By Ruth Rosas
Week Without Driving has grown from an initiative getting elected officials from Washington state to participate to now having international participants. Recently, we connected with Wendy Nash from Get Around Caboolture: More transport options, less hassle. Wendy decided to bring Week Without Driving to Queensland Australia, and we sat down with her to chat about what inspired her, the challenges of organizing in a peri-urban community and how she’s using the Week Without Driving to spark change in an Australian context and why it’s so important to nondrivers everywhere.
A Conversation with Wendy Nash
Ruth Rosas (RR): Wendy, thanks so much for joining us! To start, could you tell us your name, where you’re from, and what your organization does?
Wendy Nash (WN): My name’s Wendy Nash, and I currently live in Caboolture, which is right on the urban fringe of Brisbane, in Queensland, on the east coast of Australia. I wasn’t raised here, I’ve lived in Europe and in Sydney, so when I moved to Caboolture, I was really shocked by the bus service. It’s a 10-minute drive to some places, but 40 minutes by bus, and I just wondered, ‘What do people who can’t drive do?’ That’s why I started this work, to highlight the challenges nondrivers face and to explore ways to make things safer and more accessible.
RR: What role do you think community plays in making alternatives to driving more accessible?
WN: I think we hugely underestimate the influence of the community on council and State government. If you’re one person, you have one vote, and in Australia voting is compulsory, but when you have a group of 10 people, that’s 10 votes, which might spread to 100. You have more scope for influence than you imagine. The key is to come across as friendly and unified—mums, disability groups, women in their fifties, retirees, whomever. If you bring different voices together, you can push for safer streets and better transport because elected officials start paying attention.
RR: Week Without Driving started in Washington State. How did you hear about it?
WN: It was Anna Zivarts’s book, When Driving is Not an Option, and a post on LinkedIn that really caught my attention. I thought, ‘That’s what we need here.’ Many people don’t realize how challenging it is when you can’t drive. If you lose your license or you never had one, you suddenly see how hard it can be to navigate daily life. That’s what inspired me to start Australia’s version of the Week Without Driving.
Week Without Driving in Australia
RR: What was it like hosting a Week Without Driving in Australia?
WN: We had our official launch, and one of our State MPs planned a day without driving. He missed his bus right away, which meant he had to walk back, and then schedule extra time to walk to appointments or carpool. He told me later it took way longer than he thought. It was inconvenient, but he also enjoyed having time to reflect. By the end of the day, he really got it, and it changed his perspective on how much we need better public transport.
RR: You mentioned people’s strong reactions to limiting driving. What’s been your community’s response?
WN: I’ve had some negative responses. Driving can feel almost like an addiction, you take it away and people get upset. But others found it really interesting. I had someone come up to me and say, ‘I heard about your Week Without Driving… what a great idea!’ I think it helps when people understand that 3 or 4 in every 10 people might be nondrivers, whether they’re kids, older adults, or just can’t afford it. Realizing it’s not just a fringe issue makes them more supportive.
RR: What’s your vision for expanding Week Without Driving in your region?
WN: I want to see lots of small community groups across Queensland do it together. Queensland is huge—about the size of Alaska—so you need local hubs, not just one big event. I also tell people: you don’t have to do the whole week. If you just spend an afternoon walking around your neighborhood, noticing sidewalks or how long you have to wait to cross near a school, that’s progress. If you don’t do anything, nothing changes. But by doing even a little, you contribute to a bigger shift.
RR: Any last advice for someone considering Week Without Driving for the first time?
WN: Don’t feel pressured to give up driving for the full week. Focus on awareness, maybe you ride the bus once or walk a few blocks you usually drive. Notice the speed of traffic, how many safe crossings you have, or the noise level. Even signing up and reflecting on your neighborhood can make a huge difference. When people show up, it sends a message that nondriver issues matter.
If you would like to learn more about Wendy’s work, keep an eye out for her podcast, Streets & People, where she hosts inspiring conversations with guests from all over the world on accessible transit, lower speed limits, community-led change, all aimed at reimagining mobility in ways that benefit everyone. You can also find Get Around Caboolture on Facebook where she shares inspiring updates about the positive changes happening worldwide. The page is private to maintain a focused, uplifting, and spam-free environment, as well as LinkedIn!
Wendy’s words remind us how powerful change often starts with a small shift in perspective and mindset. By harnessing the collective power of groups, momentarily experiencing firsthand daily travel as a nondriver, and recognizing that countless individuals from children to older adults can’t drive, we can begin to transform our streets into safer, more accessible spaces for everyone.
