The Savings

Recently there have been several days when I just haven't wanted to ride my bike. I'm tired, my muscles are stiff and sore, and the hills on the ride home from town seem far too big. It's not that I want to drive the car, it's just that I'd rather just be there already. But I'm not, and I haven't given myself any other options, so I climb onto my bike and slowly, but surely, I make it home.

On one such morning as I rode in to town, to keep my mind off my thigh muscles, I started to calculate our savings from not driving the car this semester. Here's a low-down of what I came up with:

With traveling to town and back an average of six days a week, over fifteen weeks we will have saved 30 gallons of gasoline and kept 150 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. At current gas prices of about $2.69 per gallon, that is a savings of $80.70.

What?!? ONLY $80? The new rear wheel on my bike alone cost $60, not to mention the new chain and sprockets on Tim's bike, our studded snow tires, and the hours of tune-up that Tim has put into keeping our bikes functioning.

As I whizzed down the last hill into town, I was dismayed that it appeared that we were actually spending more to leave our car sitting in the parking lot. Then I thought it through a bit more. My previous calculations assumed that as a family we would be able to coordinate our schedules so that we could always drive together. We often ride home together, but coordinating 8 AM classes with a sleepy 1-year old doesn't usually work. So the previous number should be doubled since Tim would be driving separately from me: we've saved $160. (This doesn't get into the costs incurred if we both wanted our own cars.)

Of course, I'm also comparing apples to oranges here; I'm comparing the fuel for our car with the repairs for our bicycles. Generally repairs and parts for cars are much more expensive, even if you can find a good mechanic. (Earlier this year our car had issues with the spark plugs, costing about $400 to diagnose and repair.) And then there is the cost of insurance, inspection, and registration. Our car is still registered and insured, so we haven't seen any savings from that. This alone would be a significant savings--about $400 per year--if we completely switched to bicycles.

As I rode home that evening, mulling over these additional savings, I realized that there were intangible aspects of commuting by bike that I appreciated more than the money saved. These is something about riding my bike that makes me feel more alive than I do when driving the car. There is also something about the bike that makes me feel more connected to this place and this community than I do with my car. I move more slowly. I experience weather directly. I see my neighbors more. I see more wildlife. I shop at local businesses more. I like all of those things. They make me feel good about living where I do.

I also appreciate the things that I don't do as a result of not driving the car. I don't buy gasoline. I really like that. (While writing a paragraph above, I realized that I have no idea how much gasoline costs right now. It's not something I pay attention to anymore.) I don't have to start the engine and check all the gauges. I don't have to scrape the ice off my windshield. I don't add greatly to the amount of noise and air pollution. I don't add so much to the danger in the world--a bicycle hitting something is on a completely different scale than a car hitting something. I don't have to justify the use of the car in my mind. I don't feel guilty for driving to hear a speaker at the college talk about climate change.

By foregoing the car and riding the bicycle, I am living more on a human-scale. I'm a small step closer to living with my actions in alignment with my beliefs. And that is priceless.