Quitting your car - better than buying a hybrid.

The other day, on our drive back from our road trip through the Southeastern US, my wife and I discussed the practicality of me turning in my car when my lease is up at the end of 2008, and, instead of purchasing a new hybrid vehicle, not getting a new car all together. This would be great - if we could pull it off. I am currently working out of town 5 days a week - so I do not drive at all during the week. When I am not working in town our office is within a half mile of one of downtown Pittsburgh's light rail stations. There is a light rail station about one mile from our new house in Mt Lebanon, PA. So, there will be some pains if we both need to drive somewhere, but I think we'll manage. We live close to mass transit in a very walkable community. It is clear that we would save a bundle through gas, parking, and insurance fees, not to mention several hundred dollars a month in car payments. In addition to the hundreds of dollars in savings each month, the 3 miles I would walk everyday would help me to lose some of this excess weight I have been lugging around for some time now. The fact that I would no longer be driving a gas guzzler would help me feel more at peace with myself, too.