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Walking vs. Bus vs. Subway

Posted by Glenn on October 1, 2005 - 11:07am in The Oil Drum: Local

As readers of this page may know, I have about a two mile commute from my apartment to my office. It's basically a straight shot down Second Ave. I have several commuting options, which is unique in America where most people rely completely on their car.

When I first moved here about 6 months ago I reflexively took the 4 or 5 train from 86th street to Grand Central Station, but in the NYC Summer it started to get really, really oppressively hot in the tunnels, so I took the bus a few times and much to my surprise, it was a pleasure! Typically I had a seat the whole way (something I never got on the Subway), although it was slower due to traffic, particularly around the Queensboro Bridge off ramp at 59th and 2nd Ave.

Then I started to walk more to get a little exercise in. Below you can see the breakdown of the various considerations in choosing which transportation to take.

       Time       Cost       Calories    Comfort
Subway       20        $2         39.6    C
Bus       25        $2            0    A
Walking       40        $0        316.8    B
Taxi       10        $8            0    A

While the Subway is relatively fast, it is 2 avenues over on Lexington Ave on both sides of my commute, so door to door, the bus is actually a better option considering the difference in comfort. And walking is only 15 more minutes more considering the waiting time and the traffic. Plus I get to burn about 300 calories along the way.

Of course, all of this changes with the seasons. In the middle of winter, I doubt I'll be walking much.

Also, I would love to bike to work, but there is nowhere to store it and I feel it's too dangerous at this point given the lack of a bike lane on Second Ave.

Walking vs. Bus vs. Subway

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7 comments

MikeCapone on October 1, 2005 - 11:52am Permalink | Comments top
Walking is definitely the best way to keep healthy and evacuate stress.
Yankee on October 1, 2005 - 3:00pm Permalink | Comments top
2 things: is this roundtrip? Or are your numbers one way?

Also, how are you calculating calories? Because damn, if walking 2 miles is going to burn me 300+ calories, I'm on it. I work out every day at the gym for around 45 minutes, and I don't think I'm burning 300 calories (from everything I've ever learned).

NOT that I'm discouraging you from walking. Of course it's the best option when you can do it.

Glenn on October 1, 2005 - 4:21pm Permalink | Parent | Comments top
This is each way. So roundtrip is 4 miles. I went to a exercise calorie calculator, plugged in the time (not distance for some reason), the activity (walking briskly) and my weight and it spat out the 300 calorie number. If you spend 40 minutes on a treadmill walking you'd be around that number I bet. Plus real life walking requires a bit more effort than a treadmill, weaving around people, cars, uphill, downhill, etc. It's more scenic too.
some guy282 on October 1, 2005 - 5:55pm Permalink | Comments top
You can make that trip by bike no problem. I commute 15 miles from the Bronx to my job in Soho on the weekends. I use the greenway from 125th to about 70th street, and from there I go over to 2nd Avenue. I use 2nd all the way down to 14th street. If you're worried about a place to put your bike, you can just get a folding bike which can easily be stashed anywhere in your home, or under your desk at work.
Glenn on October 1, 2005 - 6:07pm Permalink | Parent | Comments top
Folding bikes are cool. I hope to buy a new bike in the next year and I'm strongly considering buying a folding bike.  See my comment above about Chicago
The Interloafer on October 1, 2005 - 6:29pm Permalink | Comments top
Hey Peakguy, you forgot to add an option for biking. Biking down Second Avenue during rush hour can be fun!
Glenn on October 1, 2005 - 7:25pm Permalink | Parent | Comments top
LOL, I love the spontaneous things that always happen in NYC. That's an awesome story and we need more of that. Traveling in a group the way I did on the Century Bike tour definitely adds safety - safety in numbers. I've been in contact with my new councilwoman - [Jessica Lappin jessicalappin@aol.com] about peak oil. I think a bike lane is a must have for 2nd Ave. Along with a Bus Rapid Transit line. That is until the 2nd Avenue train is finally installed.

Walking vs. Bus vs. Subway

PDF version

7 comments