You can load a gift card at Wal Mart and save 3 cents a gallon. Grocery stores cut the price of gas after you spend a certain amount. Don’t get married to a certain station, gas is gas.

Keep track of your MPG. I have a HandBase program on my Palm that keeps a running total of gallons bought, monies spent, etc. Typically your mpg will fall off in the winter and when it is raining.

Check with your accountant if you can deduct your mileage. If you go this route keep detailed, detailed records.

The comments about books on tape, podcasts, etc are fine, to a point. After a while they get boring. Why not buy a digital voice recorder and instead of passively taking in information, why not leave a daily digital diary for your future self? The model I have will record a immense number of hours and has four folders: set up as diary, to do, random thoughts and projects. Has alarms, etc. Uploads to the laptop.

About the 20 mpg car vs the 40 mpg car. My Yaris will get up to 41 mpg. With just me. On cruise control. On a windless day. On long stretchs. And it will hold 5 adults, barely.
Now MPG is important. But so is a potential larger family. So is reliability. Buying a car is a series of gives and takes. If you think you will have this commute for a long while, well then a small 4 cylinder econobox is right. If you are going to have twins and become a stay at home then a used smaller mini van is right. If Trent hits the lottery then a Viper is right. You need to think about where you are going to be two, five years from now.

And I hope is NOT $3.00 a gallon gas. I swear, every time a sheik has to raise a dowry, the price of gas goes up.

Another audio option is National Public Radio. I am fortunate to be able to take public transportation to work that is paid for by my employer, but my biggest regret is that I cannot listen to NPR for the large majority of my commute. I’ve heard promotions for NPR liken it to the Graduate School of Life, which I heartily agree with.

I use my time on the bus for crafting. I sew doll clothes, do embroidery, and other small sewing handwork like the occasional quilt patch working. I keep my work small- so that it can fit into a “kit” I made that goes in my backpack wherever I go. Hopefully, the sewing work and such I do will eventually mean actual extra money. But mainly I like the time to myself and conversations it sparks….

There are lots of ways to improve fuel economy. A good one for winter is to consider the maneuvers (sp?) used to park and unpark your car overnight. If there is significant back-and-forth, plan things so you do that on arrival, i.e. when the engine is warm. In my case, for example, I can go into the driveway forward and back out later; or back in and drive out forward later. Since backing is slow and deliberate and may require more than one try, it is better to back in when the engine is hot, rather than engaging in vehicular putzing when the engine is cold and inefficient.

Another wintertime possibility is the block heater. Many cars sold in the northern states come with block heaters already installed. This is intended to keep the engine warm enough overnight so you can start it on cold mornings. A secondary benefit, however, is shortening the warmup time, thus saving fuel and also reducing air pollution. If you put a timer in the extension cord you can have the heater start at, say, 2am rather than leave it on all night. Even leaving it on all night only costs about one kilowatt hour which is in the neighborhood of ten cents generally. That’s only 1/25 of a gallon of gas at current prices. Meanwhile your cold-started car is probably well below 25 mpg for that first two or three miles.

Also, there’s no need to switch off the A/C entirely. Just dial back the temperature control and the thermostat will handle the switching on and off for you …. just like at home.

Not only do you save money, you also get a workout at the same time!

While it won’t save you much monetarily, you gain in knowledge :)

Sometimes I also listen to a comedian!

Besides, it might introduce you to an entire new world of people, make new friends, your mind expands, etc.

I come from a traditional background (old-country Mexican) – so I had to wait for my parents to die and my children to grow up to take on that hobby. And now that I’m an avid rider, I regret not having done it earlier.

Use your car when conditions are too dangerous to ride.

If you go to Europe, you’ll see many more Vespas and motorcycles on the road than in this country.

We need to push our legislators for better public transportation. Our country is fat and unhealthy in part because we drive everywhere, circling parking lots to get the closest one. In Europe people walk to the subways and several countries have free buses.

I’m 5-6 and 150 lbs and felt like the fattest person in Europe – except for other American tourists.

It’s time to start really thinking outside the box. Our economy sucks and we need to make our pennies count.

Great site!

Lily

Those “quick” trips to the grocery store can add up in a hurry, and increase the wear and tear on your car.

Doing some of these things on the way to or on the way home from work can lighten your load as well.

I thought that the closest bus stop was 3 miles away (I can’t walk that yet), but I recently found a closer bus stop! (About 1 mile from home).

So now I will walk about 30mins (will get quicker I hope) and take 2 buses to the light rail. I will leave the house about 45 minutes prior to my current time and still get to campus on time.

I luck out, I have a cheaper student pass and get excercise out of it too. Plus I get to catch up on my audiobooks –big plus for me!

Sometimes you just need to re-evaluate your priorities.