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For most people on HN, the all-in cost of operating a modest car (~$12/hr https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/loans/total-cost-owning-car/ https://www.nerdwallet.co

For most people on HN, the all-in cost of operating a modest car (~$12/hr https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/loans/total-cost-owning-car/ https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/loans/total-cost-owning-car/) is significantly less than the cost of their time while they're in it. And for most people, car is the fastest way to go. So I don't see how the cost is baffling to you. Yes, some people like to multi-task their exercise by biking (although then it's much harder to multi-task your audiobooks), and yes some people have short commutes that are slightly faster by bike, and yes some people just enjoy biking. But for most people, transportation is about fast reliable transportation, and if you're on HN your time is likely worth several times the car cost. (Obviously, people can spend a significant fraction of even large salaries on a luxury car, but that's a personal choice that doesn't have much to do with economical transportation. It doesn't make sense to tell someone driving a Mercedes that they could save money by riding a bike.)

adrianN 9y ago
The problem with this time=money calculation is that some people enjoy riding their bike, just like some people enjoy driving their car. For me, the time I spent on my commute is not lost, is valuable relaxation time. If I had more time I would use it to ride my bike more :).
- jessriedel 9y ago
  I explicitly acknowledged that this is an important factor for a minority of people in my comment. This caveat is not particularly relevant to the claim that people spend a baffling amount of money on cars.
slgeorge 9y ago
You're accounting for direct cost, but this doesn't account for the total value of each one. You did mention it, but for most office workers getting a reasonable amount of exercise is difficult and a big limiting factor in their overall health and well-being.

adrianN 9y ago

The problem with this time=money calculation is that some people enjoy riding their bike, just like some people enjoy driving their car. For me, the time I spent on my commute is not lost, is valuable relaxation time. If I had more time I would use it to ride my bike more :).

jessriedel 9y ago
I explicitly acknowledged that this is an important factor for a minority of people in my comment. This caveat is not particularly relevant to the claim that people spend a baffling amount of money on cars.

slgeorge 9y ago

You're accounting for direct cost, but this doesn't account for the total value of each one. You did mention it, but for most office workers getting a reasonable amount of exercise is difficult and a big limiting factor in their overall health and well-being.