Ivana Bacik, Reid Professor of criminal law and criminology at TCD
What was your first car and why did you choose it? A blue four-door Peugeot, presented to me as a gift by my beloved grandmother, Maureen, when she decided to give up driving. Because the registration number was RIC 115, we called it 'Ricky'.
What difference did it make to your life - and your pocket? I was 25 and had just moved back to Dublin to live; I had had always cycled everywhere. It felt very grown-up. I continued to cycle to work every day, so it didn't get daily use. I found it very expensive to run - cars guzzle money, and I was used to the cost-free bicycle transport method.
What's the longest trip you ever took in your first car? On a lovely sunny day we drove to a pub in Howth to collect a pool table we had bought through Buy and Sell magazine. We thought it would make an excellent birthday present for my brother (which it did, he remains a pool expert to this day). Ricky had a hitch on it, so we attached a trailer and I drove very slowly and carefully the whole way back from Howth to Rathgar.
. . . and your worst memory? It was later the same night. After the triumphant journey across Dublin with the pool table, I drove another car load to my friend Claire's flat, just off O'Connell street for dinner. We emerged some hours later to find the car gone - local children had pushed it down a side street and set fire to it. I was devastated, overwhelmed with regret as it had been my gran's car for so long - but had only been mine for two months. I was also upset about the burning of all the things I had foolishly accumulated in the car - hats and jumpers, books, a radio... and most upsetting, my furry car seat covers and furry dice.
What did you get next? Due to the shock of losing Ricky, it was a few years before I got another car - a second-hand 1980s red Vauxhall Astra hatchback from a friend's brother for about £500. This was a great little car, although I didn't name it this time - you get too emotionally attached that way. It was only about 18 months later that inevitably it was stolen, driven across the city, and then burnt out beside Heuston station. This time I was more philosophical about the loss, but decided never to get another car.
What do you drive now and how does it compare? I've stuck with my resolution, and have never had another car since the second burning-out incident. I've returned to the bicycle with a vengeance. I take part in Critical Mass cycle rallies and support the Dublin Cycling Campaign. Every morning I glare at motorists and wonder how many of them should really have cycled into town instead of taking the car. It's definitely the best way to travel in a city. When you're on a bike, apart from cars, the only other drawback is the rain...