Driving vs. Metro

[Anonymous]

They put in a new express line bus on 16th street. S9 makes limited number of stops and runs from SS metro station to McPhearson square during rush hour. I haven't used it yet, but it seems like a good alternative to regular buses that stop every other block.

[Anonymous]

I have the same commute and always take Metro. I love being able to zone out and listen to my ipod on the metro. I also have a 20 minute walk to the train station, which is the only way that I fit exercise into my schedule. (With walking and metro, it takes about 50 minutes.)

[Anonymous]

I gave up on metro when I was 8 months pregnant, passed out, and no one offered any assistance. In fact, I had to push my way out once I came to, got off the floor, and tried to make it off the train when it pulled into Union Station. Ever since then I've been driving all the way down Georgia, to 16th to downtown by the White House. My monthly garage fees aren't that much more than what I would pay to take metro and park at the metro garage. I'd much rather be in my own car, drinking coffee and listening to the radio than on the metro with millions of people (particularly during flu season -- yuck). Most days traffic is predictable, but you need to be prepared and have a back up plan when traffic stinks (like last night -- it took me nearly an hour and a half to get home). Nonetheless, I'd much rather be in my own car stuck in traffic then waiting on the platform at Metro Center or on a train that has been delayed.

[Anonymous]

Hey, your time is valuable too. If $130 saves you a bunch of time, it might be worth it. Don't forget to count the wear-and-tear on your car, though, and if you normally read or do work on the train, you might miss that time.

I used to drive into work sometimes - I'd pay a few bucks extra to park, rather than drive to metro, pay to park there and metro in, because if I left my house early enough, it took 37 minutes door-to-door rather than an hour. (I'd usually do so if I needed my car for something after work.) Of course getting home would suck - the commute home was a lot longer because there's a lot more traffic at 6:00 p.m. than 5:45 a.m.

These days, thanks to daycare dropoff, I leave the house too late to drive in - it would take longer than metro. And metro is more reliable in the evening than driving, so it makes more sense for me to metro to my car to do the daycare pickup.

Here's one option: you should do a little research around the neighborhood to see if you can find a cheaper parking garage, maybe one a few blocks away. I used to save $7/day on parking by using a garage that was about 6 blocks away, and got more exercise, too. Also, early bird rates at some garages might be cheaper than monthly passes, especially if you ever miss days for telecommuting or whatever.

[Anonymous]

"Or commuters from MD and VA need to pay commuting tax." From a metro perspective it's the MD and VA commuters who are already paying a lot - they're the ones paying the highest rates and the exorbitant metro parking fees (considering the parking rate is added on top of long distance metro fares)