Carmen Bianca BAKKERJul 27, 2023

I'm going to try _a thing_. There are two related phenomena regarding #cars and #PublicTransport that I basically never see discussed. I wrote an article about these two things which includes two very clear definitions. I want to see if I can get some reach to disseminate these two things like a mind virus.

Boost if you like. Or don't. I'm not your boss.

The premise: when you own a #car, it is cheaper to drive the car. But: we want to get people out of their cars, even while they still own cars.

The definitions:

- Sunk cost discount: for as long as you own a car, it is cheaper relative to public transport to use that car for individual journeys, even though you would save money if you got rid of the car and exclusively used public transport.

- Trip cost scaling problem: for each additional passenger taking a journey together, the cost per passenger becomes lower when travelling by car, but higher when travelling by public transport.

The article: https://www.carmenbianca.eu/en/post/2023-07-27-the-sunk-cost-discount-and-the-trip-cost-scaling-problem/

Shamelessly tagging @notjustbikes @TheWarOnCars @ianwalker

#cycling #bancars #urbanism #train #bus #metro #tram #SunkCostDiscount #TripCostScalingProblem

The sunk cost discount and the trip cost scaling problem

Cars are more expensive, but not when you already own one

Carmen Bianca Bakker
Show threadCarmen Bianca BAKKERJul 30, 2023

A tiny addendum update after receiving a lot of warm feedback on the article :) Thank you.

There are many, many, many reasons why people take the #car over #publictransport. The two phenomena outlined in the article are barely a factor in some cases. I am aware of this, but wanted to hyper-focus the article on one thing only: the cost of public transport for car owners. I did this for a simple selfish reason; I want my family to visit me more often. They don’t much like long car rides, but the alternative journey by #train makes no economic sense for them.

Furthermore, I’m aware of the externalised costs of taking a car, and did mention them in the article, but it bears repeating: the only reason car journeys are so cheap is because we subsidise the hell out of cars and their #infrastructure and off-load all the damages incurred by them (opportunity cost, productivity loss, #health, #environment, #climate) onto society. But everything else remaining the same, I’d still like my family to be able to visit me by train more cheaply than by car.

#bancars

Show threaddr2chase
@carmenbianca I'll just blather a bit, maybe I ought to use the blog I've already got for that. One way to help get people out of cars would be to take all the sunk and/or lump costs and "marginalize" them. For example, in the US, drivers or car owners pay for automobile insurance in a form that is a large lump cost and then a small (reported) per-mile extra. (I know this because I got a quote for insurance on a 1000 mile/year car). If we could measure miles and turn that into /
Jul 30, 2023 at 2:13pmWeb
Show threaddr2chaseJul 30, 2023
@carmenbianca a per-mile cost, then we just un-sunk that annual cost. We could (this is deranged, but bear with me) institute universal health care for cars -- a state-run repair insurance company settles the costs of auto repair, and it's paid for through a per-mile fee. Again, we just un-sunk that cost. The car itself, that's a problem, not sure I want a state-run car-replacement company.
Show threaddr2chaseJul 30, 2023
@carmenbianca A different problem is that I am not sure that people appreciate the investment necessary to comfortably ride a bicycle. I utility-bike about 5000km/year, I raced for a bit when I was a kid, have been several kinds of cyclist over the years, never a unicyclist or track cyclist. Riding with other people near Boston, it is common for me to "size them up", judging how they hold a line, the cadence they pick, posture, bike fit, all that. And it varies, not everyone's comfortable or /
Show threaddr2chaseJul 30, 2023

@carmenbianca skilled. It takes time to get better, and I've even seen this in people over time (I recognize other people on bikes) and seen them get better. They wobble less on a start, track a straight line better, have a smoother cadence, that sort of thing.

So, a few years ago, spouse has work trip to Copenhagen, I go along, one day I rent a DonkeyBike to get our dirty clothes to a laundry, and I'm riding near rush hour. EVERYBODY ELSE ON A BIKE IS GOOD AT IT.

Show threaddr2chaseJul 30, 2023

@carmenbianca and by good at it, I mean not just skilled, but riding really close together. In the US this is pretty rare outside of a race (I think), you have to be really confident in your ability to track a line, and your ability to not totally lose control if you touch something else while riding, lots of daily utility riders here *can* do it, but don't. But there, they're all good, and know it, so they ride close.

(Note that this is a complete non-starter on a wide-barred mountain bike.)

Show threaddr2chaseJul 30, 2023
@carmenbianca A lot of these skills accumulate slowly, so you don't notice, but when you have them, biking is easier, feels safer, etc, but you don't necessarily know that you have them. My "best" daily route includes a sharp turn onto a sidewalk from a crosswalk, and it turns out that not everyone is comfortable doing that, which I discovered after recommending (and guiding) someone who wanted to bike to the office more. "That thing you do turning off the crosswalk onto the sidewalk, I can't."