November 13, 2012
Fly or Drive?
Nicholas A. Tonelli/ flickr
There was a time when a trip of more than 300 miles had you reaching for the Official Airline Guide (remember those?) for the winged alternative to driving, but times have changed. The high fares and the hassle of airline travel have conspired to move more folks onto the roads and out of the airways.
How do I know this? I don’t. But I drive a lot in my travels, and I see a lot of license plates from faraway places. I’ve also noticed that traffic moves along at about 75 to 80 mph on roads that are posted for speeds that would have had my mom screaming for my father to slow down. And it’s amazing how fast you cover ground on the Interstates.
Having been through the air-travel crunch one too many times, including nights on airport floors when they cancel flights and there are no hotel vouchers (or hotel rooms), I’m now an inveterate driver.
Look at the advantages of driving: You get to take along as much as your car can hold — and there’s no additional fee. You can even pack a nice lunch to savor at a rest stop along the highway. Instead of high anxiety and stress during security check-ins, you’re cocooned in a capsule served by a high-end stereo and all your favorite music. If you’re like me, you look at what you’ve saved in air fares and spend it instead on an overnight stop at a hotel (I’m partial to Hampton Inns and their free breakfast). And you get to see the country–which is absolutely beautiful–close up.
Mind you, if I absolutely, positively had to be there for something on the West Coast, I’d swallow hard and buy a ticket, but a trip of 1,000 miles on the road is no longer out of the question.
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It really isn’t a question of “how far?” for me; it is instead a question of “How much time?”
Driving 300 miles takes about five hours if you obey the speed limit. Flying 300 miles takes an hour to drive to the airport, an hour (at least!) to get through security, an hour-plus to fly, a half-hour to get your checked baggage, and another hour to drive to your final destination; that adds up to nearly five hours, and assumes that the airline hasn’t changed the schedule or cancelled the flight or decided to reassign your seat because it is a day ending in “y”.
At 500 miles, the time advantage turns slightly in the airlines’ favor, and it is clearly faster to fly 700 miles than to fly – unless something goes really wrong with the airline.
Comment by JohnD — November 13, 2012 @ 6:13 pm
This really depends on how far you are from the airport, and how you would get there. In NYC, I have to allow 60 to 90 minutes to get to the airport, and the cost of a taxi is between $50 and $90. These are all relevant factors to consider when flying (as would be the cost of parking for those who would drive to the airport — a 3-day parking cost is vastly different from a 3-week parking cost).
For trips of 200 to 300 miles, I actually prefer Amtrak — after considering transit time to/from the airport, security lines and other delays, it is usually faster than flying. The seats are more comfortable, too.
Comment by NYC-HDL — November 13, 2012 @ 8:48 pm
How far does a trip have to be before letting the train take the strain ? Here in Europe we have high-speed rail networks with trains travelling at up to 180 Mph. City center to city centre, it is very convenient (provided you are not too far from the network) and has replaced almost all short-haul air travel less that 300 miles.
Comment by JohnM Brussels — November 14, 2012 @ 12:06 pm
Let’s see – if I still had access to that Cessna 182, it’s a no brainer! Anything more than 300 miles, I’m flying! As far as commercial flying, due to the hassles already mentioned, I’m probably going to fly at distances of 700 miles or more, unless ticket costs are way up!
Comment by Sam — November 15, 2012 @ 7:27 pm
For me it is economics as well as the overall hassle of flying now. If it takes more than a day to drive to the place I’ll consider flying.
TSA’s mindless “security” is at best irritating mostly in the airport, but some of that insanity extends inflight was well. TSA is just part of the challenge to me, the large number of people who are either clueless or think they are special and muck up the boarding process make me want to just avoid airports. The late boarders, those carrying more luggage on than “permitted” just all compound the less than pleasant experience in airports. Way to many people think the rules do not apply to them, and I avoid those types whenever possible.
Most of the time we end up needing a vehicle on the trip, and that further detracts from flying.
Comment by John — November 16, 2012 @ 2:30 am
Unless it’s over water, I go by car. I savor the freedom and love the intimate view of the country. I go when I please, I stop when I please. Nobody makes me take off my shoes or sit beside someone I don’t know. My car stereo is better than the airline junk and my car has its own navigation and telephone.
Most of all, I see the country..this beautiful country with all its flavors.
I spent more than 50 years on the airlines and watched them deteriorate into the cattle trains they are. The airplanes themselves are beautiful, but what a way to treat them!
Jim Slade
Comment by Jim Slade — January 31, 2013 @ 5:48 pm