Is it a good idea to have a car in Melbourne?

[rookie]

If I want to live centrally in the city, do you think it's worth having a car with all the related cost of upkeep, parking, etc compared to just relaying on public transportation and taxis? And how big of a problem would parking be?

[elucid8]

Hi Patrick,

I lived in Melbourne for 5 years, the latter 4 without a car. The public transport system is pretty good and, if you're living centrally and working close, you should have no problems.

Your mileage (as it were) may vary.

I'll be returning to Melbourne next year and, while I don't intend buying a car, I'm not going to rule it out until I establish my living and working situation. Previously I was well served by trams, trains, taxis and bikeways.

My advice would be, try living without a car and see how you go.

[Lauren_Watson1]

If you live right in the very city centre, parking could be a huge problem, as many of the smaller apartment buildings have no car park, and even larger ones, not every apartment comes with one. If you won't need to venture beyond the inner suburbs often, it's not worth it. In the CBD and inner suburbs tram and bus connections are good, and you won't pay more than about $8 a day at most. I lived in the city and inner suburbs for nearly 10 years without a car and managed just fine!

[D.j_Pearce]

TL;DR - Probably not, there's good public transport and other options.

If you're living in central Melbourne or inner city suburbs like St Kilda, Brunswick, North Melbourne, or even a little further out, you won't need a car for most activities. The public transport network is extensive and well serviced (even if some of the locals like to complain about it!) with trains, one of the world's largest tram networks, and buses.

There are also a range of car sharing services like Flexicar, Green Car Share, and GoGet that can provide you access to a car for the times you need it. A lot of councils around Melbourne have been really supportive of these services and so you can find car locations near most densely populated areas. These services could even help you out to decide if you want a car or not, while you get used to the city.

[Jesse_Walton]

If you work and live in the city probably not worth it for the following reasons:

1. Parking is a nightmare unless you have an allocated spot in your building/work (to get both is unlikely) and if you park in a parking building it isn't cheap.
2. The cost of owning and maintaining a car isn't great, $700 registration, anywhere from $500 - $1500 for insurance (depending on level of cover you want and how much the car is worth). Then fuel $40 - $80 a week depending on what type of car you drive and how frequently you drive it, then servicing.
3. Public transport in the city is pretty good, trams, buses, trains & uber. Cabs are overpriced and poor service. This all being said the train system can be unreliable at times, they normally do replacement buses if there's a problem though.

[TOFUMEDIA]

If you live in the CBD, not worth having a car as parking is difficult and very expensive.

[James_Stackhouse]

You don't really need one. Traffic and parking are a pain anyway.
Central apartments with your own parking space are usually a bit more expensive too, say $50-$100 per week more.

Also, there's a few flexible car hire services around with cars positioned all around the city.
See the likes of flexicar.com.au etc. You just book it through an app, then tap in with a card they send you and off you go.

For city and inner suburbs transport I think you can get away with a bicycle + public transit.
And just hire a car/van when you need it. There's nothing to see in the outer 'burbs anyway. It's nothing but sprawl.

That being said, if you're into surfing or exploring nature and all that kind of stuff having your own car might not be such a bad idea. If there's good conditions and you want to get over to Bells beach it would be nice to know you could drive there at the drop of a hat.