Morning Commute Observation

[Doofus McFancypants]

This morning i came into the office early ( 6AM). it was early enough i braved the Highway for the drive (I75 into atlanta for about 12 miles). Usually i avoid the highway like the plague ( it is really odd seeing 8 southbound lanes STOPPED during rushhour).

I have done a pretty good job of tracking out the surfece streets to get be to and from work the best.

So this mornings commute - when i checked the Scangage TRIP - Lo and behold my commute MPG was 41 !!! this is way over the typical morning commute of about 32 ish. So i start thinking that i need to leave for work earlier and reap the highway MPG rewards...

But then i look at the total gallons used.. and total gallons of 0.42 compared to the surface street route of 0.35 gallons. ( the highway is actually MORE miles than the surface street)

So maybe the highway is not actually the best way to get to work - although from a pure MPG it is better in one respect - in another respect i can make the same trip with less gallons going a different way.

Has anyone else seen this in thier commute? the "Best MPG" is not actually the best way to take overall?

Steve

[BBsGarage]

with a 54 mile commute, the hy-way is the only way for me

[IndyIan]

I have the same dilemma, for the last part of my drive I can take the by-pass and get to work in less time, or go down the main street for the shortest distance, but takes more time as the city is a firm believer in unsyncronized stop lights... From what I can tell if I get lucky with the lights then the city route uses less gas. But on average I use slightly less gas using the by-pass and it always takes less time.
Although its fun to get high mpg numbers really we should be trying to lower the amount of gas we use.
Ian

[thefirebuilds]

Originally Posted by Doofus McFancypants

This morning i came into the office early ( 6AM). it was early enough i braved the Highway for the drive (I75 into atlanta for about 12 miles). Usually i avoid the highway like the plague ( it is really odd seeing 8 southbound lanes STOPPED during rushhour).

I have done a pretty good job of tracking out the surfece streets to get be to and from work the best.

So this mornings commute - when i checked the Scangage TRIP - Lo and behold my commute MPG was 41 !!! this is way over the typical morning commute of about 32 ish. So i start thinking that i need to leave for work earlier and reap the highway MPG rewards...

But then i look at the total gallons used.. and total gallons of 0.42 compared to the surface street route of 0.35 gallons. ( the highway is actually MORE miles than the surface street)

So maybe the highway is not actually the best way to get to work - although from a pure MPG it is better in one respect - in another respect i can make the same trip with less gallons going a different way.

Has anyone else seen this in thier commute? the "Best MPG" is not actually the best way to take overall?

Steve

I have the opposite occurence. It's less mileage to take surface streets capped at 30-45mpg, but given the reduced speed and the fact that I won't feel obliged to do 80mph like on the freeway, the mileage is way better, and hence so is my usage. It just takes me an extra 10-15mins or so.

that said, its a much less stressful commute, especially if i leave myself enough time to take it. Only a few traffic lights and maybe a half dozen 4 way stops (which I prefer as I can roll on through rather than wait for 5+ mins)

[thefirebuilds]

Originally Posted by IndyIan

unsyncronized stop lights... Ian

meaning they are not timed to your MPH so you cant roll through them all. What is the POINT of this? I have noticed quite a few communities local to me that are setup this way, it is really frustrating.

The other issue I have is at +2mph over the limit and tiny little geo metro brakes the yellow lights on a highway are REALLY short. I think they're set to assume you're doing +10mph over the limit and you can get through them in time. I cannot, and I can barely brake in time.

[wagonman76]

When I go downstate and back, I can get better mpg taking the old side road rather than the freeway. On the freeway, even when I would drive the max speed limit of 70, Id have 90% of people blowing past me so I like the side road better, even if it takes a little longer. As a bonus, I found the side road is 5 miles shorter than the freeway so still less gas is used.

[some_other_dave]

Originally Posted by thefirebuilds

meaning they are not timed to your MPH so you cant roll through them all. What is the POINT of this?

Because stopping cars solves all problems! Congestion, pollution, even crime rate. Just make all cars stop for a while, and your community will be a paradise!

...Or so a lot of city councils/planning boards seem to think...

-soD

[Sean T.]

I have an 8-8.5 mile commute one-way. I usually take the expressway because I can keep a constant throttle and hover at 55-60, about 1.75-2 RPM.



They just reopened the bridge that was under construction, so now I can take this route:



It's only a half mile less and takes longer, but I drove it for the first time today, and hit EVERY single red light. This might seem bad, but that means I can stay at 30-35 MAX (1.5-1.75 RPM) and accelerate as slow as I want to and I try to let off the gas as far back as possible. I know it seems like it might cause lower MPG to go slower and take longer, but because I have lower RPMs I think it might be more fuel efficient. I don't know for sure, but I though it was worth posting... I really need to get a SGII or MPGuino.

[Formula413]

Originally Posted by Sean T.

I really need to get a SGII or MPGuino.

Absolutely indispensable.

[bennelson]

I have run into the the MPG vs total gas used because of carpooling.

My wife's car economy dropped because she was doing short, cold-engine trips, to a co-workers house to meet to car-pool.

Yet, she was only using a little more that HALF the gas she was before!

MPG is only a measure of success when all else is even. Total gas used is the best measurement for conservation!!!