From David Sirota’s The Lever

  • thanevim@kbin.social
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    5
    ·
    1 year ago

    I had a $400/mo gas bill. 37 miles’ commute each way, in an SUV I got for cheap (just 10k, 87k miles on it, perfect condition). But it’s not like I could just simply move, and this was the first job I got that paid more than $8/hr. So I kept at it for a few years.

    Point is, that’s not an entirely unrealistic figure. And while it’s not something one should be doing, a lot still are doing so because it really is the only option they have commuting from suburbia to the city. (ESPECIALLY living in a county that has a history of being anti-public transit, like Cobb and Cherokee in Georgia)

    • Atom@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      4
      ·
      1 year ago

      You’re right, I based the math off a week, not a month. My mistake. You’re absolutely right though, witout a much stronger focus on public transit, many people are stuck living far away from work due to housing costs. An EV is better than an ICE. But WFH or integrated quality mass transit systems are far superior. I wish more Americans had that luxury.

      • n3kr0 @lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        2
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        1 year ago

        For me, I live an hour away from my job. I have no interest in living in a city. The amount of land and size house I have would be double the cost if not more near my work. On top of that the city I work in is at times the murder capital of US.

        • greengnu@slrpnk.net
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          1 year ago

          Well assuming 70mph travel speed as an upper bound and a 1 hour commute, we can safely assume a 140mile e-bike range would be sufficient. Assuming you are willing to pay those savings forward to help others reduce their car use; collective investment in improving your situation would be mutually beneficial in the long run.

          • thanevim@kbin.social
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            5
            ·
            1 year ago

            Would you ride an ebike twice a day, everyday, 30+ miles each way? Dunno about you, but that sounds positively exhausting. Get up early, get dressed in weather-appropriate clothing, put on helmet, sit on bike for the next two hours, then work for 7-9 hours, just to get right back on the bike for another 1-2 hours, maybe more? No thank you.

            • greengnu@slrpnk.net
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              1 year ago

              Yes, if that is what is needed to provide for my family. But my job isn’t hard physical labor but more sitting in meetings and writing code.

            • greengnu@slrpnk.net
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              1 year ago

              Well you didn’t specify additional cargo or other reasons for limitation.

              For example if the issue is travel time: electric motorcycle if the issue is cargo: electric bike with travel trailer if both travel time and cargo: gas to electric conversions are affordable (with the batteries being the highest cost [and the determining factor for range])

              basically the less mass needing to be accelerated, the less energy required. The lower the acceleration acceptable, the less energy required.

              Treat it as an engineering problem to solve or improve upon.