying in shape has helped me get through the injury and recovery.
Slimy38 - 28/1/16 at 06:20 PM
quote:
Originally posted by nick205One element that worries me is not being insured, getting a new license and starting the whole NCB malarky
again
Depends on who you go with, but some insurers accept NCB up to three years old.
Having said that, I looked into not having NCB due to my company car, so I did a few quotes without it. It's surprisingly not that much of a
'bonus'!! There seemed to be insurers that were happy with older drivers who may not have NCB. In the end it was going to be about £50 more
expensive, so I stopped worrying about it.
*Usual 'insurance is a law unto themselves' disclaimer applies, but it's worth giving the price comparison sites a bashing to see what
happens.
[Edited on 28/1/16 by Slimy38]