Comments on: DC’s Metro Rate Hike, My Commute, and Pre-Tax MetroChecks

By: Money Blue Book

Money Blue Book — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 16:01:42 +0000

Egad…I didn’t even notice. I usually just blindly swipe through…going to check later tonight..
-Raymond

By: deepali

deepali — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 15:09:28 +0000

Your work doesn’t put anything towards metro fare? You should push for them to do so. We get $110 for it. It pays for my commute to class in Baltimore!

In any case, another thing you can do is go for the full amount pre-tax and try and sell what you don’t use…

By: Fabulously Broke

Fabulously Broke — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 13:37:03 +0000

I’m with Christine – $90 a month is cheap for her as she’s a Univ student..

I’m stuck paying $110 a month, PLUS $400 extra if I need to go to the surrounding area outside of my city… *curses*

By: CatherineL

CatherineL — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 11:01:27 +0000

You seem to have it all sussed out. Transport can be a huge monthly expense. I’m saving a heap just working from home – about £140 on fuel alone each month.

Mind you, I have not yet worked out the extra heating costs I incur through being at home all the time.

By: Megan

Megan — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 01:25:23 +0000

I’m also lucky enough to get metro benefits through work – but they changed the system so I’m already getting less than I was last year, and now the fares have gone up, so I’m out a bit of money. But it could be much worse!

By: ms. m&p

ms. m&p — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 00:31:31 +0000

Wasn’t it a hefty hike this time?! I’m lucky to get metro benefits through work–but I don’t know if those will increase or not so I could be out some money. You have this down to a science, though!

By: mrsmicah

mrsmicah — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 23:43:21 +0000

One thing I don’t like about DC is that we don’t have any real unlimited passes. There are some, but they don’t cover everything all the time and they’re not monthly.

But SmarTrip lets us put the fares on a special card we just put near the sensor.

By: Christine

Christine — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 23:39:13 +0000

Huh. Your transit is really cheap.

In TO our transit isn’t zoned, so you can go anywhere & almost anywhen for $2.25 (ticket/token) or $2.75 (cash fare). Those are adult fares. There are also student/senior and child fares, but I am not eligible (as only middle- and high-school students are “students” in the commission’s eyes).

I usually buy a metropass through the university at a slightly discounted rate: it’s about $90 or so for a month’s worth of unlimited trips. It truly is unlimited trips; it doesn’t matter how long, short, or frequent your trips are if you’ve got the metropass.

It’s expensive, but I use transit often enough (between work, school, trips to see the BF, and other things) that my metropass usually pays for itself in two or two-and-a-half weeks… and then the rest of the month is essentially free. That’s a nice feeling.

By: RacerX

RacerX — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 21:28:47 +0000

Good for you! Show a little planning goes a long way towards saving money over the course of a year.

By: Lily

Lily — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 21:02:20 +0000

Join the pre-tax commuter benefit club! My boyfriend and I commute to Manhattan from Brooklyn. We take the express bus, which is nicer than local buses. Express bus passes are $41 per week per person. Our commuter benefit is capped at $110 per month, so we put $123 on our cards ($110 is pre-tax and reduces our taxable income; the other $13 is just moving money around). It doesn’t cover the whole expense, but it sure beats paying taxes on $1,320 of our commuting costs each year.