488
Cycling is ten times more important than electric cars for reaching net-zero cities
(theconversation.com)
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
this post was submitted on 21 Jan 2024
488 points (94.5% liked)
Bicycles
3127 readers
2 users here now
Welcome to !bicycles@lemmy.ca
A place to share our love of all things with two wheels and pedals. This is an inclusive, non-judgemental community. All types of cyclists are accepted here; whether you're a commuter, a roadie, a MTB enthusiast, a fixie freak, a crusty xbiking hoarder, in the middle of an epic across-the-world bicycle tour, or any other type of cyclist!
Community Rules
-
No bigotry - including racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, or xenophobia.
-
Be respectful. Everyone should feel welcome here.
-
No porn.
-
No ads / spamming.
-
Ride bikes
Other cycling-related communities
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
Yes, biking 37km each way is pretty extreme. However, if you haven't already, I'd suggest questioning whether you should be making some changes in your life. Using rough calculations for a fairly efficient & economical car ($0.25CAD/km for gas, maintenance, and depreciation), your commute is costing you $18.50CAD/day (more if you drive an SUV/Truck)! That means if you could move closer to work so you could bike, you could pay an additional $350/mo in housing and still be ahead. Or, you could look for a new job that pays $4,600/year less net (probably ~$6,500/year gross) and be ahead. And if you could give up your car completely, those numbers could more than double!!
It's possible after reviewing the numbers, you'll conclude that it's not worth it to make any changes in your life, and that's fine! Work in agricultural and other rural industries is important. It's just that so many people aren't even ware how much their 20min commute costs them, let alone what it costs their local government (roads aren't cheap) or the environment in general.
I live with my mom. I cannot afford rent in the town that I work in, and the two other nearby towns require a car just the same as the one I'm in now.
I cannot afford to move. ~~When my mother dies I will likely become homeless.~~
Once again, the problem boils down to the billionaires not paying people enough.
I agree that our capitalist society sucks. Your only choice is work within it or die.
You answered one of the questions and almost certainly
no rent + $350 < rent. You didn’t answer the other question and I see from another comment, you make $40K/year. Where I am in Ontario, that’s not much more than minimum wage ($16.55/h×7.5h/d×251d/year≃$31K/year). I’d highly recommend reviewing whether your pay and job satisfaction is worth what you spend on your commute!No, the commute and car ownership is literally cheaper than paying the extra rent.
My mom only charges me $500/month, last I looked rent for places that aren't even comparable to what I have now were about $1500/month, and my car is costing me about $250/month. That's a difference of $750/month, and my quality of life is way better.
What you're suggesting is completely unreasonable for me.
However I admit that my comment about homelessness is likely wrong on further analysis. But it remains to be seen what happens with the housing market in the intervening years.
I think you misunderstood my comment. I was agreeing with you. If you're staying with family, that's almost certainly financially better than getting your own place. What I was saying is that you didn't answer the second option: What if you got a job closer to home? You don't have to answer it here, but I'd just recommend reviewing it by yourself.
If you make $40K/year, your 37km commute probably costs you ~15% of your net income. Getting a slightly worse paying job within biking distance of your current home could leave more money in your pocket.
I see, I did misunderstand.
Unfortunately being in a small town means there are limited options, and most of them I've used already. Some I could go back to. But really this is about the best I've found.
The real option is to start a business, but I'm enjoying life more than I ever have at the moment, and I don't want to give that up and go back to working all the time. I probably will eventually, because I hate working for people who I think are stupider than I am.
You want me to live in neighboring city with all those twatheads, druggies, richers, shitty schools and terrible drivers? No thank you! - Anyone, anywhere lol.