FRIDAY, AUG 29

Has it been a month already? I planned to write about commuting for the month of August, and now, I feel like an old hand at it. Am I greener than I used to be? Sure. Am I saving money? ABSOLUTELY!

But there are some downsides to commuting. So for this, my last column on the subject, I enter some random thoughts.

* Google rocks! MARTA's website is not the easiest to navigate if you don't already know what bus number you want. On Google Maps there is a mass transit option that makes it easy to plan your commute. I've used it several times and it's been right on target each time.

* As drivers, we are horrible to bicyclists. SHARE THE ROAD! And businesses? Where are the bike racks? Let's see more of them!

* Taking mass transit can be educational. I now actually read all the papers and news magazines delivered to my house. (I'm getting pretty good at sudoku, too!)

* Using mass transit when it is raining stinks. It just does. No way around it.

* I am so impressed with businesses that give their employees incentives to make our commutes greener.

* A big thank you to commuter rewards, for working hard to get people to think outside the solo-driving box.

This may be an end to my column, but it won't be the end of my alternate commutes. Hope to see you on MARTA!

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THURSDAY, AUG 28

As college gears up this fall, Emory University wants to put their kids (and their professors) on bikes. And the college is going all-out to do it. If you're a student at Emory, you can check out a bike. I don't mean-"hey, check out that bike", I mean literally check it out, like you would check out a library book. You can use it all day long and not pay a dime!

So if your college student says he or she really really needs a car at school, think about the cost of gasoline and the cost of insurance. A bike might be the way to go, even if the school doesn't have a bike sharing program like Emory.

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WEDNESDAY, AUG 27

If saving the environment isn't enough of a reward, how about some gift cards? If you are part of the commuter rewards program, you have a one in twenty chance of winning a gift card. The drawings are random, but you increase your chances each time you log a commute online. A nice little surprise bonus for doing the right thing-

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MONDAY, AUG 25

It might be a little like patting my head and rubbing my stomach at the same time, but tomorrow I'm going to try to carpool AND take mass transit.

My daughter drives to a school about 10 miles from our house. We got the bright idea that if we carpool in the morning, she can drop me at a bus stop by her school and we can save even MORE on gas. It'll require a carefully choreographed morning routine, but I'm ready to give it a try.

She's actually looking forward to it, even though it means she'll have to get up a little earlier in the morning. She's looking forward to our "goal-setting" sessions.

When she was little, I used to drive her to pre-school and later elementary school. We had a tradition of setting three goals for the day. We'd discuss them and talk about how to reach them. Remember, it was pre-school, so her goals were something like "be nice to others" and "stay with the group" (she was quite the wanderer and had to have a teacher assigned specifically to her on field trips. I boiled down the entire movie "E.T." to the lesson: "See what happens when he wandered away from his parents"....but I digress, back to commuting)

Anyway, those trips together gave us a time to talk about our hopes and dreams for the day. At the end of the day, we'd talk about whether we reached our goals.

I'd forgotten all about our "three goals" conversations, until my daughter said she wanted to start it up again during our carpooling trips. Who knew carpooling could be so warm and fuzzy?

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FRIDAY, AUG 22

If you are an employer, Georgia has a deal for you. Starting next year, you can get tax breaks for letting your employees telework. Georgia is the first state in the nation to do this. Business owners can get a one time tax credit of up to 20 thousand bucks and annual credits of up to 1200 dollars for each new teleworker. You can find more information at the Clean Air Campaign's website. Employers can sign up beginning in September.

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THURSDAY, AUG 21

MARTA ridership jumped 9.8 percent in June of 08 compared to June of 07. The July figures are due to come out any time.

It's hard for me to guess how it'll turn out. A couple weeks ago, I wanted to get on a MARTA train at the Arts Center, and people were so packed in there BEFORE it stopped, some folks on the platform didn't even try to squeeze in. They waited for the next train.

Other times there are plenty of open spaces when you'd think it should be full.

But it's clear a bunch of people on the MARTA are newbies like me. I've talked to a bunch of people and about 90 percent of the folks I meet on the MARTA have been riding for 3 months or less.

I'm anxious to see July numbers--as soon as I get them, I'll pass them on to you!

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TUESDAY, AUG 19

Is it the next "new" thing in commuting? Amazon.com says electric bike sales are up more than 6 THOUSAND percent comparing July of this year to July of last year.

It's an intriguing idea. I like the idea of riding a bike, but I don't like to sweat unless I'm going to the gym and have a shower nearby. I know, call me Ms. outdoorsy. (For the record, I blame Atlanta humidity.)

The cheapest model I could find is from Currie technologies for about $350 dollars. According to treehugger (see treehugger.com) the bike will go about 10 miles without needing a charge, and this is if you use the pedal assist liberally. The downside? The battery lasts about a year, so you need to do the math before you figure out whether this is an option for you. The upside? You can take it on the Marta. For people, like me, who are a little afraid of scooters, an electric bike might just be the little oomph we need.

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MONDAY, AUG 18

WHAT IS YOUR TIME WORTH?

Over the years, I've heard a lot of different opinions about how to decide what your time is worth.

I know a guy who would not mow his own lawn, because he says his time is worth more than that.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, I made my own laundry detergent to save a few bucks the other day. (I told Clark about it, thinking he'd be proud---but he just looked at me with this frozen smile like he thought I went off the deep-end!)

If you decide to try carpooling, or mass transit, or biking to work rather than driving solo, someone will bring up this age-old question. Is it worth your time?

If you spend your free time commuting, it IS time you could be spent doing something else. But who is going to pay me to spend more time at home in the morning rather than get myself out of the house and take the MARTA? No one. I guess that's why they call it "free" time.

Several years ago, a Cobb County woman asked to get out of jury duty, because she felt she needed to spend her time housetraining her new yorkie. So I guess deciding what your time is worth, and how to best spend it, is a subjective thing.

But until my day is so full, l that I truly have no free time to watch a TV show, or get on the internet, or read a book, then I will have a hard time arguing that my time is worth too much to take mass transit.

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FRIDAY, AUG 15

Have you ever had one of those days when there is so much to do, you can't figure out where to start? My to-do list for today looks about as long as a James Michener novel, so I used it as my excuse to take the "easy" way out.

I drove all the way into work.

The upside? I saved 30 minutes. I crossed a couple things off my to-do list before I got to work. I wouldn't have been able to do that if I had taken the MARTA.

The downside? Driving in rush hour traffic STINKS! I forgot how stressful it is.

When my daughter started driving, a friend told her this: "My dad says just pretend everyone else on the road is drunk and wants to kill you."

Driving in rush hour traffic isn't as bad as that scenario, but there are some stupid drivers out there. At my first stoplight, the driver of an SUV almost rear-ended me because I actually STOPPED when the light turned yellow.

My Wall Street Journal stayed un-read on the seat beside me as I negotiated my way in, with my Michener-sized to-do list bouncing around in my head.

By the time I got to work, my jaw was clenched and my muscles were tight. Was it that way BEFORE I started taking MARTA? Or is it just my tolerance level for rush hour traffic has dropped dramatically? I'm not sure, but I know this. Come Monday, I'm getting on the MARTA, reading my Wall Street Journal and letting someone else worry about getting me into work.

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THURSDAY, AUG 14

$8,230.00.

That's what the American Public Transportation Association says Metro Atlanta residents can save in a year using mass transit.

Really?

That sounds a little high. I figured out that if gas stayed at 4 bucks a gallon, I'd save $1.51 per day on gas by taking Marta. That's a yearly savings of a little under $400. Wow, how did the American Public Transportation Association come up with such different figures?

Here's how: First, they considered the total cost of driving a car. Insurance, maintenance, tires, etc. That's fair. The AAA says it cost something like 54 cents a mile to operate a car. But I only count gas, 'cause it seems more concrete to me. When my gasoline bill drops, I see it. I know I'll benefit by not needing oil changes as often, but I want to know what I will save RIGHT NOW!

Still, if the AAA says it cost 54 cents a mile to use a car, that means I spend 23.22 every weekday driving my car to work. By driving to the nearest Marta park and ride (5 miles away, see rant from AUG 1) and then taking the Marta I spend $5.40 using my car and another $2.60 on Marta (using a weekly pass). That's 8 dollars a day versus $23.22 per day. Using AAA's figures, I'm actually saving almost 4 thousand a year.

Much better than my original figures, but still nothing like APTA's claim that we can save 8 thousand bucks using MARTA.

Oh, here's the difference: The very last sentence in APTA's press release says, "The savings assumes a two person household will live with one less car."

ARE THEY CRAZY? Okay, I'm learning to be green, but this giving up my car business is NOT going to happen! How else would I get to the bus stop, it's 5 miles away! (Have I complained about that before?)

I think Mass Transit advocates would get more converts if they didn't overstate the facts. Going from solo driving to giving up a car is a pretty radical move. And it's nice to learn just how much we could save by doing that, but I'd rather know how much the AVERAGE person could save by switching. And maybe I'm wrong, but I think most people who've started using alternate commutes aren't selling their cars and walking to the bus stop.

Maybe someday I'll turn a darker shade of green and get rid of my car. But for now, I'm fine with half the $8,000 savings APTA claims commuters will get.

I'll happily take my $4,000 to the bank.

In my own car.

But I'll make sure it's when I'm on my way to another errand so I don't waste gas.

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WEDNESDAY, AUG 13

I was browsing through the latest Newsweek last night when the "My Turn" column jumped out at me. It's titled "Making Do Without the Minivan" and right underneath the headline, the columnist, Jennifer Perrow, says "Why do I love the high price of gas? It's helped my family stop being so dependent on our cars."

It's a great column, but it was the theme of family that grabbed me. I'm using mass transit to save money. This columnist says it's helped her reconnect with her family.

She figured out what it costs to take the kids by minivan to the pool. Because her minivan gets lousy gas mileage, it costs her 50 cents round trip. Since they made the trip 2-3 times a day, the cost really adds up. Now, Jennifer and her kids go to the pool by walking, or by riding their bike.

At the end of the column, Jennifer sums up the benefits this way: "Gasoline usage for the minivan is down by 50 percent. I've lost nearly five pounds. The dog is happier and getting more exercise. I'm having great conversations with the kids as we walk and bike together. Perhaps best of all, life feels simpler."

Losing weight, connecting with the family, AND saving money? Sounds good to me!

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TUESDAY, AUG 12

The U.S. Energy Department says oil consumption has dropped by about 800 thousand barrels a day since the first of the year. The last time we had a drop like that was back in 1982.

So we're pumping less gas, but I have to wonder.

I started this column when I was paying 4 bucks a gallon. Today I saw gas for about $3.70 per gallon. If gas stays under 4 dollars a gallon, will we go back to our old ways? Even though gas prices have dropped, we're still paying a dollar more for every gallon than we did a year ago. To put it in better perspective, filling up our tanks cost 37% more than it did a year ago. I don't know about you, but I'm not holding out for a 37% raise this year. So even though we're feeling good that prices are coming down, the bite in our budget is still very real. If we don't cut back on spending money for gas, we'll have to cut back somewhere.........

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MONDAY, AUG 11

The first day of school has me feeling melancholy today. My daughter, Rosie, is a senior in high school.

Just yesterday, at least it seems like just yesterday, it was her first day of kindergarten. She was a few feet shorter and much, MUCH more excited. She couldn't wait to ride her bicycle down the street to "big kid" school. When we got there, we couldn't find a bicycle rack anywhere! Turns out, her elementary school didn't allow kids to ride their bikes.

But that was back when we lived in Virginia, so in ninth grade, she tried it again. Once. Traffic was horrible. There were no bike lanes on her route, and drivers were...well, let's just say, that southern hospitality often doesn't extend to surface streets in Metro Atlanta.

My husband has noticed it, too. Truckers who like to wave at him with a certain finger, drivers of cars that blast their horn because he wants to share the road.

And it's not just my impression. In 2006, Bicycling Magazine rated Atlanta as one of the very worst cities for bicycling. While we didn't make the "worst" list this year, bicyclists will tell you we have a long way to go.

One Cobb County resident wrote a letter to the AJC summing up his opinion of bicyclists:

"Traffic is bad enough without people taking a recreational ride down a major road while productive members of society are trying to get to actual destinations."

Wow. I don't even know what to make of an attitude like that. I do know several people who bike to work and I don't think they consider their trip recreational. I also know of people who get in their cars when, believe it or not, are NOT going to work!

However, WSB photographer Erin Frederickson, who spends hours and hours on the road shooting stories for our station, contends that bicyclists sometimes bring trouble on themselves. She's seen them break the rules, zoom through stop signs, zip in front of cars and generally scare her when she's trying to be a good driver.

So if you see a bicyclist, share the road. And if you're a bicyclist, follow the rules of the road! Driving to work can make us crabby enough; let's not make it worse on each other.

As for my daughter, she's going to a charter school 10 miles away from our house, so-no bicycling for her. Still, she did carpool this morning with another senior. I'm such a proud mama!

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FRIDAY, AUG 8

Google has done it again. Now you don't need to be at your computer to map your commute. You can do it on your mobile phone. I tried it and it works great! It's much handier when you're out and about. Go to maps.google.com and you'll see a notice that says "New! Google maps for mobile with transit directions."

Oh, one more thing:

Don't forget school starts in most districts on Monday, so traffic will likely be much worse Monday morning! Leave early, or leave your car behind and find an alternate way to get to work!

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THURSDAY, AUG 7

MARTA's website leaves a lot to be desired. If you don't already know what bus you want to catch, it's not easy to figure it out using itsmarta.com.

And, have you tried to use the trip planner? I typed in the address of the station on West Peachtree Street, but Marta didn't find it. It would only find it when I typed in W Peachtree Street, which took me some trial and error to figure out.

But there is an easy way. Google maps!

I stumbled upon it when mapping something the other day. When you ask for directions in Atlanta, you can choose driving directions, walking directions or "public transit". I just double checked the website this morning and Google has changed it a teeny bit. Now you have to put in the start and end location and then you'll find a button that says "also available-public transit".

Here's why I like Google better: When it spits out your options for your transit, it actually has a map. That makes it so much easier to understand where you're going. MARTA's websites gives you options, but without a map, I think it's an inferior option.

But here's one thing I like about both websites: you put in the time you want to leave and it tells you the best way to get where you want to go, depending on the time. If you work a 9-5 job, you may not need that, but if you work 9 to "whenever" as many of us do, it's invaluable!

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WEDNESDAY, AUG 6

When people find out that I've started taking mass transit from north Fulton rather than drive to work, they inevitably ask me, "How long does it take you?"

Yes, that's the downside of mass transit. It takes time. In the summer, without the school traffic, it takes me about 50 minutes to get into work. Driving to a MARTA station, waiting on a bus, then catching the train and then walking a little more than a half mile to work takes me an hour and 20 minutes.

It adds an hour to my round-trip commute. An hour of time in a crazy-busy day when I could have been doing something else.

This is, I think, when a lot of people push back from the idea of mass transit.

But before you do, think about the upsides. I am walking more than a mile a day, which is good for my health. On MARTA, I read the Wall Street Journal, to catch up on the latest business news before I walk into the morning news meeting at work. So taking the MARTA allows me to multi-task. I've actually seen people reading the newspaper while driving in rush hour traffic, but no way would I try that!

And, as my husband pointed out after reading a few of my entries here, "It is good for the environment, Patti, you are going to at least mention that, right?"

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 5

My very first morning mass transit commute wasn't a raving success.

Everything was going fine until the train started moving like a teenager was behind the wheel on his first ever effort to drive a stick-shift. (I'm writing this, so I can make the bad teenage driver a boy if I want to.) As soon as we got into the tunnel in midtown, the train stopped completely.

And, nothing.

I immediately started wondering if this whole mass transit thing was a good idea.

But then, something happened. People on the train started TALKING to each other. "Have you ever seen this before?" "Oh, there's a supervisor, not a good sign." Turns out one guy on the train actually helped built trains just like it in another city. He explained it was something to do with the air brakes.

That's when it hit me. Getting stuck on the MARTA during rush hour is nothing like getting stuck on the highway. On the highway, you're in a solitary fight to the finish line. Just you and Captain Herb. The other cars are the enemy. Depending on the level of competition in your character, you might want to beat the other cars to the finish line. Or, at the very least you don't want them to beat you.

But on the MARTA, you're all in it together. There's a camaraderie you don't see on the highway. No one is trying to push in front of the other person. Someone says she's been riding MARTA for two years and this has never happened. It relieves the newbies in the crowd.

10 or so minutes later and we're moving again. The crowd cheers. We're moving toward the finish line again! Oh, wait. We're going to work.

Since the day hasn't started, I guess we're moving to the STARTING line........

Oh well, better to be stuck on the train on the way to work than on the way home!

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MONDAY, AUGUST 4

Friday I talked about how much money I save by using mass transit rather than driving by myself to work.

Today, I'll tell you how I actually EARN money!

Three words: Clean Air Campaign.

I signed up for the campaign's "cash for commuters" program. It's really simple. First, you have to currently be driving alone to work to qualify. But once you're approved, you can earn 3 bucks a day for every day you use an alternative way to get into work. The maximum you can earn is 180 dollars over the first three months!

What is an alternative commute? You have lots of choices: You can use mass transit, carpool, vanpool, you can telework from home, or you can ride your bike or walk to work.

If you're already using another way to get to work besides driving alone, you can sign up to win cash prizes. And if you're already carpooling you can get gas cards every month!

So if you need that extra little nudge, try it. I have to be honest, without the "cash for commuters" campaign, I don't think I would have gotten off the fence when it comes to mass transit. But it makes so much sense economically. In addition to saving $1.51 a day (see prior post) by taking mass transit over driving alone, I am EARNING 3 dollars a day for the first three months. That makes my daily profit $4.51 cents every weekday.

Google "Clean Air Campaign" and you'll find everything you need to know about the cash for commuters program.

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Hello. My name is Patti and I am a car-a-holic.

I love my car. I love driving where I want, when I want. To me, it spells freedom. While my husband extols the virtues of mass transit (he used to live in New York) I could not imagine giving up my solo-driving ways.

I know I'm supposed to WANT to clean up the air, and every time I drove by the North Springs MARTA station, a little part of me felt guilty. Not guilty enough to do anything about it, mind you. After all, the North Springs station is my half-way point on my way to work, I'm half-way to my free covered parking space in mid-town! With a parking spot just WAITING for me, I would drive right by the MARTA.

But this year, when I did my annual story with Consumer Advisor Clark Howard about giving your car a day off, I started giving it some serious thought. As Clark walked more than 5 miles to work to help the Clean Air Campaign, I started doing the math.

What is the cost of the convenience of solo driving?

I figured out that I spend $5.36 every single weekday on gasoline alone, never mind the wear and tear on my car!

Then I figured out what it would cost to take the MARTA. Since I live 5 miles from the nearest MARTA bus stop (I know, does that stink or what?) I have to factor in a 10 mile round trip along with the cost of getting a MARTA Ticket. Since I always buy the unlimited weekly pass for 13 dollars, and use it 10 times a week, each one way trip cost me $1.30.

Here are the results:

Driving alone: $5.36.

Mass Transit (plus gas to get to the Park & Ride lot): $3.85.

Savings: $1.51 per day.

How much could YOU save?

Here's how to figure it out:

First, take the miles you drive to and from work. (In my case, that's 43), then divide that by the miles per gallon. I get 32 mpg, so my math looks like this: 43/32=1.34. The 1.34 is the number of gallons I use every day to commute.

Then take the cost of a gallon of gas. For simplicity sake, I'll use $4.00 per gallon. Multiply 4 by 1.34 and you get the amount you spend in gas every day. If you want to be super-precise, use the actual amount you spent in gas the last time you filled up, and multiply that by the amount of gas you use to commute.

To figure out your alternate commute, figure out the gas you'd use to get to your nearest Marta stop, and add in the cost of the Marta pass. (If you commute 5 days a week, the 7 day pass, or the 30 day pass is your best bet.)

Is it worth it?

Well, saving $1.51 per day means I save $7.55 per week, or about 30 bucks a month, which translates to $360 a year! Plus I get the added benefit of helping to clean up our air! That's a deal!

But, what If I told you that you could actually make $180 dollars by switching the way you get to work? I'm already earning extra bucks, and I'll tell you all about how you can do it too, on Monday's installment of Adventures in Commuting!