Not Driving Me Crazy

  When I started college, and for the first three semesters I attended, I drove myself to school every day. I went to trade school for a while, and I drove there every day too. When I went back to college at a small rural school, I drove there almost every day. That's another story all together.

  Judging by the lots and parking structures around campus any weekday, that is the story for many of my fellow students today just as it was back then for me. Not me, though. Not any more. I was robbed for parking fees once by Sac State, but it's not happening to me again.

Maybe I should explain.

  My car broke down three weeks before finals the first semester after I transferred to Sac State. I had no idea what to do. I had no money, and no time. Searching for options, I found out about the free RT sleeve for my Sac State One card. Genius!

  For those that, like me back then, who may not know about the RT sleeve, it is just what it sounds like, a paper sleeve for your One card. What it does is allow you to get on any RT bus or light rail, anywhere the RT system runs, at any time- Free.

  My second semester on campus, I did not buy a parking permit. That semester I didn't spend a single dollar on gas driving back and forth to school. No door dings, no parking tickets, no breakdowns.

I ride RT every day.

  I have noticed some positive changes in my educational experience riding RT.

  One, I tend to go to more of my classes. It just seems as though it is less convenient to leave campus than when I had a car nearby.

  Two, I am better prepared in class. Instead of driving, I read and review before class every day. I'd be even better prepared if I spent my time wisely on the way home. Sadly, Angry Birds usually wins out.

  Three, I am generally more relaxed. The stress that driving to campus causes is tremendous. Hassling with traffic, searching for parking both at school and again at home, and watching feebly as my bank account dwindles creates a lot of pressure. Not having that extra stress makes my classes less stressful, and improves my experience.

  Now, I know the first thing most students say is that the bus takes too long, and doesn't go where they live. Hogwash. Google maps can show the RT route to and from anywhere in Sacramento. As for time, see points one through three above. 

Click Here for a Full RT System Map!  Click here for the RT Central City Map!

  In April this year, a national study was released by the American Public Transportation Association that revealed trends about public transportation in the US. I read the study, and I learned a few things that make riding RT to school even more intelligent.

  For every 1 million miles of road driven by cars, 1.42 people are killed. For buses, that number drops to .02 people dead.

  Even considering the fuel and electricity used by public transportation systems, 1.38 billion gallons of fossil fuel are saved each year.

  According to the study, Americans are getting out of their cars and onto public transportation en mass. Not surprisingly, 69.8% of the more than 400,000 people surveyed use public transportation to get to work or school.

  I wonder what a difference riding the bus to school might have made when I first started college, before my GPA sank to a number so low I won't even admit it publicly. I wonder how many years of my life might have been different.

  And when I glance up from my textbook on the #30 bus first thing in the morning, I chuckle, watching fellow students strangle the steering wheel in frustration trying to find the elusive space before class starts.

I'm glad it isn't me anymore.