Thursday, March 17, 2011
Shayne Trimbell
You hear it in every car commercial. Fantastic claims that their flashy new car gets excellent miles per gallon. It is a simple metric to calculate, take the number of gallons of fuel and divide it by the number of miles driven. Miles per gallon is a standard for measuring the efficiency of a vehicle against any other vehicle. If you are on the fence between an SUV or a sedan, the miles per gallon will be a consistent measure to clue you into the cost of driving. Miles per gallon has also become a bragging right for people with extremely efficient cars. Hybrid owners will turn their nose up in hubris as they proudly declare that they get 51 miles per gallon, then with a smug tone ask what your SUV gets.
What happens when you get your new car home? Does miles per gallon tell you how much your car is costing you? To know how expensive your commute is, or to decide whether to make a special trip for milk rather than stringing it as part of your next trip try calculating your Miles Per Dollar. Miles per dollar, much like miles per gallon is a measure that can be consistent across any vehicle, but what miles per dollar does better than miles per gallon is helps make transportation decisions. When we equate miles per gallon it assumes that we must drive, miles per dollar assumes we must travel. To calculate miles per dollar divide the total number of miles driven by the amount of money spent fueling your car. Example: If you drive 500 miles and it costs $75.00 to fill your fuel tank then your car gets 6.67 miles per dollar.
Once you are equipped with the knowledge of how expensive it is to drive, start considering alternative modes of transportation. For short trips, it will be more economical to leave the car at home and take a bicycle. For longer trips, taking SEPTA may pay off. If you can't take SEPTA or ride a bike, try carpooling.
Knowing your miles per gallon may give you something to brag about at your next cocktail party, but knowing your miles per dollar will save you money and make you a smarter traveler.
Posted in: biking,carpooling,Shayne Trimbell,transit
1 comments:
This cost calculation is good, but the next thing is to consider travel time from home and the relaxation of walking. Places I can walk to in <10 minutes from my house: Fitness/pool/golf club, bank, coffee shop, grocery store, doctors, restaurants, trains to City or Airport, insurance agent, real estate company, post office, church, bagel shop, movie theater, schools (K-12) and playground, my kids' friends houses, farmers market, cleaners, government offices... Did I forget anything? Oh, it's easier to live in Jenkintown without a car than it is in Center City Philadelphia. (And it's easy to have a car if that's important). What we are missing is a Zip Car location.
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