Part of the what we are doing here at Eco-Monkeys is examining our current lifestyle choices and determining whether or not we can choose more eco-friendly ways of living. Last night I was out at a restaurant waiting for a friend and as I sat there I blatantly snooped on the conversation that was occurring behind me. A couple in their late twenties was discussing the merits of riding the bus verses driving a car to work and it began to dawn on me that I had never even considered taking the bus to work. The female in the couple stated that she just didn’t think the bus stops were convenient enough to warrant her taking the bus but that when it became easier to get from place to place, she would hop right on.
I decided to investigate this and log on to the Capital Metro website to see what my bus riding options were. There are no buses that come directly to the area in which I live so I would have to drive about ten minutes to get to one of their transit centers. Once there, the bus ride itself would be 50 minutes long (according to their online schedule) only to get to a stop that is a 15-minute walk from where I work. I could get closer to the school, but it would require two bus transfers and a lot more time. So with the walk, the trip would take 1 hour and 15 minutes. According to Google Maps, the actual distance from my house to my school is 12.4 miles. An hour and 15 minutes for 12.4 miles? This does not seem time-effective, nor does it seem like it would be drastically beneficial since I would have already had to drive 10 miles in my own car to get to the first bus stop.
Another question began forming in my mind as I thought about what it would take for me to switch to the bus. How much do buses actually contribute to decreasing air pollution? Don’t they take more gas to run and create larger emissions? How many people have to be riding the bus in order to make a difference?
According to the environmental section of the Capital Metro website:
“Riding Capital Metro for just one day reduces your carbon emissions by about 20 pounds. The benefit to the environment is far greater than some of the common actions people are encouraged to take.”
20 pounds, hmm? I decided to test that. There was also a link to a carbon savings calculator. Factoring in that I’d only really save 2.5 miles in each direction and that I’d only be able to ride the bus on days that I didn’t teach after school – Mondays and Fridays – my weekly carbon savings came out to 7.19 pounds . Interesting, but definately not 20 pounds per day that I would be riding. In fact, it wouldn’t even be 25% of that.
Now I’m not saying that public transportation is a bad idea. The buses do cut down on congestion and can save the rider a lot of money on gas. And if your route from home to work is pretty direct, you may actually be able to ride the bus and not have to sacrifice most of your morning. However, until there is a route that enables me to get to work in a timely fashion and one where I don’t actually have to drive most of the distance I would normally just to get to the bus stop, I don’t think that this is a lifestyle change that I will be able to make in the immediate future. I may have to look into carpooling as an option instead. Now I realize that I actually did not solve anything here, but I will continue to do research and try to find a more amenable solution to the “ride to work” issue and I encourage everyone to examine the bus route schedule and do the same. Although riding the bus may not prove to be a viable option, at least beginning the process of thinking about what might work is a carbon-free footstep in the right direction.
September 2nd, 2009 at 2:41 pm
I used to ride the bus to college.
There was a stop about a block away from my apartment and the bus stopped every 30 minutes so I didnt have to wait long. I would wake up very early (6:30am) to get there on time.
There was one transfer, but it was next to a convenient store so I always grabbed myself a cup of coffee and breakfast. I waited a little less than 20 minutes. Then, I would get to school and actually arrive early. The whole trip lasted about 30 minutes total.
My campus was only 12 miles away, as well, but it was on the other side of the highway, so that made it a little tasking to get to with lights and traffic. Considering my pit stop for coffee and food, a short morning’s walk, and not worrying about arriving late for class (which I usually did) it benefited me quite well. But that was then, now, in my new neighborhood, it would be just as ridiculous to ride the bus as it seems it is for you.
Great article! Love the carbon savings calculator, as well!
September 2nd, 2009 at 2:43 pm
Now, in addition, I have a friend that rides the bus everyday to work. He lives about 30 minutes away but the poor guy has to sit on the bus and wait for three transfers for about 2 1/2 hours, if memory serves me right.
Plus, he is coming from downtown so he gets to deal with all of the crazies! I have heard some funny stories of his bus encounters! Oh, JoJo…
September 2nd, 2009 at 2:54 pm
The biggest hurdle for most is the fact that the metro/public transit systems of some cities is not a viable solution. Austin is a great example. Now as to the reasons why, we can debate forever. My personal opinion is poor decisions by city planners, as well as lack of support for bond issues, etc. (how long has Austin been trying for light rail!?).
In cities where planners have put effort into MTD infrastructure it is a different story. Take two examples of which I am very familiar: Champaign-Urbana (CU), and Chicago. In CU, we have a great bus system, with 19 routes (the metro area is ~130k people). The infrastructure is great, and modern (there are even new, quiet hybrid buses! http://www.cumtd.com) . I can get just about anywhere in the metro area in under 1 hour, and for peak destinations (ie, Campus or commercial hubs) in 30 mins or less. In Chicago, the MTD includes buses, subways, light rail, and medium commuter rail (Metra). Getting around Chicago by public transit is in many cases faster than by car. The exception being if you want to travel between suburbs (most trains head straight to downtown – its hard to circumvent).
I think it is a safe argument that (well used) public transport has a smaller environmental footprint than more traditional commuting (cars). Just don’t lose heart, as other cities do present viable alternatives. I guess this is a call for advocacy, no?
Now to toot my horn – you want an efficient way to commute to work which is both quick, and viable? Ride your bike. Even if you’re not commuting to work, chances are the trips you take by car for groceries, dinner, or whatever are within 4 miles of your house. Why not ride your bike? No fossil fuels, fitness, the breeze in your hair. It is the way to go!
September 2nd, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Funny article. He concludes there is no point to riding the bus because it doesn’t save enough carbon emissions to be worth his bother.
I used to ride the bus all the time years ago when I was in college. Yes, I owned a car and could afford to buy gas.
A guy I knew was a radical environmental activist. He drove his old VW bus everywhere, which got about 14 mpg and used leaded gasoline. His apartment had the air conditioning going all day long in summer, and he took advantage of the lovely heated swimming pool in his fenced community. I used an electric fan to cool in summer and, comparing electric bills, his was 10 times more than mine.
He was always getting down on me for not being an environmentalist like he was.
Al Gore has proven to be the same way, with his lovely large heated swimming pool and $16,000 a month electric bill.
Almost all the so-called environmental movement is full of posers.
Right now I grow most the food I consume, all organically. I still don’t use an air conditioner, and I never fly. Could if I wanted to, but the whole way society runs seems so wasteful.
Environmentalist? Me? No. Those people are hypocrites. For me, I just think wasting resources and dumping poisons into the soil and water we use to grow things is foolish.
If you don’t live it, you don’t believe it.
September 3rd, 2009 at 8:06 am
Wow! lots of comments! I thought I would take time to respond since my house flooded a bit and I had to take the day off work.
I am a fan of public transportation as long as it is not doing more harm than good. When I was in college, I walked every day from my apartment to the school and back and only took the bus on days that I had too many things to carry, or when it was over 100 degrees so I am no stranger to this issue.
If we had a transportation system like Frank described I would be all over that. I think my main problem with the bus system in Austin right now is just that the first stop is 10 miles away. So, if I’m driving that far in my car(in the wrong direction from my job) is it worth it to spend 50 minutes on a bus – which is most definately not a hybrid – rather than just another 3 minutes in my car? What are the emissions levels that the bus would put out in 50 minutes and how many people have to be on that bus when I get on it to even make the emissions that these buses are putting out be less than my car for the other 3 minutes?
Honestly, I don’t know. My other issue is that the Capital Metro website was not very forthcoming on data about their bus emissions. And the data that they did have, like the quote about saving 20 pounds of carbon per day isn’t even their data but data referenced from a national public transportation website, as is the carbon calculator. For me, it would come out to 3.6 pounds per day I rode the bus.
I hope too that I didn’t come off as a snob environmentalist. The entire point of this site is to admit that we are not where we want to be, but that we’re looking into things. At this point I wouldn’t classify myself as environmentalist, but at the risk of coining a new term, perhaps I could be described as eco-curious?
Anyway, I’m glad this sparked some conversation and my conclusion remains the same; that I will continue to research and scout out new transportation possibilities. A bike is certainly in store for me – I have never owned one and, like a good teacher, want to do my research before I jump out and buy one. That will probably be my next project, so there will be a post or two sometime soon as I begin that process. Any suggestions are welcome, and until then – have a great day!
September 3rd, 2009 at 8:37 am
Fun topic. As someone who lived in Chicago for some time, I can definitely attest to public transportation done right as quite the convenience. It’s definitely a money saver, time saver, and environment saver. But, as you’ve said, when the bus routes are more burden than boon, then we have a problem. If I have to be at work at 9am, but I have to wake up at 5 to get through the bus system, then that just wouldn’t work for me.
I believe the key is to look at the bus as an option. It’s not the end all, be all. You could bike, car pool, switch to a more energy efficient vehicle, or different combos of these, and more! The point, I think, is to do the best you can and not give up.
Becoming an Eco-Warrior (We’re just coining new phrases left and right!) won’t happen overnight. But with some persistence and lifestyle changes, we can get there.
October 7th, 2009 at 3:32 pm
I live in Austin and take the bus every day and I actually really like it. I work about 5 miles from where I live, and there is a bus stop right down the block from both my home and my job. So it just happens to work out well for me. But if you live far from a bus stop or if your destination is not somewhere in downtown Austin or near UT, it’s a pretty annoying system to navigate. If I were in your situation, Katie, I would definitely not take the bus! Driving 10 miles in the wrong direction seems ludicrous. Austin’s public transportation system has a long way to go, but for some people it’s a great option.