The Costs and Savings of Bicycle Commuting

From Forbes online…

The Costs and Savings of Bicycle Commuting

Posted by J.D. Roth

This post provided by GetRichSlowly.org.

This guest post from Duran Valdez is part of the “reader stories” feature at Get Rich Slowly. Some stories contain general advice; others are examples of how a GRS reader achieved financial success — or failure. These stories feature folks from all levels of financial maturity and with all sorts of incomes.

For the past two years, I’ve been riding a bicycle to work. Mostly because I’m cheap. My commute is a 12-mile round trip along residential streets with a nice downhill stretch that leads me into the parking lot of the school where I work. I’ve made this trip in 100-degree weather, in fog, and in rain. I’ve managed to survive pot holes, stray dogs, and the social stigma attached to wearing clothing that looks like it came straight out of an X-Men comic book.

I recently tried to break down the costs and spending of riding for the past year. How much would I have spent on my car if I’d driven instead? How much did the bike cost? What about the commuting equipment? Unfortunately, some of the benefits you can’t quantify (you know: health, enjoyment), but I did what I could.

First, during the last year, I’ve ridden roughly 300 miles a month for strictly utilitarian purposes (I’m not counting my fun rides), which puts me at about 3600 miles for the year. I didn’t actually sell my car; I just drove it when I had to haul a load.

Read on here.