Man puts money where his mouth is and ditches vehicle for a bus pass
28-year-old promoted importance of cycling, transit all while owning a car
Calgarian Alex Williams sold his car in July 2023, deciding to get around with his own two feet and public transit.
Located in southeast Calgary, the 28-year-old commutes to his retail job by bus four times per week in the winter months. During the summer, he would bike every second day.
His trip to work looks slightly different now, taking 45 or 50 minutes by bike or bus instead of close to 15 minutes by car.
“I don't get paid extra if I get there faster,” he said. “Sitting on the bus, I can reply to emails, I can write, I can whatever.
“The commute is longer, but also, I wouldn't call it a waste of time.”
He also plays soccer recreationally and sings in a community choir; both of which he takes transit to.
Williams said he was talking to people about the importance of transit, bike lanes and walkable neighbourhoods — all while still owning a car.
“Some times if I could have taken my bike, I had a car, so I drove my car,” he said. “Because I talked to people about this, I thought, `Well, I should really put my money where my mouth is.' ”
Putting his money where his mouth meant that he sold his car, and opted to pick up a Calgary Transit pass.
All told, including gas, insurance and maintenance, he was spending about $500 per month on his car (which was paid off ). The switch to transit allowed him to cut that down to just $115 for a monthly pass.
“In the summer months, I saved even more,” Williams said. For August 2023, better weather meant he was able to ride his bike or e-scooter more frequently, and spend just $60 on transportation that whole month.
Estimates pin the average cost of owning a car in Canada at $1,387 per month or $16,644 annually. If Williams was to buy a transit pass 12 months per year, he would be paying $1,380 annually.
Williams has been able to save the extra money from getting rid of his car, but his trips can be a little less convenient, especially in the winter.
On a winter day when temperatures dipped below -30 C, he ended up waiting around 30 minutes in the cold due to bus delays.
“We've had a mild winter, so take that for what it is, but even on the -40 days, I thought, well ... it's not so bad, you just bundle up,” he said.
“Winter sucks no matter what you're using to get around.”
If money wasn't an object Williams said he might keep a car, but nothing fancy: “I don't know how much I would drive, just because of how I feel about how we should get around in our cities.”
Williams said some people get the impression that he wants to “banish” cars, but that's not his mindset.
“I just think that we need more options, and I'm trying to promote having that accessibility, and that freedom to make use of a variety of options,” he said.
There are other benefits that come with choosing to couple public transportation with active transportation such as walking and cycling, and Canadian Urban Transit Association communications director Jon Macmull said that one of those is increased activity.
“Using bikes, using scooters, walking to a transit stop — these are all things that really help people to get out of their cars and have less of a sedentary lifestyle,” he said.
For people who may not be able to walk or cycle long distances, many transit systems, including Calgary Transit, have paratransit options for people with disabilities, Macmull said.
“There are options for people who want to be active, can be active, or people that just aren't able to.” `A net benefit,' public transit requires investment For Alberta in 2023, 88.6 per cent (1,832,900) of commuters travelled by car, truck or van; while 6.4 per cent (133,400) used public transit, according to Statistics Canada.
Getting more people using public transit is something Macmull said involves investment in infrastructure and operations to ensure frequent service is available. Strong support from all levels of government is important, he said.
“It's a net benefit, from a health perspective, from an emission reductions perspective, congestion reduction, and affordability. I know that's top of mind for Canadians now,” he said.
A problem for some transit systems, Macmull said, is the “first mile, last mile issue. You may have a very robust LRT system that can get you from all the way across town in a short amount of time, but then how do you get to your initial stop?”
He said things like scooter sharing, bike sharing and even parking at train stations can help facilitate those gaps where buses might not reach.
“Transit as a whole is allowing our cities to be a lot more inclusive for people across the socio-economic spectrum: employment, accessing education, going to appointments, medical services, whatever it may be,” he said.
Williams spoke about the sense of “freedom” cars can provide, and how it can become restrictive.
“You can't have freedom until you're 16, or you can't have freedom if you have certain types of epilepsy,” he said.
“If you have diabetes that isn't under control, that can restrict you from that `box' of freedom.”