RIDESHARE - Toolbox, calculator

Calculate | Environmental costs | Track your savings | Ideas to offset driving costs

• Radio ad - Cost calculator - Using the cost calculator results in registering with RIDESHARE, getting matches, and saving commute dollars. Playing time 00:01:00 Audio transcript

American Automobile Association (AAA) calculates the 2015 average cost of driving a mid-size passenger car 15,000 miles a year at 58.0 cents per mile.

• This includes both your operating and ownership costs.
• If you commute to work by car you can figure about $60 in total vehicle expenses per 100 miles.

Calculate your commuting costs and environmental impact

How to Use the RIDESHARE Calculator Playing time 00:03:00
Instructional video on using the Wisconsin RIDESHARE calculator to determine how much it costs you to commute to work, and how much your commute affects the environment.

(Tip: Use tab key to go from field to field.)

Note: The commuter calculator may not work in all browsers.

01.	Daily round trip commuting miles
02.	Number of days you work per month
03.	Total commuting miles per month
04.	Average miles per gallon
05.	Gallons of gas per month
06.	Price per gallon of gas	$
07.	Total gas cost	$
08.	Maintenance/tire costs ($.0631 x commuting miles)	$
09.	Monthly parking cost (enter 0 if none)	$
10.	Total commuting cost per month: (sum of 7 - 9)	$
11.	Approximate cost if carpooling with one other person	$
12.	20# of CO2 per gallon of gas per month (20 x gallons of gas)

Environmental costs

The US Department of Energy’s website on Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy offers help to find a car that fits your needs, is economical, and is kind to the environment. The website offers comparisons for different vehicles with fuel consumption and environmental costs.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) household emissions calculator measures household emissions (including vehicle emissions) based on zip codes. The average amount of carbon dioxide emitted per vehicle in a year is 12,100 pounds. Include waste, heat, and electricity and that total goes up to 41,500 pounds per year.

Track your modes and environmental savings

After you are registered in the Rideshare/bike buddy program, you can track your commute each day and run a report that computes your cost savings, pollution and greenhouse gas reductions.

• Log in with your email address and password and click on 'Track Your Commute Monthly'.

Ideas to offset driving costs

• Carpool to save costs of fuel, tires, oil changes, and other vehicle maintenance.
• Drive a vehicle that retains a high resale value.
• Reduce your insurance costs. Insurance rates are calculated on your driving record, type of car, annual mileage, and daily work mileage.
  • Carpool to reduce annual and average daily work mileage.
  • Drive safely, adhere to speed limits, drive defensively to avoid accidents.
  • Call your agent for a quotation on competitive and comparative rates on cars before you buy.
• Save money for a down payment to reduce finance charges, length of loans, and lease rates.
• Purchase cars with longer warranties and less frequent service requirements.
• Tips on eco-driving, ways to drive more efficiently, saving fuel and your pocketbook!