Money for Any Reason You May Need!

Saving on Daily Commuting Expenses in a Big City

Saving money is a plight thousands of people in the U.S. face today. This is especially so for individuals who dwell in big cities, which tend to have a higher cost of living. Although you canق€™t control rent and food prices, you can make changes to your daily commute to help you save a couple extra dollars each day. A lot of the tips youق€™ll find surrounding this topic require you to give up your car. But below, you will find a mix of ways to save on your daily commute by keeping your vehicle or ditching it for transportation thatق€™s more affordable.

Save Money on Gas by Checking Your Tireق€™s Air Pressure

If you didnق€™t already know, having low air pressure in your tires can force your vehicle to work harder, thus causing more gas to be burned in the process. To give you an idea, if just one of your tires has low air pressure, it could be costing you 0.125 percent more in fuel. Imagine having all four tires that are 8 psi low ق€" this would easily jump up to a 4 percent loss in fuel efficiency. This would translate to a losing one mile per gallon (i.e. from 25 mpg to 24 mpg). To eliminate this issue, you can measure the psi of your tires to ensure they have the right pressure. آ Taking a few minutes to put air in your tires is definitely worth the time if youق€™re looking to save money.

Ask Your Boss About Telecommute Opportunities

If you work in a field that could allow you to work from home at least one day out of the week, you should jump on the opportunity. You could also request a trial period to show that something like this could be done, without you losing your productivity. Even if you are only granted one day per month to work from home, you should consider taking it. Every day you donق€™t have to drive is money in your pocket.

Ride Your Bike Wherever You Have to Go

In the city, you have the luxury of bike lanes, so why not use them? Bikes are pretty affordable these days, especially on sites like Craigslist. You can use your bike to commute to work or even to the grocery store. Just attach a basket to the front or back of the bike and you have a proper carriage for your groceries and/or belongings.

Consider Vanpooling or Carpooling to Work

Vanpooling is a service that is typically set up by employers or employees. What this entails is for 12 to 18 people to put together the cash to rent a van and cover the cost of gas. Everyone meets at a location and all drive to work together. This is an alternative to carpooling, which is arranged by friends or co-workers. You can also use the Internet to locate people who are interested in carpooling to the same area. Some places even offer incentives for connecting with people through their site, like receiving a monthly $60 gas card when four or more people agree to carpool together. This calculates to over $2,000 saved annually.

Use Public Transportation

In some areas, public transportation is the norm. Depending on where you live, you could use buses or subways to get from point A to point B. Tickets for rides are only a couple of dollars, allowing you to travel farther for less money. You can find routes online or collect brochures from the transits.

Saving money on commuting is easier than you think. By implementing one or more of these tips, you could end up saving more than you thought was possible!