Take Me For A Ride In Your Van, Van

[cahwyguy]

(climbs up on soapbox)

Today's Daily News has a number of lead articles on the effect of high fuel prices on Los Angeles drivers. One article notes how some have abandoned their high milage vehicles (such as Ford F-150 trucks) to downsize to more fuel efficient vehicles (such as Suzuki Samuris). There is also an article on how off-road

Comments

[estherchaya]

It's great that you work for a company that helps you find that resource. There are a few carpools (no vanpools that I know of) down to the agency I'm working at from my neighborhood. But they are all full right now. Plus, carpooling for me is next to impossible. Since Seth and I both work, we've both got parenting pressures to deal with. In the last month, both of us has had to leave work on no notice to pick up a sick kid. I drive the kids' carpool twice a week in the morning and once a week in the afternoon, which just makes for a ridiculously stupid schedule (changes every day

[cahwyguy]

I wasn't trying to say it would work for you. Rather, I was saying that the media should give ridesharing (and telecommuting, for that matter) some coverage, as well as covering how people have had to trade one deathtrap (SUV) for another (small SUV), or how folks have had to give up dirt-bike ridings. One wonders if there is some beholden-ness to their advertisers; after all, vanpooling and carpooling don't help the car dealers, whereas getting people to downsize into new cars does create business for advertisers.

[estherchaya]

I completely agree that the media should give more coverage to alternative commuting options. This includes vanpools, carpools, slug lines (in VA), telecommuting, subways (where applicable), buses (where feasible), etc.

Seth carpools occasionally with someone from our neighborhood... they average 1-2 days per week that their schedules mesh and they're able to go in together. This works well for him. I'd be looking for more options of "whenever it works out" kinds of carpools more diligently, if I really thought I wasn't likely to be changing jobs soon.

In my case, my answer is to find a job closer to home... because I can. I happen (purely by chance, by the way), to live in an area where there ARE jobs in my field. But I didn't know that when I moved there. And the other thing that we've done, of course, is work out a carpool for Julian for school so that neither family is having to shoulder the entire stress either on our wallets (from gas prices) or on our schedules.

media coverage

[terpsichoros]

I do remember an article about the casual carpools in the Chronicle (must not have been during baseball season), where the main thrust of the article was that AC Transit hated them, as most carpool riders take the bus back home, and were depriving AC of 8000 inbound trips a day, so AC had to run empty buses in to handle the outbound traffic in the evening.

[deedeebythebay]

Here Here! And good for you!

My "ridesharing" experience

[terpsichoros]

In Oakland, we have "casual carpools" into San Francisco. My biggest problem with them is waiting sometimes in excess of 15 minutes to get passengers, all the while with my car idling. There's a line of cars, and passengers get into the lead car. Sometimes passengers arrive at less than one per minute, and the line is ten cars long or more.

I have to drive; my work is way past the carpool drop-off point, and not convenient by transit. I don't mind picking up passengers because I save the $3 bridge toll, and save between 5 and 35 minutes of waiting at the Bay Bridge toll plaza.

[rialtus]

Interesting article in the LA Daily News. My wife is a school teacher, and commutes against traffic 35 miles to work. She likes where she teaches, and they pay better relatively than other school districts closer to home. When we first moved, she looked into all of that and decided to stay where she was.

The rising prices of fuel were partly responsible for the new car purchase last year. I'm still waiting for a decent hybrid Accord from Honda to purchase for her to replace the that car. I would likely inherit this car, replacing my 2001 Civic.

On my front, I continue to take the Metrolink, and echo your sentiments entirely.

[cahwyguy]

When I do have to drive, I drive a 1999 Civic Dx (such as today, when I have to leave early, but needed to be at work to meet with some folks). I'm also staggering when I arrive and leave to avoid traffic (I was in by 6:30; I'll be out by 2:30). My wife drives a 2002 Honda CRV, 2WD (pictured in this userpic).

[rialtus]

In the early 1990's, my father used to work in downtown LA, in the building behind where I work actually. He used to drive his motorcycle in from Rialto, leaving at 4-something in the morning and leaving about 2:30 pm to arrive home again at 4ish in the afternoon. He's still jealous that I can take the train in, because that option wasn't available for him.

[cellio]

I agree -- the media should make some mention of ride-sharing. It doesn't work for everyone, but it works for enough people to be worth bringing up.