Surviving the Concrete Jungle
- The top 5 most expensive cities for car ownership are Miami ($9,218), Boston ($9,660), Los Angeles ($10,361), Philadelphia ($10,672) and Detroit ($11,844); this includes annual car maintenance, ticketing and insurance.
- Flexcars and Zipcars are just two of the many car sharing companies across the world. You and other drivers share a fleet of vehicles that include SUV's, pickup trucks, hybrids and sports cars. Drivers pick up the cars at designated parking locations using key cards. Drivers can pay by the hour or by the day depending on their preference.
- Triple A reports that the average driver spends about $700 a month to own their car. Car sharing companies like Flexcars and Zipcars cost about $100 a month to share.
- List of the Best and Worst Cars For City Driving (based on a national survey):
Best - Honda Insight, Toyota Prius, BMW 3 series Coupe, Mini Cooper, Scion X B
Worst - Hummer H1 Alpha, Maybach Type 62, Lincoln Navigator L, Rolls Royce, Phantom, Hummer H2 - H2 Hummer provides a clear view of traffic from the front and the sides.
- The Door Defender is a magnetic car door protector that keeps your car dent-free.
- The Lexus LS 460 parks itself using sensors located on the front and rear bumpers, a rear camera, and an onboard computer.
- Statistics show that 1/2 of urban congestion is caused by drivers searching for parking spots.
- Many parking lots now take advanced internet and phone reservations.
- Car navigation companies are developing systems that will point out available parking on the vehicle's navigation screen.
- Some cities are developing meter programs that will allow you to refill your meter via phone.
- The most expensive cities for annual parking are New York City ($574), Boston ($420), San Francisco ($335) and Chicago ($332).
