Я бы поехал на машине, если бы не было пробки.

I would go by car if there weren’t a traffic jam.

Breakdown of Я бы поехал на машине, если бы не было пробки.

• я: I
• быть: to be
• на: by
• машина: the car
• не: not
• поехать: to go
• если бы: if
• пробка: the traffic jam
• бы: would

Questions & Answers about Я бы поехал на машине, если бы не было пробки.

Why is бы used here, and what does it add?

бы marks the conditional / hypothetical mood. It turns я поехал (I went / I would set off) into я бы поехал = I would go / I’d go (in that situation).
Russian often forms “would + verb” as бы + past-tense form.

Why is the verb in the past tense (поехал) if the meaning is “would go” (present/future in English)?

In Russian, the conditional is typically built with:

• бы
  • past tense verb
    So поехал is grammatically past, but together with бы it means would go / would have gone, depending on context.

Why is бы used twice: я бы поехал … если бы не было …?

In counterfactual conditionals, Russian commonly uses бы in:

• the main clause: я бы поехал…
• the if-clause: если бы…
  This mirrors English “I would… if …” but Russian typically marks the hypothetical nature in both parts.

Can I move бы around, or does it have to be exactly after я?

бы is a clitic and has flexible placement, but it normally comes right after:

• the subject or another emphasized word
  Common options:
• Я бы поехал на машине… (neutral)
• Я поехал бы на машине… (also correct, slightly more formal/bookish) Usually you wouldn’t put бы at the very end of the clause.

Why is it поехал and not ехал? What’s the difference?

• поехать (perfective) focuses on setting off / choosing to go (a single completed decision/action).
• ехать (imperfective) focuses on the process of traveling.

Here, я бы поехал sounds like “I’d choose to go (by car)” / “I’d set off by car.”
Я бы ехал на машине… is possible but would more naturally describe the journey in progress in that hypothetical scenario.

Why does поехал end in -л and look masculine—what if the speaker is female?

Russian past tense agrees in gender/number:

• male speaker: я бы поехал
• female speaker: я бы поехала
• plural (we/they): мы бы поехали

Why is it на машине and not something like an instrumental form (машиной)?

With means of transport, Russian often uses на + Prepositional:

• на машине, на автобусе, на поезде = “by car/bus/train”
  The form машине is Prepositional singular of машина.

Why is it не было пробки—why does пробка become пробки?

After нет / не было / не будет (expressing absence), Russian typically uses the Genitive:

• (не) было чего? → пробки (Genitive singular of пробка)
  So если бы не было пробки = “if there were no traffic jam.”

Is пробки singular or plural here?

Here it’s Genitive singular: пробки = “(of) a traffic jam.”
Plural genitive would be пробок (e.g., не было пробок = “there were no traffic jams”).

What exactly does если бы не было… mean, and why is было neuter?

• если бы не было… is a fixed-type pattern meaning if there weren’t / if there hadn’t been… (counterfactual).
• было is neuter because быть in “there is/was” constructions doesn’t agree with a subject the same way; the “thing absent” is in the Genitive (пробки), and Russian uses the default past form было in many such cases.

Could I omit я? Would it still be correct?

Yes. Russian often drops pronouns when the meaning is clear:

• Бы поехал на машине, если бы не было пробки.
  This sounds more conversational/context-dependent; with я is more explicit and neutral.

Is the word order fixed? Can I swap the clauses?

You can reorder for emphasis:

• Я бы поехал на машине, если бы не было пробки. (neutral)
• Если бы не было пробки, я бы поехал на машине. (emphasizes the condition)
  Both are correct; punctuation (comma) stays.