huhenio

I certainly don't/

I like nice gear, bike or not bike specific, for my hour roundtrip commute.

discuss

cyclokitty 

Every month I ride I save $100. I haven't bought anything new for my bike in months (I think the last thing I bought were my grocery shopping panniers back in summer).

Mr. Underbridge

Generally, the point at which one saves money is when a car is eliminated from the equation. It can be done otherwise, but it's tougher.

If you look at it as a hobby *and* transportation, it's a clearer winner. If biking gives you something to do, and you'd be spending that money on another hobby anyway, then you're basically getting to work for free.

SouthFLpix

I definitely save money. I estimate $75 per month. I do not have an expensive bike or expensive accessories, but what I do have gets the job done.

uke

I save whenever I use my bike(s) for transport instead of the car, but I spend whenever I buy an accessory for the bike (most recently a set of tubes to keep at home for maintenance). I haven't bought anything since the 24th of October, though, so hopefully I can keep things in check.

rhm

I rent a bike locker at the train station; it costs $7.50 per month. Parking a car at the same station costs $95 (not reserved) or $150 (reserved) per month. Parking here in the city could be ten times that. Add to that, the cost of gas, having a second car, and ... . Oh, forget it. I'm not doing the math for you, but yes, I save money by bicycle commuting.

GV27

Haven't calculated it in awhile but when gas was in the $4 range I was saving like $300 a month.

Mr. Jim

No car payment $300+ a month
No car insurance $100+ a month
No gas $100-$200 a month

I went car free 3 years ago, haven't looked back, if I need a car for something i rent one, cost me $50 to $75 for the day. For the record i do not live someplace where this is easy like Chicago or NY.

bhop

I do. I only put about $25 gas in my car every month compared to the nearly $200 that I used to.

steveknight

I can save money but not lately. new chain new cassette new light (my old one died) brake replacement

DataJunkie

Heck no.

Big M

Not me. Not by a long shot. I'm still at the point of amassing bikes and gear and clothes and toys.
I'm spending way more than I'm saving.

Commuting by bike is only worth it for the fun and enjoyment. It's a great way to start the day, that's for sure. But I won't actually be saving money unless I sell the car (lol, no chance) or bike consistently for about 2 years. That's assuming I don't replace or fix anything in that time.

lil brown bat

I already owned a bicycle and bike gear, so there's really no added expense there, maybe a little because I use it more. Balance that against $3.40 a day minimum for public transit or $15 a day to park plus gas. Yes, biking to work saves me money.

Zaneluke

In the short run, no i have not saved $$$. But next year i wil because i will not need to buy all the cold weather gear again.

huhenio

I am behind on splurging since i am car free too according to your math.

BRB ... going to the lbs

dcrowell

I'm not yet saving any money. I bought two bikes and a ton of gear this year. I still have a car, but no payment, and I don't spend much on gas.

dynodonn 

If I just calculate only the savings in not having to purchase fuel for commuting over the last three years alone, I'd say that I came out even. Though that I broke even in riding a bicycle versus driving a car over that time period, I have several nicely equipped bicycles to show for it than an empty tank and a hand full of gas receipts. Now that my cycling fleet has been updated, my bicycle budget has plateaued and is in a severe decline, now the real savings are beginning to show.

timmhaan

i've spent way more than my subway card would be. just the extra food alone almost kills any savings by itself.

commo_soulja

I'm saving about $200-$250 a month in gas since I've been commuting everyday and riding around town (groceries, bookstores, meeting up with friends). Still have the truck, no payments but insurance, for the times I need to go farther than I could bike. I'm still hesitant to sell the truck and solely rely on two-wheeled transportation, I'd still have my motorcycle and my five bikes.

taliesin

My company allows us to expense $100 per month on commuting. Most people use this to expense parking or BART or bus tickets. I use it to expense the locker and shower facility at work, and they also allow me to expense tires, tubes, chains, etc.

I still have to pay for fancy gear, components and clothing, but commuting by bike is much cheaper for me in the end than any other option, including the bus.

ItsJustMe

I'm pretty sure I do, but I don't really keep track. I don't care if I'm saving or spending money.

To answer the question, I guess if I were driving, I'd be spending about $100/month on gas. I still do drive, but only about $30/month worth (I fill up every 6 to 8 weeks).

This year my bike expenses have been a new Superflash ($20), a new pair of Marathon Winters (which will last 3+ years) ($130) one set of clone Avid brake pads ($6) a set of Nashbar rim brake pad replacements ($2.99) and I broke a rear axle, so I spent $100 on a new rear wheel. So I've spent about $260, but all but $10 of that is stuff that will last multiple years. Normally I'd have spent $30 or so on new summer tires, but a friend gave me a set he wasn't using last spring.

So I guess that's $360 in gas and $250 in bike stuff versus $1200 in gas. If you want to amortize the bike stuff, it's more like $80 in bike stuff (assuming around 3 years - but I hope the wheel lasts longer than that).

All I have to do is to ride with a light breeze blowing from the left, and I get reminded of one of the REAL reasons I do this. One less pollution belching box on the road. It's amazing how much crap one car can put into my eyes and nose. That's 2 square inches out of the miles and miles that they're traveling - all to move one person around.

Chicagoan

Yeah, its cheaper than the train

sauerwald

Economics is not my primary reason for commuting. I had a heart attack 6 years ago, and decided to ride the bike in order to integrate an exercise program into my daily activity. If I look at the potential cost of medical care that might have been avoided by my keeping myself in better physical condition, then I may have saved 10's of thousands of $.

My car is especially fuel efficient (48mpg), so it is hard for me to save a lot of money on gas, but I am sure that my car maintenence costs are far lower. The car is paid for, so there are no car payments/ If I were able to get rid of the car entirely, then there would be savings in insurance and depreciation. There is a guy who works with me and lives close to me. He drives a suburban and since the commute is ~30 miles round trip, he is undoubtedly pouring a lot of money into his gas tank.

On the flip side, I am eating more, and bike maintenence is not cheap, in the past month I have had to rebuild a rear hub, replace a bottom bracket and headset, and my rear tire is almost ready to be replaced - over $200 in parts and labour.

M_S

It depends. If I die early due to an inattentaive cager, I guess I'll end up spending less money overal than I would have had I lived longer.

huhenio

That is where I want to get to.

After buying all my stuff for winter, that is where the real savings should show up.