How to make the railway cheaper than the car?

[davefb]

bah, i would add, if i could get the bike on the train i'd be using in the morning,, then that would be great!


but i can't or rather dont' know till i get to the station

 

[Red Light]

bah, i would add, if i could get the bike on the train i'd be using in the morning,, then that would be great!

but i can't or rather dont' know till i get to the station

Do what lots of people in would London do. Either cycle to the station on an old hack bike (2 miles is not far) and leave it there. Take the train and have another hack bike if necessary at the other end. Or invest in a Brommie and take it on the train with you.

If you are doing that sort of driving mileage you will be building up all sorts of costs you haven't factored in plus your car will wear out and need replacing sooner than if it sat on the drive. So don't kid yourself the marginal cost is only the petrol cost.

 

[srw]

Where my German friend comes from (Hemsbach in Baden-Wuerttemberg on the edge of the Odenwald), they have a very very simple system - the whole train system is broken up into hexagons, like a beehive. If you want to travel from one place to another, you just count the number of hexagons through which you'll pass and pay per hexagon. If you decide en-route that you would like to go further, you can buy extra hexagons on the train from the ticket collector, or when you get off.

Where I live and go to work we have a very very simple system - the whole public transport network (buses as well as lots of different trains) is broken into rings, like a target. You don't even need to count the rings you're going through or buy a ticket - you just touch a little card on a reader at the beginning and the end of the journey and the system does the work for you. When the card runs out it is automatically topped up. The best bit is that most of the network doesn't even need to publish a timetable, the trains are so frequent.

The name of this public transport nirvana? London.

 

[SavageHoutkop]

Do what lots of people in would London do. Either cycle to the station on an old hack bike (2 miles is not far) and leave it there. Take the train and have another hack bike if necessary at the other end. Or invest in a Brommie and take it on the train with you.

If it's a £20 a week bus ticket, £1040 a year could get you a really, really nice Brompton

 

[jefmcg]

If it's a £20 a week bus ticket, £1040 a year could get you a really, really nice Brompton

or for £100/£250 per year, if you prefer.

http://www.southwest...mptonbikes.aspx

(including service every 3 months!)

 

[BADGER.BRAD]

If I were to use public transport to get to work (2.5miles by bicycle/motorbike or car) I would end up walking more distance to the bus and from the bus to work than walking the actual journey. Public transport is totally naff unless you work in a town or city or that my view of it anyway and very expensive £1.90 on the bus for me to do about 1.5 miles. Bicycle bike or car take me to the door of where I wish to go and much faster. My daughters/girlfriend ( none of which drive) quite often share a taxi if they need to go to town as this works out much cheaper than the bus and again is door to door.