commuting

Critical List: Australia will have a carbon tax; 10 percent of Chinese farmland contaminated

Australia is going to have a carbon tax: The prime minister's plan just passed the country's senate. Not only do cars kill, so do commutes. A man in England dumped more than 1 million tires across the country. Heavy metals have contaminated 10 percent of farmland in China. Shorter Rick Perry: The government should stop […]

Sarah Laskow Health

Ten years of car commuting could cost you $125,000

A lot of home buyers are pushing out into the exurbs because the houses are cheaper there -- but long commutes come with hidden costs that could seriously dent any money you might save on a mortgage. A personal finance blogger with the trust-inspiring nom de plume of Mr. Money Mustache (okay, so he's a mustache, but it's a MONEY mustache!) has calculated that a two-car commute of 19 miles each way would cost a couple $125,000 over 10 years. That makes a $250,000 home into a $375,000 home, but all you get for your extra money is a tension headache.

Jess Zimmerman Housing

Walk Score's new apartment finder lets you build your perfect commute

Sure, there's a tool for finding the apartment with, say, the most bars in walking range. But eventually you're going to need to go to work, and if your commute is miserable, even having a bar for every day of the month won't save you. (Though it'll help.) Luckily, the Walk Score guys have put together a new tool that lets you search for an apartment based on how long it'll take you to get there from work.

Jess Zimmerman Cities

It's Car Free Day! Let's celebrate with a traffic jam, like China did

Today is Car Free Day in the U.S., a holiday that will probably be celebrated by fewer people than Talk Like a Pirate Day. But we might still end up more observant than China, which had No Car Day yesterday -- and celebrated with a giant traffic jam.

Jess Zimmerman Cities

Coolest bike commute ever

I can't see this type of ad flying in the U.S., where there's already some perception of bicyclists as scofflaws. But in the Netherlands, bike commuting is so commonplace that the Dutch Cycling Association can shake up its image with a super-hot besuited dude doing BMX stunts.

Jess Zimmerman Transportation

Websites help you choose a walkable, low-commute home

Looking for an apartment involves a lot of guesswork — if you believe Craigslist, absolutely everything is "steps from shopping and transportation!" If you want to figure out how to maximize walkability and minimize commute, you have to actually schlep over there. Or, now, you could just hit the web. PadMapper integrates rental listings, Google maps, […]

Jess Zimmerman Culture

How commuting can ruin your marriage

At least in Sweden, people who have a long-distance commute are 40 percent more likely to separate or divorce. That’s the finding of Erika Sandow, a Swedish social geographer who studied more than two million partnered commuters for her dissertation work. Sandow acknowledges that there are career benefits to long commutes — people who are […]

Jess Zimmerman Culture

The Yike Bike could make bike commuters of us all

You undoubtedly know someone who would totally commute by bike if it weren't for a whole raft of concerns: It's too dangerous! They're too cumbersome! I don't want to get sweaty on the way to the office! It is now time for those people to shut it. The YikeBike folds to the size of a […]