I am not ready to start biking to-from work, but live pretty close to the bus route and when my car is out-of-commission I have no problem getting up early enough to take it. When my car is working (which is mostly), though, I find all kinds of excuses not to.

This week, however, I *have* managed to get up earlier and get to the bus stop, despite all the stuff I have to carry with me (purse, work bag, lunch, big gym bag, yoga mat)! I am really proud of myself and know I'm saving money by doing this, and hopefully I can keep it up. (I know, it's only been two days, and I know I will have to drive Thursday, but still...)

Does anyone have any psychological tricks to share about going car-less for their regular commutes? I don't live in a town w/ a very good public transport system and owning a car *is* a necessity for me to visit friends who live way out in the 'burbs, family, and other errands, so people in NYC and Chicago, please don't start in on how easy it is!

Also, does anyone know of a good online calculator/spreadsheet for doing a cost-benefit analysis of taking public transport rather than driving? My transit company has one but it doesn't account for the increased price of gas and increased price of taking public transport, which just had a fare increase!

I don't drive. I think I've driven twice since I got my license 12 years ago. I have resisted getting a car for a variety of reasons -- they cost too much, they're scary (if we put half the money into reducing traffic accidents as we do taking sewing scissors from air passengers, so many lives would be saved...), and not least it's difficult to go from having one to not having one. Since I've never had one, I'm used to it.

If you have to carry that much stuff with you, there is a good chance you'll stop commuting by bus. I probably would. Is there a way you can consolidate? Get a locker in the gym or go with a friend who can keep it in their car or carry less? I carry a nice leather backpack; it cost less than $150, looks professional enough, I can carry a lot without hurting my back, it holds my laptop and books and lunch, etc., and I don't need a car to store stuff.

Find something to do to make the bus ride enjoyable and/or. I read a lot, or write, or meditate. Some people knit or do other handwork. Have a cell phone and a city map. Or a cell phone with map access! Both are very helpful. Know your bus schedules and see if they have a scheduling utility online.

When you do your cost analysis (not something I can help with, since I don't have a vehicle at all), see if you can take some taxis sometimes. It's a relief to know it won't blow your budget if you get stuck somewhere. My local metro has a "guaranteed ride home" program, which will reimburse you four cab fares per year if you commute a certain percentage of the time. For the difference in price between having a car and not, well, put it this way. According to Quicken, I have spent $366 on transportation so far in 2008.

It might help to put the money you save into a special account. Watching it grow can be a great incentive.

The IRS pays upwards of 50 cents per mile for reimbursement or tax purposes for drivers, but that's not really an accurate number to use since it includes insurance and some depreciation that would be part of having the car just sitting around collecting dust (since you say it's not really feasible to get of it). I usually say a quarter a mile. It's about 15 cents/mile for gas, then add on wear and tear, maintenance, extra depreciation, and the costs for any accident. $1/4 miles is pretty good motivation.

That said, my biggest motivation is that it's like $10 a day to park near work. It's not a huge downtown, but the closest free parking is almost a mile away. It takes about 40 minutes to make the 6 mile trip in the bus (including walking to the bus station, then to the office or vice versa), but I just chill out and read during the trip.

Ryan

Well, it now costs me $3/day to park downtown (possibly more...) which isn't a LOT, but is still $60/month. I did the online transit calculator and it said I'd save over $125/month by taking public transport. I did the calculations based on 18 mpg (in-town driving), driving 20 days/month, with 4 miles to and 4 miles from. That is motivation. Even if I drive once/week, I'd still save around $115/month...considering I just lost a job that I'd been using to store money into savings, I guess that will bridge the gap a little.

Day three without a car. I almost gave in to driving today but know I have to tomorrow. Of course, the Mexican food, two beers, and custard last night ate at the money I saved by not driving, but still. Would anyone be interested in doing a car-free challenge? Just basically a thread checking in on how many days without driving, how much money saved, and how you were able to work around not taking your vehicle?

I would, but sadly I am moving farther from my job soon and will no longer be able to walk. I will also be out of range of public transportation.

I feel for you, Marsman...that's pretty common in the part of the country I live in, and that's something that I think gets left out of the discussion about gas prices, alternative transportation, etc.

I went carless for two years, relying on a bike and my feet. DC has a good metro system though. Being without a car saved me a ton of money, but it did put a crimp in my dating life!

What do you mean? That some places do have alternative transit and some don't? I do feel for people who truly have few good options, but I think it's just growing pains. If gas is expensive enough, people will re-think moving out into the distant suburbs and communities everywhere will think to add public transit that actually, y'know, works.

Ryan

It's not even distant suburbs, it's just areas that have refused to fund adequate useful public transportation throughout it's areas. For me it is actually more cost effective to drive my vehicle then it is for me to take the bus system (the only option here). I only live 15 miles from the downtown area, and it takes approxiamtely 20 mins door to door when I drive. To take the bus, it takes over 1.5 hours door to door. The cost of that extra 2 hours a day is after school care for my children at $100 a week. Gas would have to hit over $15 a gallon for me to offset that cost.

To be honest the real change will come when corporations start realizing that the technology age no longer requires employees to come into an office 5 days a week/ 8 hours a day. Cities downtown areas will NEVER be able to fully accomadate ALL the employers/ employees and all the benefits that we get in those distant suburbs, especially the families with children. But can you imagine the serious decline in US gasoline consumption If even a 1/4 current service sector employees telecommuted just 3-4 days a week? Personally, this would have a larger impact on the economy/ environment overall then trying to push to improve public transportation.

Fbchick - the scenario you describe in your first paragraph (20 min. driving v. 1.5 hour via transit) is pretty much a model of the city I live in. For me, I am fortunate enough to live on the *exact* bus line that goes directly in front of my street of residence and drops me off w/in 2 blocks from work. It's pretty rare that would be the case for most people, and I live close to downtown, within city strict city limits in an expansive metropolitan area w/ lots of suburbs.



For people who live in rural area, it's not "just growing pains." We're talking people who have lived in the same small towns and communities, farmed the same land, for generations. At least that's what I was alluding to. America is pretty huge, and it's not just the coasts, and it's not just cities/suburbs. And it's a little too late to say, "Well, Europe does it, so...".

This is true, however it is still immensely beneficial to be in the same office or at least the same building as your co-workers in certain areas of work. I work from home 3 days out of the week and it usually works out just fine. The two days that I am in the office are usually very efficient and I get to interact with my co-workers rather than just staying in my room at home with nobody to talk to (IM doesn't count).

I think that's true, but you're talking about a seriously tiny part of the country. The world over is urbanizing extremely quickly, and the % of the population dedicated to farming and agriculture (those that actually NEED to stay in rural areas rather than simply do so because of tradition or preference) continues to decline. The cost of energy is a cost of doing business in agriculture. Prices will reflect this.

Ryan

I just checked this book out of the library and I think it's directed just at this thread...
http://www.amazon.com/How-Live-Well-Wit ... 1580087574
How to Live Well Without Owning a Car

You're talking about a HUGE part of the country. I'm going to make up a number off the top of my head and call it maybe 75% of the land area of the continental US, somewhat lesser portion of the population. I live in Boston now, but I grew up in semi-rural Ohio and went to college in Indiana.

As an example, Terre Haute, IN is a city of just under 60k people. It doesn't even have so much as a bus system, no public transit whatsover (well, I think there's some kind of short-bus senior transport), and it's not even remotely walkable. If you want to go somewhere, you drive. It's not a commuter suburb, it's THE big city for the surrounding farming regions.

The entire center of the country, outside the major cities, is dotted with smaller cities and towns like this. What about people who live on a farm 30 or 40 minutes from the nearest store? Driving is the only practical option for most of the country, where the population density isn't high enough to support any form of mass transit.