Yes You Can (Get Groceries Without A Car)

Shopping for bulky items can be one of the challenges of living car free. Here are three of the best ways I've found for dealing with the problem.

2 minute read

January 30, 2013, 9:02 PM PST

By Michael Lewyn @mlewyn


I have spent about half my working life without a car- not just in New York where I now live, but in more auto-oriented cities such as Buffalo, Cleveland, Atlanta (for my first year or so there) and Jacksonville, Florida (for my first few months there).  In those days, I would occasionally be asked: "But how do you deal with groceries"?  In fact, I just read a newspaper column that seemed to lampoon concerns about walkability by raising the "how can you walk from the grocery store" trump card.

Admittedly, you can't carry as much in your hands as in a car- even if you save some strain on your hands by riding transit for part of the distance.  But I personally have developed three ways of dealing with this problem.  First, I sometimes just shop more often, and buy less food at a time.  This worked best in Toronto, where there were lots and lots of grocery stores within walking distance of either my apartment or public transit.  Similarly, in Queens I often employ this strategy because I love only a block and a half from a grocery store, and a few blocks from others.

Second, I have brought a suitcase or rolling cart to stuff groceries in (or alternatively, a really large trash bag).  This strategy might look awkward, but seems more appropriate for longer trips when I want to buy more stuff (for example, if I am going to an unusual grocery store in another neighborhood, like Pomegranate in Brooklyn).

Third, I sometimes just buy a ton of groceries and take a taxicab home.  This strategy works best in more auto-oriented cities like Jacksonville and Atlanta, where the nearest grocery is close enough for a cab ride to be relatively cheap, but far enough away that I wouldn't want to walk home with more than two or three grocery bags.*

*And to those of you who bicycle (which I don't): feel free to add your own thoughts.


Michael Lewyn

Michael Lewyn is a professor at Touro University, Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center, in Long Island. His scholarship can be found at http://works.bepress.com/lewyn.

courses user

As someone new to the planning field, Planetizen has been the perfect host guiding me into planning and our complex modern challenges. Corey D, Transportation Planner

As someone new to the planning field, Planetizen has been the perfect host guiding me into planning and our complex modern challenges.

Corey D, Transportation Planner

Ready to give your planning career a boost?

Graphic with blue background, flags, and text reading 2024 Presidential Election

Where 2024 Presidential Candidates Stand on 12 Issues Important to Urban Planners

Whether you’re yet undecided or have already cast your early vote, here is a roundup of the key positions of Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump on important urban planning policies.

October 31, 2024 - Planetizen

Amtrak Coast Starlight passenger train passing over bridge in Altamont Pass, California.

Amtrak Expanding Service in California’s Central Valley

Amtrak is planning a major expansion to the passenger rail lines connecting the Central Valley and the Bay Area.

November 4, 2024 - The Modesto Bee

Affordable housing

Commentary: How Can We Solve America’s Affordable Housing Crisis? CDFIs are the Key

As financial institutions whose mission is to support underserved communities, community development financial institutions can be key partners to ensure public-private efforts to build affordable housing pencil out.

October 31, 2024 - Bernel Hall

Two rusty, abandoned oil pumps in rural Texas.

Addressing Orphan Wells for Environmental Justice

Remediating and repurposing some orphan oil and gas wells into parks can turn environmental hazards into community assets, promoting health, environmental justice, and accessible green space for underserved areas.

2 hours ago - Progressive City

Herd of Caribou in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska with snowy mountains in background.

Biden Administration Moves to Protect Alaskan Refuge From Drilling

The administration is taking quick action to cement some of Biden’s key environmental accomplishments before the new Trump administration takes the reins.

4 hours ago - CNN

Panoramic view of downtown Denver, Colorado.

Denver Slaughterhouse Measure Reveals Impacts of Meat Industry

Voters did not approve a measure that would have closed a slaughterhouse that is key to the nation’s lamb production.

November 8 - The Conversation