My plan to save money on gas shattered...

[Teaser]

Apparently I live close enough to work and my car gets good enough mileage that taking SEPTA (Philly's "public" transit) will wind up costing more than driving.


Damn.

[DS1]

1. Not technically. You'd still be saving money on gas, by spending it on something else

:yoiks:

[Teaser]

2. zing

.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. My dear Teaser...

It might indeed cost more, but that money would be going towards something other than fuel...

There are costs, and then there are costs...



:hi:

[Teaser]

4. yeah, it'd be paying for some SEPTA exec's Jersey Shore home

You'll have to forgive me, but SEPTA is not the most ethically run public-private whatever.

Believe me, if I had money to spare, I would do it. But right now, I don't, and am looking for other ways to improve my CO2 footprint.

[Chan790]

5. No...it is not run well.

It took me exactly 2 round-trips from Roxborough to Center City at $7 each to figure out that something was wrong if the train cost $3.50 each way to go a grand total of 8 miles, then another $1 to get on the subway to go where you needed to go once you were in Center City.

It'd be cheaper to take a taxi...except guess who runs the taxi commission. Of all the places I've lived as a non-driver, Philly was the pits.

[Wcross]

6. You would save the wear & tear on your vehicle.

You would also be doing the environment a favor since the public transit is going that way every day with or without you.

[Teaser]

7. I acknowledge those points

I have been trying to improve my carbon footprint, but I was making this choice largely on economic necessity at this point. I make ends meet, but don't have much financial slack. I was hoping I could ameliorate things with public transportation. And if my finances weren't so tight, I'd be doing it for the environment's sake anyway.

The wear and tear point is a good one. Maybe that would balance everything out for me.

[redqueen]

8. Close enough to ride a bike?

That'd be cool.

[CreekDog]

14. ride a bike near Philly drivers???

do you wish our OP harm? :rofl:

[CreekDog]

9. SEPTA is mass transit paradise compared to anything in California

and that *includes* San Francisco and BART.

[Chan790]

11. Really?

I'd heard good things about BART. SEPTA I can assert first-hand is a disaster of public transit. Cost over-runs, failure to run on time, does not meet its' demand, doesn't run where people live or could use it easily, and costs too much to use.

[CreekDog]

13. Comparing BART to SEPTA is apples to oranges

BART is akin to SEPTA's regional rail or PATCO.
SF's MUNI system (buses and subways) is akin to your system within Philadelphia

with all of SEPTA's problems, it offers more comprehensive service and serves more thoroughly the Philly region than the Bay Area's public transit systems.

BART doesn't go nearly the places that Regional Rail does.
SF's MUNI's timeliness would probably make SEPTA look like the Swiss in comparison.

you don't realize how good you've got it. the only time your system isn't as bad as ours in during your semi-annual 2 week strikes.

:hi:

and linkage, your systems are integrated, I should say well integrated, ours are becoming linked but it is incomplete, the linkages aren't in the best places. so you can ride the subway or regional rail and get on AMTRAK and get all over the Northeast or to the Airport or to New Jersey, with the systems connecting where the most people ride (within Center City).

here, BART links to our one of rail systems in Millbrae (18 miles south of SF), BART links to AMTRAK in Richmond, a good 30 miles from San Francisco. The SF Bay Area arguably has the best system of public transit in the west, but it pales in comparison to what you have now. I've ridden both, often.

[LeftyMom]

10. Ours is fairly cheap, but it eats too much time.

I go to school on the other end of town. Assuming a bus even ran when my classes let out (it doesn't, in an example of poor planning the last bus away from the college is hours before the last classes end) a trip that takes me 20 minutes with no traffic and 45 in bumper to bumper would run well over two hours, assuming nothing was late and that I didn't miss any connections.

Which sucks, because a bus pass is included in my school costs, and I derive no benefit from it.

[crispini]

12. Does your public transport system have some kind of discount?

You might have to get your employer to sign up for it, but that might make it cheaper and I'm sure your fellow coworkers would dig it too!


Edit: Found it!
http://www.thecommuterschoice.com/

You should *so* pitch this to your HR people, if your company is big enough. Bet they would dig it!