Car Or Public Transport? The Better Way To Go To Work.

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The argument of car versus public transport to go to work has already raged for a good many years, and will no doubt continue to do so for a good few years to come. The reason is, of course, that it is not straight forward and that both sides have good points to make.

Environment

Public transport is greener than the private motor car. Whilst a bus carrying sixty people or a full train carriage does undoubtedly produce less pollution and environmental damage than sixty separate vehicles. Cars are getting cleaner and the gap, although still wide, is closing. Furthermore, if commuters opt for carpooling the gap closes even further.

Cost

Commuting by public transport isn’t cheap, particularly if you are travelling from, say, Brighton to London by train. Of course, if one is to drive, there’s the cost of fuel, wear and tear on the car and the cost of parking (if available) once in the metropolis to consider. The exact cost of a car commute depends upon a number of factors such as the age and engine size of the car, and whether the cost is being split several ways, as in carpooling. Even so, many feel that the independence given by the car outweighs any cost factor, particularly if it is marginal.

Convenience and Independence

If you travel by public transport, you have to go at the times stated, whether convenient or not. However, if you have your own vehicle, you can come and go as you please, although possibly not so much if you’re carpooling.

Privacy

Many people prefer to travel by car because it affords them greater privacy, so that they can think aloud, listen to what they want on the car’s sound system as loud as they like, and generally act like they’re the only game in town. On public transport, certain unspoken rules of etiquette have to be observed so that the great mass of people can move together over several kilometres without coming to blows. Most of the time this involves being alone with your thoughts and a tiny square of folder newspaper for cerebral activity.

Dead time

When you are driving, you can’t do anything else but that, whereas advocates of public transport say that you can get work done while travelling. This argument, of course, depends on how full the mode of transport is, with precious little work being done by the thousands of commuters who stand up on their train everyday as they travel to and from the London suburbs.

Location and Type of Job

A lot of people who commute to work do so from outlying country areas where there is no reliable public transport, thus making a private car an absolute necessity, whether they like it or not. The same applies to those who need to carry a lot of work to and from their home, such as school teachers, who have a lot of marking and preparation to do after hours.
There are too many diverse and individual factors at play to decide which side of the argument is correct, and until the ideal of a cheap public transport system that runs when required and visits everyone’s home and place of work on its route happens, proponents of both sides are going to have to agree to differ and get along.
Car blogger Riley Lambert lives in Manchester and has contributed 100s of articles to blogs and online publications. He frequently writes on behalf of Concept Car Credit, for more information about Concept please visit the website on www.conceptcarcredit.co.uk