Sometime recently someone was arguing that it was cheaper to commute by car than rail, despite my frustration with Scotrail and my enjoyment of driving, here's a quick comparison for the Dunfermline - Edinburgh commute (as I used to do it ;-))
Rail Dunf to Edinburgh:
12 month season ticket £1404.00
Car (Fuel only):
Assuming 50mpg (Excessively generous for this type of stop/start commute)
25m each way, 50 miles a day, 250 miles a week.
Fuel £1.25 / l (till the next rise!) = £5.69 / Gal
So, 5 x 5.69= £28.45 / week (petrol ONLY, not counting extra depreciation and wear from the 250 miles a week you are putting on the car)
£28.45 x 48 weeks (assuming 3 weeks holiday and a week missing otherwise) = £1365.60.
Ahah! You say, see, it’s cheaper… except that you now have to pay for 12,000 miles of oil, screenwash, bulbs, tyres, de-icer etc etc etc with £39.00
So like for like, petrol for the car is roughly £40 a year cheaper than jumping on the train (except that it wont be with another 2.5% VAT, let alone a fuel price rise), if we discount wear and tear on your car, the inevitable traffic jams near the bridge, the fact that you’re almost certainly not achieving 50mpg most of the time and so forth, and of course we assume you have free parking all year.
Even if we argue that the capital cost of your bicycle and equipment be included you’d still have to be travelling two to a car for a significant proportion of your journey to make any saving. Oh and have ONE breakdown or accident and your saving is gone.
Of course rail/bike can have their inconveniences/costs, but they are nothing compared to the private cars costs.
(at this rate I’ll have to give up my title of petrolhead! :-o )
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