Cheaper ways to travel to work?

BlueNose1984

About £45-50 of money is eaten up each month on travelling to work. I have to catch two buses all the time and an all day ticket is £3.

There is an independent bus which goes to the area where I work that costs £1 a journey, but drops off at a silly place and one time I caught it, I landed up lost and was something like 30 mins late for work! Also, I dont know what time it runs late afternoon.

West Midlands travel does a pass for a whole month, but it can be a pain getting renewed and sometimes I dont have the full amount to buy a pass.

No-one in my house drives, and walking it would take ages as it's quite a distance.

Any pointers?

Poppycat

A push bike perhaps?

PayPeanuts_2

You could use a pushbike for fitness or buy a motorbike, you can get a cheap 125 for 600 - 800 quid, you would have to pay insurance as well but if you are looking at a long term solution it could save you a fortune as the petrol isn't that much for a bike.

Or have a look at lift sharing websites if it is a common route?

BlueNose1984

It's daft, but I cant ride a bike.

I mean I'd love a motorbike, but there is so many idiots on the road and I dont really enough to afford and maintain it.

When I move out to Coventry, it'll be cheap-ish as the train wont cost much, but I still have to catch a bus and fairs aint cheap. It's nowhere a railway station at all where I work.

Poppycat

Theres some web sitez that offer a service where you share a ride in someone elses car and pay a contribution, I cant find any a mo as I hate using laptop controller for all but the basic of things

Primrose

could you put an advert in your local newsagents/supermarket to see whether anybody living near you could get involved in a Share A Ride scheme, or in the Personal column of your local paper? Do you have a local town/village website where you could put a posting?

misscomickat

A bus pass would be cheaper than getting a daysaver.

I ride a scooter and that has saved me lots of money compared to getting the bus, and plus, I get to go right past a lot of the traffic.

wannabe_a_mum

Why not try sending an email out at work/through your facilities management team asking if anyone's interested in Car Share if they come from your area?

That's what they do here where I work - but for a different reason (because we don't have enough car park spaces for all the staff!!)

smitchy73

Some large companies offer interest free loans for annual travel passes, or money to buy a push bike.

if you google car sharing, and change to UK pages there are a few national companies, and some of these have more regionalised pages, I only know this because I took a lightbulb moment last night to set up one of these then when I looked into it there are loads, boohoo!!

I actually already give one lady a lift from the same town we stay in, and it works well.

cashlady

:rotfl: Have you tried speaking to your company, sometimes if they speak direct to the local PTA and they have enough staff they can get reduced rate travel for their employees.

Worth asking :T

alanobrien

What about walking half way and catching one bus ?
Good (free) exercise and half the cost.

I have walked to work for more years than i care to recall several miles in each direction and probably saved enough to buy a new car in that time. Yes it takes a bit of time but it can be good relaxing time if you use it right.