For you college/university students

How do you get to school?

I've been taking the bus for a few years, but this summer I managed to get my own car, and now I'm tempted to take it to school instead of riding the bus (I live in the city that the college is in, so I don't need to move to a house nearby).

The pro to taking my own car is that I can go where I want, when I want while driving. It's also faster for me (20 min or so vs. an hour or longer on the bus), so I can probably go a little later (but I'll probably still go early since parking fills up quickly at school).

The con to taking a car is that I have to pay for gas, and the wear and tear on my car. And since there's some major construction going on the freeway atm, rush hour sucks (I could get there just by taking the streets, but ugh, can't go as fast, and then gotta put up with traffic lights lol), and I'd have to deal with bad drivers too (some guy turned into my lane the other day, without signalling or even looking before he turned. If I didn't slow down, he would've ran into me).

The pro for taking a bus is that I'm helping to save the environment (I'm not a big eco-nut though, so this isn't a life-breaking deal, but it helps), and I can listen to my MP3 and read without worry. My school also has this deal with the city's transportation department, so we get a bus pass which lets us ride for free for the entire semester (have to show the pass and your school ID). You can use it for anything else too, it doesn't just have to be specifically for school only, like if you wanted to go downtown. And before you ask, yes, we have to pay for it in student fees ahead of time, but it pays for itself after about 22 bus rides or so, since it costs about $37 and a bus ride is $1.75 (if your school doesn't have something like this, you really should recommend something like this to your student commitee group, because it'll help on parking issues at the school, esp. in urban areas).

The con is that it takes a lot longer (I have to catch 2 buses to get to my school), waiting outside during cold or rainy weather sucks (esp. if you reach the bus stop just after the next bus left that stop, and it's happened enough to me lol), and I have to put up with rude people on the bus (one time this fat girl went crazy after a while, and started brandishing a small penknife. It wouldn't be a terribly big deal to me if not for the fact that she was by the rear exit, and I was in the seat just behind that exit. This meant that the knife was uncomfortably close to me, even though she wasn't specifically threatening me with it).

So, do you take a car to school, or do you ride a bus/train, or do you simply live close enough that you can just walk there? I'm leaning towards the "take a car" route, just because if I have work scheduled that day, I can go there directly with my car, rather than take a bus home, then take my car to work. And it saves me time, but it does cost me more money (I have a job, so it probably won't bother me that much). I'll probably still take the bus if the weather is terribly bad (like heavy snow and ice), but I'm wondering if the car isn't a better option during good weather, and what you guys and gals think about it.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I walk 5 minutes from my residence and then I'm in the main building. Its as simple as that, but I still have to get used to walking to different sections of the university that I haven't been to yet. I'm going back next week to check out where all my classes are.

How ya doing, buddy?

I got an apartment (just picked up the keys this morning) roughly 5 minutes away from campus. Obviously, I walk.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I carpool with a friend, I should be taking the bus because it is 1 dollar to get there, 1 dollar back, which is cheaper than gas if you figure it out, and the bus is just as fast as driving here, because it only stops in 2 places. But of course... I like being able to go where I want, went I want, so I pay the extra $$. Carpooling helps a lot.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

My dorm is about three minutes away from the main campus and downtown Iowa City, so I usually walk everywhere. However, the entire campus is very spread-out (here's a map if you're curious), so I have a bike for if I need to go to a building on the other side of the river or to the grocery store, which is a bit farther out of the way. The university also has free Cambus service, which is nice if I'm tired or just lazy.

I don't even have a car, because parking around campus and downtown Iowa City is a mess, and it's a 10-20 minute bus ride out to the main car storage lots...I can ride to the closest grocery store or any building that I have classes in in less time than that!

I was speaking idiomatically.

I only live about 5-10 minutes away from the campus, but I take a car since walking would still be too far. Living nearby is convenient because I'm able to schedule classes that are early or late without worrying about traffic or waking up ahead of time.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I take the bus and would still take it even if I managed to get my G2 anytime soon since I don't want to pay the silly parking fees. It'd obviously be a lot more convenient and faster to drive to school but on the bus you can meet new people (hasn't happened to me yet but definitely possible), and it's free because of the school year long bus pass. For some reason, I enjoy the morning struggle of not being able to board a bus full of people that get off at downtown anyway and leave no room for the university-bound, as well as the cramming of people when the bus forces everyone to move back since people are scared of the back of the bus apparently.

As well, taking the bus is self-discipline. If I was able to drive to school, I'd probably get lazy and be late for my classes thinking that I can get up later.

FELIPE NO

Look, Gecko. If you're asking for an opinion, it really depends on your requirements. If you only need the car to go to college, or if the traffic there is often bad, then all the car loan and gas expenses isn't really worth it. I'd rather wait for the bus abit, plus it's cheaper and you don't have to drive. Also, when you actually own a car, for the first time at that, you'll feel really paranoid about your car's safety and such, it's more of a liability than otherwise.

On the other hand, if you always travel around, going to work, meeting up with people, etc. then the car would do you good. Plus, it gets you to places on time, since you can actually plan your journey ahead of time. If you're afraid of jams, just leave early. Buses, however don't do that.

For myself, I'm too lazy to drive, so I always get someone to drive me around. Family or friend. Hitch a ride without the trouble of driving, paying for gas and all that. I go to college by hitching a ride.

Most amazing jew boots

My new apartment is like, 20 minutes (allowing for traffic) from campus, and since I kind of lack a car or a license to drive, I'm forced to take the bus. Not that it's a bad thing, since the school shuttle comes right in front of my apartment building practically. The only annoying thing is that every single person in the apartments is taking the same shuttle, so if you get there around 8 or 9am the bus is usually at capacity. Sucks to be me...I suppose I should just go to school early and practice in the morning before class.

I actually could really use a car, since in order to play gigs in Austin you need to be able to drive *outside* of Austin; rehearsals generally go until 9pm, and the gigs themselves are usually in Round Rock or wa~ay across town, making the bus an impractical and slightly dangerous choice of transport.

I don't think I could afford a car, though. What with insurance, buying the freakin' thing and paying for gas. And whatever upkeep that may crop up along the way. I could say I'm doing it for the environmental reason (Californian here. I drink organic soymilk and eat tofu), but why lie. It's the money.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I'm at home w/ the parents for now - 10 minutes North, but not quite within Bus Range (public transportation sucks in Michigan, thank you 20 years of Republican Administrations), so I drive. More specifically, I drive in in the morning (first class is at 10:20AM), walk around to classes and work during the day, and drive home in the evening (band gets done at 6PM). I probably spend about $10-15/week on gas and $100/month in insurance, but it's a hell of a lot cheaper than room and board.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I walk to school. It's about a 15-20 minute walk. I have to go around a freeway first, though. If that freaking freeway wasn't there it'd be so much easier and faster. I don't really mind the walking but the damn sun...it is NOT fun to do that in the summer/spring when it starts getting hotter. I pray for rain everyday, or at least clouds.

It sucks when I have a morning class because I have to get up even earlier than usual just to get ready and leave so that I won't arrive there late. I always try to schedule classes after 10 so that I'll just wake up on my own and won't be lazy to walk. Even if I knew how to drive, we don't have a car for me and I don't think the parents want to get another car right now.

How ya doing, buddy?

My dormitory is a short walking distance away from the other buildings where my classes are at, so I just walk to and from campus. It would be too expensive to ride the bus for such a short distance. I don't drive anywhere unless I absolutely need to or I'm going out of town for vacation. Gas is pricey as is.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I live on grounds so it takes me about 5-10 minutes to walk to any of my classes. We also have a great bus system, but with all of the shortcuts I take it's usually faster for me to walk then to take the bus.

Plus I enjoy walking and will always walk over taking any other means of transportation, as long as it is a resonable distance (walking is also good exercise).

How ya doing, buddy?

I live on campus in a dorm, so it's a short walk to some of my classes, though the majority of my classes are ten to fifteen minutes away (at the greatest building on campus).

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I commute 45 minutes by car to my college campus. It sucks, but I really didn't like the whole dorm experience, and I don't want to bother with an apartment or something nearby.

It hurts in that it has prevented me from doing any kind of on-campus activities that i've been interested in, but overall I'm happy with the decision.

Gas prices are killing me though

FELIPE NO

I just drive to get to my university.
Its about three miles from home but I enjoy the benefits of going or leaving at my own leisure. Next semester though, I may buy a bike to get to class. It would save me a ton of money on gas and the school's parking permits.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

When I was in college I drove back and forth to school. The only problem was I had a 2 hour gap in classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So every now and then I would drive home during the gap. Which was a considerable waste (about 15 minutes, one way).

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Well, I use motorcycle and it's about 30 minutes.. I won't use car coz' it'll take longer time, especially in my city...

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I carpool with 2 other friends, takes about 20min. I used to go on the shuttle bus, man, was that ever a hassle, sometimes you had to even wait for the next shuttle to come 1hour later because the buses were full.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I drive. My dad got me a used car for about RM4k.. that's about USD$1.1k

Monthly petrol/gas = RM300 = USD$80 (we have subsidized gas)
Parking Tickets = RM80 = USD$25

It's about 8-10kms(6.xxx miles) from my house...

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I am around 5-7 minutes walk from most of the buildings I have class in this semester and I have a bike on campus so I can half that time if I need to.

Why people would live off campus if they were offered dorm housing is insane to me and I go to UNC-Chapel Hill.

Most amazing jew boots

I live in residence, and its one minute to University Centre. Of course, as usual, all my classes are in the buildings furthest from my residence. I swear everyone in Administration is against me....

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I drive which is fine except parking around campus is a bitch and a half. I'm trying to find a place near school that'll enable me to walk or at least drive a shorter distance, while I live 5 minutes away at the moment, my neighborhood is shitty and I have to take the freeway to get there.

Most amazing jew boots

University is about 6km from my home and I'm planning to bike there when school starts. It'll be a bitch to bike back home on ... well pretty much any day of the week. I work out on Mon-Wed-Fri and I have late classes on Tue-Wed-Thu. Ah well

But! It's a handy way to exercise and it'll definitely wake me up in the morning
Also, it's cheaper, a bit faster and I can do it whenever I like. (Buses don't run in this city past 1am)

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

My dorm is 10 minutes away from the main campus area in Greenwich Village. I just moved in on Sunday and I'm loving it. Classes start on Tuesday.

Oh, I walk by the way.

Jam it back in, in the dark.