Image: 2011-04-19 22:26:56
Commuters get to campus in the shortest amount of time when they drive their cars, according to a study that tracks commute times.
The study, called the 2011 Commuter Challenge, was done by Virginia Tech’s Transportation and Campus Services and Blacksburg Transit.
The results of the challenge were revealed on the Drillfield yesterday during Alternative Transportation Day of Earth Week.
The study found that car commuters spent about 12.3 minutes traveling 5.8 miles. Bike commuters spent about 12.3 minutes traveling 2.6 miles. Bus commuters spent 24.19 minutes traveling 6.5 miles. Walking commuters spent 23.6 minutes traveling 0.7 miles.
By holding the Commuter Challenge during Earth Week, TCS and BT hoped to show students the advantages to alternative transportation.
“We would like to raise awareness of these options and benefits people may experience by trying an alternative transportation option,” said Amanda Chassot, alternative transportation coordinator for TCS.
Students who participated in the Commuter Challenge logged their commute times on an online survey promoted by TCS.
The survey let students enter the time and distance of their commute, and the methods they used to get from point A to point B, according to Chassot.
Every time a participant entered his information, he was automatically entered into a daily prize drawing.
“The cost is minimal,” Chassot said. “Prizes for the participants were graciously provided by Blacksburg Transit.”
Andy Reagan, a student intern with TCS, initially
had the idea for a challenge that would compare the speed of a student riding the bus and a student riding a bike from the same starting point to the same ending point.
He brought the idea to Deborah Freed, the alternative transportation manager for TCS.
“The original idea just came to me,” Reagan, an avid biker said. “We morphed the event into a week-long thing where people could track their commutes, and we’d put all of the times together for a celebration on Alt Trans day of Earth Week.”
A version of this article appeared in the Apr 20 issue of the Collegiate Times.
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who would have thought a car would be faster than a fixie. Cars won't get you street cred at Bollos though.
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Bollos: the hangout for hipsters that regret going to VT instead of VCU.
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Bollos: the hangout for people that actually like good coffee
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Or...Bollo's has good muffins?
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Wait, a car is faster than a bike? I chose to bike because the parking situation is not fun, it't great exercise, and it's actually easier to get around campus during the day.
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I agree - the question shouldn't have been "how long does it take to get to campus" but rather "how long does it take to get to my destination on campus" which would include parking the car/bike and walking to the building's door. Bikes would've won hands-down...
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I agree. The title of this article is misleading. You would think, as English majors, the CT would have enough sense to realize the connotation of "best" was not the proper way to convey what the article described.
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I live at the village and under ideal conditions I can get there to perry st. parking in about 5 minutes flat (hitting maybe 1 light average on toms creek). Of course that's just about 1 mile to travel. However on a typical day when I go, It takes about 10 minutes 5 minutes of which is finding a spot. Finding a spot and then walking is the longest part of commuting by car.
Luckily on average it doesn't take more than 10 minutes on a bad day.
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I use to take the BT and it would take about 15 to 20 min going the same way. Sitting at the light then stopping at every stop takes a lot of time not to mention the tendency of BT drivers to go 5mph under the speed limit.
I choose to drive because :
1. It's faster
2. I like to have my car and the freedom to go elsewhere or run errans after class that buses don't cover in reasonable time...say Christiansburg. When I took the bus, I had to first wait for the bus to take it home which took 30 minutes sometimes during rush hour THEN go get my car and go. Having my car available saves as much as 1 hour sometimes when running errans.
That's just my reasons for this year. If costs keep rising dramatically I might have to re-evaluate.
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owning a car is crazy expensive if you don't need to. this is well known. http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/18/the-costs-of-owning-a-car/
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You might want to think about changing your headline. "Fastest" is not the same as "best." "Best" would depend on which variables you prize -- energy efficiency, cost, convenience, reliability, etc... I guess it's little surprise that driving your own car is the fastest and most efficient way to get to campus. I thought the point of Earth Day, however, was that doing the fastest and most efficient thing isn't always a good idea, though. At least, that's what I learned when I was about 7 years old.
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You sir, are an impostor. A true Vulcan would not use contractions. Your writing is rife with emotion. Fascinating, but highly illogical. Live Long and Prosper.
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Oh yay! Just what we need more god darned cars on campus. Freshmen shouldn't even be aloud to have cars. FFS walk or ride a bike and get off your fat arse :) Seriously though it may be quicker to drive but good luck finding a parking spot and when you do have a nice long walk to class. I can ride my bike to within inches of where I need to go. This study is BS!
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...and you shouldn't be *allowed* to write your thoughts. Ever. At least when you speak it sounds like you are using the correct words. Stick to that.
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Oh yay! Just what we need more god darned cars on campus. Freshmen shouldn't even be aloud to have cars. FFS walk or ride a bike and get off your fat arse :) Seriously though it may be quicker to drive but good luck finding a parking spot and when you do have a nice long walk to class. I can ride my bike to within inches of where I need to go. This study is BS!
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Is this a joke?
You're celebrating "Alt Trans day of Earth Week" by telling people to drive more?
This is pathetic
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