Students waiting for the T or bus often curse the traffic, but rarely do they perform a math problem to decide scientifically if it would be better to walk instead.
Over winter break, Harvard University juniors Robert Sinnot and Scott Kominers, along with California Institute of Technology junior Justin Chen, came up with a formula that determines whether it is more efficient to wait for the bus or just walk to a destination.
The equation, which to the average person might look like squiggly lines and letters, concludes that the most efficient route is the laziest one: just wait for the bus.
“The whole thing originated while I was walking from Harvard to MIT,” Kominers said. “I decided to walk because the buses were so unreliable, but I kept looking over my shoulder to see if the bus was coming. I started to wonder why I was wasting time looking over my shoulder.”
He said when he went home and discussed it with Chen and Sinnot, the three decided to solve the problem mathematically.
“I think it’s a very clever idea and nice work for undergraduate students,” said Boston University professor and math instruction director Glen Hall
Hall said students determined the optimal amount of time to wait for a bus before opting to walk. They discovered it is least efficient to wait for a minute and then start walking — once you have committed to waiting, you should stick it out, Hall said.
Northeastern math lecturer John Lindhe said the equation looks more complicated than it really is.
For example, Lindhe said, if a person gets to the stop at 8 a.m. and knows that the bus arrives somewhere between 7:55 and 8:05, it makes sense to wait for a bit to see if you missed the bus because it takes 25 minutes to walk and only five minutes by bus.
It does not make sense to wait more than 5 minutes though, because the next bus would not come for 30 minutes, he said. Lindhe said the equation would tell you the optimum time to wait.
“It’s a little more complicated in real life, because there is a lot more that’s unknown,” so it is not necessarily the best way to estimate, he said.
MBTA spokeswoman Lydia Rivera said the Boston trolley and bus systems are generally on time, and if they are more than a half-hour behind schedule, passengers get refunded.
“I don’t think this equation will affect whether people choose to use the transportation system here because I think we provide a fairly reliable service and the people riding the bus and trolley do so out of necessity,” Rivera said. “After all, the Boston weather does not encourage people to go for a walk.”
BU students also seemed skeptical of the formula’s conclusions and potential timesaving ability.
“If it’s between walking and waiting for a bus, I’d rather walk,” said Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences sophomore Neha Trivedi. “Waiting just seems so passive, whereas if you’re walking, your mind’s at work and you’re taking life into your own hands.”
College of Arts and Sciences sophomore Eunice Yu said the choice of walking or riding depends on her mood.
“At some point, the difference of five minutes just doesn’t matter because you either got some fresh air or you didn’t ruin a new pair of shoes by walking too much,” she said.