This is a guest post from Timothy Ng.

Those who work a fair distance from home have to face the poser, “Do I drive to work, or commute on the train?”

There are strong arguments for and against both methods of transport, and both camps have their avid supporters. As far as cost effectiveness goes, the argument is very complex and we will try to deconstruct some of the pros and cons for both methods of travel.

Cost Factors
If we look at the cost factor of both forms of transport quite a lot of the time commuting by public transport can will out on top (many will argue this). Let’s look at some of the costs involved with travelling by public transport vs the car.

Car:

• Buying a car
• Fuel
• Insurance
• Tax
• Oil
• Maintenance and repairs
• Service and MOT (UK)
• Parking costs

Public Transport:

• Cost of tickets
• Food and drink (optional)
• Newspapers (optional)

When you look at things this way then there are obviously more costs involved with driving a car to work everyday. Some would argue that with rising transport prices the gap is rapidly closing, however there is certainly the potential for more expense when using a car.

Some people may get lucky and have a very reliable vehicle that rarely goes wrong and costs very little to run on fuel. I however have always had very bad luck with cars, and have sometimes ended up paying double the value of the car in repairs and maintenance.

There are however some real advantages of using a car to travel to work rather than public transport although many of them are objective. What one commuter loves, another will hate.

Let’s have a look at some of the reasons people may prefer to use a car to commute rather than vying for public transport.

Comfort – When travelling in your own car you have your own space. You do not have to worry about crowded trains or buses (which can be hell in the hot summers months). Annoyances like crying children, people talking loudly on cell phones, buskers, and other passengers hygiene issues are not a problem for those travelling in the comfort of their own vehicle.

Listen to what you want – In a car you can listen to the radio or a CD as loudly or quietly as you like, without the worry of disturbing other commuters. Nothing is worse than being stuck next to someone who is blasting out music on an MP3 player for all and sundry to hear.

Theft – Travelling on a busy train or bus can leave you susceptible to theft of your personal belongings. As much as the transport companies try and make public transport safer for commuters, wherever there is a high concentration of people there will always be those who take advantage, and use it as an opportunity to perpetrate crime.

Temperature control – Anyone who has travelled on a packed train during rush hour in the hot summer months knows how uncomfortable it can be. I have actually nearly passed out on a number of occasions and no matter how many windows are open, with that many people all squeezed together there is never going to be enough air circulation to go around.

Public Transport Pluses
So we have seen why many prefer to travel by car, but what about those that swear by public transport. What makes them so loyal to their method of travel?

Speed – Most of the time, train services run a good schedule, and with traffic rarely being an issue on the rail networks journey times tend to be slightly more predictable. That is not to say of course there are not occasional long delays.

Better for environment – Many people use public transport because of the benefits to the planet. The fewer cars there are on the road the better, and so some have made a conscious effort to do their bit for the environment by using public transport.

No more parking spaces! – Trying to find a parking space has been the bane of drivers lives for eternity. Nothing is more soul destroying than finding your way to where you need to be, only to then have to drive around for an hour trying to find a parking space.
Not only do you have to pay out for that parking space but you may end up finding you have to walk for half an hour before getting to your destination! Then of course there is remembering where you parked the car (or is that just me!?)

Personal Choice
Most of the time travel preference is a personal choice. For me, I would rather be sat in a little traffic than have my head stuffed under the armpit of a big builder after a hard day on the building site!

Other people enjoy the freedom that public transport gives. You can read a book for example, or perhaps even get a little work done on the laptop that you then won’t have to do when you get home. You can (if you’re brave) even catch a little sleep when using public transport. An option of course not available to us drivers.

In terms of cost, in my opinion public transport probably does work out cheaper than a car once things like fuel, maintenance, and general running costs are taken into account, however you should also weigh up the comfort, and time factors when deciding on the method of transport you prefer.

Look at the hours that you work, and see whether the roads are busy at those times. Find out whether you would have to pay for a premium rate train ticket if travelling within certain times in the day.

The good news is that whilst there are two definite camps in favour of both methods of transport it means that we will not all be using the same way into work! If everybody travelled using the same method then traffic, packed trains, and delays would be even worse than they are now!

In fact, I think I would just rather work nearer to where I live!

This article was written by Timothy Ng who is a regular personal finance writer and part of the team at Credit Card Finder, a 100% free Australian credit card comparison and application service. Visit the Credit Card Finder website for more information on personal finance tips.