Readers of this blog know that I visit New York City about twice a year. I always drive and the little nickel and dime charges add up. Here is an estimate of what a round trip to the Big Apple from New York costs:
| Baltimore Harbor Tunnel (2-ways @ $2.00) | $4.00 |
| Maryland Toll Plaza (northbound only) | $5.00 |
| Delaware Turnpike (2-ways @ $4.00) | $8.00 |
| New Jersey Turnpike (both ways @$5.85) | $11.70 |
| Parking in Manhattan | $25.00 |
| Delaware Memorial Bridge | $3.00 |
| Gas (400 miles @ 20 mpg and $3.00 per gallon) | $60.00 |
| Total | $116.70 |
You can trim a little off that if you get on the New Jersey Turnpike in Trenton and get off at the Holland Tunnel, but that only saves a couple of bucks. We usually take our kid so that comes to about forty bucks a person. Taking a coach class Amtrack train would be at least $200 a person round trip. I've done that for business once, and it's nice to be able to rest or nap, but not for that kind of money on my dime. And the super fast Acela trains cost even more.
My wife's school organized a group bus trip for $35 per person. That makes it cheaper than driving as long as only two people are going. Since my son has a band competition, we are on our own. It's a bunch of fellow teachers, so she should know people and we won't be stuck with a bunch of random strangers.
The bus leaves at 7 am, so this has to count as my entry for NaBloPoMo today. I will give full details on what we did in NYC tomorrow.
3 comments:
Get on in Trenton, get off at the Outerbridge Crossing. If you have EZ Pass there's a discount for both tolls. That takes the NJ Turnpike toll down to $1.00. I'm not sure about the Outerbridge cost anymore. Go through Staten Island and over the Verrazano Narrows Bridge (FREE eastbound) and take the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway north.
Then take either the Brooklyn, Manhattan or Williamsburg Bridges into Manhattan, because they're free. If you're brave and savvy, you can find plenty of free street parking in New York City.
You can also save on the Maryland Toll Plaza by getting one of the barcode stickers on the Route 40 bridge. They cost five dollars per YEAR and it takes less than ten minutes to make the detour.
Oh, and get a more efficient car. 20 on the highway? Geez.
Yeah...I've tried many different angles to keep the cost down.
I like your "NaBloPoMo" construction, although it does make me think it has something to do either with a sodium-based compound or the National Man-Boy Love Association, both of which are obviously not correct.
And isn't just about every day part of NaBloPoMo, anyway? Maybe you should call it NaBloPoDa.
My Hyundai Sante Fe gets an overall 21 mpg. Pure highway mileage is closer to 25. You can get around these tolls, but I have EZPass, so speed is usually a priority. I have relatives in Northeast, so I have been tempted by the US40 annual pass, but I would only get to use it a couple of times a year.
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