Heather Brandon used to drive from her home in Hartford, Connecticut, to work in Springfield, Massachusetts. It would take her anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on traffic. But this summer, she committed to taking the train.
Producer Morgan Springer talked to her about the commute while Brandon, who works at New England Public Radio, rode north on the train.
Morgan Springer, NEXT: Why take the train instead of drive?
Heather Brandon, NEPR: I think there might be a cost savings. I've been telling myself there isn't one, because the upfront cost, or what you pay out-of-pocket, regularly feels like more. But I think over the long run, it actually is a savings.
And then there's my mental health and my physical health — like, sitting in a car for long periods, and feeling aggravated almost the entire time, is not healthy for me. And when the traffic is bad, and there's unexpected delays, or there's an accident, it can be really irksome and stressful.
I like having the time to unwind a little bit, stare out the window, do something — whether it's work, or talking on the phone or writing something. I can take the time to reflect or be productive on the train. And that's a lot more meaningful to me.
Do you feel like it has helped your mental health?
Yes. And I will say, too, that I like to be one less car on the road. I think if we're going to make a shift as a society away from car dependency, which might need to be our future, it happens one person at a time. So this is my own personal experiment.
I could go on. I think I have a lot more reasons.
You mentioned you thought you were losing money by taking the train, but maybe it doesn't actually work out that way. What's the breakdown? How much does it cost for a monthly pass, etc.?
A monthly pass, which I think saves me money, is around $125 a month. It fluctuates a little bit — I'm not sure why. If you take the train five days a week up and back, that works out to about $6.25 a day. And then currently I'm driving to the station and paying to park, which is $95 a month where I'm parking.
That feels like a lot. A lot of people might balk at that. Compared to the car — based on the federal mileage rate, which is $.58 a mile right now — if I'm driving a car five days a week for, say, 48 weeks — so you account for vacations or something — it works out to about $162.50 a week. Per month, that would be $650.
Wow.
So that federal mileage rate considers a lot of things like wear and tear, gas. I might be saving around $100 a month by taking the train. That's my math.
That's amazing. So — because you had thought, you know, I'm not saving money by taking the train, did it feel good to actually sit down and do the numbers and say, OK, not only does this help my mental health, but I'm actually making a sound financial decision?
Yeah, totally. Yeah, that feels really good. And it makes me feel less terrible about paying for parking per month.
