A numerical analysis on the worthiness of bus pass

1. Background

My room is 10 mins away from Chalmers (5 mins with bike)… Is it worth it to buy a monthly bus pass?

2. Cost Analysis

• A single ticket costs 26 kr and it is valid for 1,5 hrs;
• A three-month pass costs 1175 kr.

3. Behaviour Analysis

Typically in one week, I…

• Go to the supermarket, once;
• Sporadically go for a pint, once;
• Somehow end up in McDonalds/food places, once;
• Go to Swedish class, twice.

4. Logged Data

During the summer months (April – July), I did not buy the monthly pass. Instead, I bought individual bus tickets with my credit card. I plotted the purchase history vs. date.

*Note, I was traveling for three weeks (gaps in May, June and July) and therefore I didn’t purchase any tickets.

5. Conclusion

• Clearly, some days I bought multiple tickets…
• I spent 1436 kr in three month!
• Breakeven point around end of June
• Buy the bus pass! It gives you freedom to explore the city at a fantastic price!

löv, 

gimmygöteborg

PS. Insider tip: learn Matlab before coming to Chalmers