We had two cars because the infrastructure, work, and school situation made it necessary. Now I have a full time job in downtown and can take public transportation, we have sold our second car, which happens to be my first car, the 1997 Dodge Neon with manual transmission. I felt pretty relieved when we sold it: I don’t need to worry and spend money on upkeep and insurance.

Chicago has, at least it appears to me because I haven’t used it yet, a great non-profit car sharing program: I-GO cars. I-GO has a fleet of energy-efficient cars/mini vans/compact pickups to choose from, parked conveniently at easily accessible public parking lots. So I decided to apply, in the rare event that I need to drive while our Toyota Corolla is not available for whatever reason. Today I received my card.

Here is the financial breakdown: $25 one-time application fee, $25 annual membership fee. For the GO STANDARD plan that we chose, the hourly rate varies between $6.75 and $10.25, depending on vehicle type and time, and $0.40 for every mile we drive. That’s it, we don’t need to pay gas and insurance.

If you are interested in applying, and feel like to help me out, you can put my name, Haidong Ji, as a referral on your application form. I will get 20 bucks credit as a result. Thanks!