A Dunelander who
commutes to his or her job in Chicago by car, driving every day, is paying
nearly seven times more to get to work than the Dunelander who hops a South
Shore train at Dune Park Station.
That’s the
conclusion of a cost analysis conducted by the Northern Indiana Commuter
Transpiration District, using the Internal Revenue Service’s current
reimbursable mileage allowance of $0.575 per mile, multiplied by 21
commuting days, NICTD said in a statement released on Wednesday.
That analysis is
the centerpiece of NICTD’s “Life is Hard; The Train is Easy” campaign, which
NICTD will be promoting heavily this year, in conjunction with its
introduction in March of the new limited-stop Sunrise Express service, whose
morning rush-hour Train 6 run has cut the fastest Dune Park-to-Millennium
run by 20 minutes.
The cost analysis
breaks down this way for commuters riding all the way to Millennium from
Dune Park Station:
* The cost of
commuting by train for one month: $228.
* The cost of
commuting by car for one month: the IRS per mile rate ($0.575) X total daily
mileage (92) X total monthly commuting days (21), plus tolls ($201.60) plus
parking ($225), for a grand total of $1,565.
Over the course of
a year, a South Shore commuter who lives in Duneland pays around $2,736 (12
X $228). Meanwhile, the car commuter pays around $18,780 (12 X $1,565).
As NICTD Marketing
Director John Parsons noted, however, there’s a qualitative savings enjoyed
by South Shore commuters above and beyond the quantitative one. “Not only
are commuters saving on their transportation costs versus driving, they’re
greatly reducing the wear-and-tear on their automobiles every month and can
enjoy a much more relaxing commute than fighting rush-hour traffic.”
NICTD’s cost
analysis does take into effect, moreover, the 75-cent, 10.8 percent
fare hike which went into effect on July 1 for commuters who board at Dune
Park Shore.
“As with all
commuter transportation agencies serving Chicago, NICTD has experienced
increased costs in maintaining our fleet and ensuring a safe and reliable
commute for our passengers,” Parsons noted. “We believe the fare increase
will allow us to address rising operational costs, maintain our fleet and
infrastructure, and continue meeting our passengers’ expectations.”