I shopped regularly for a period of about five years when I didn't have a car, using either public transportation or, when weather allowed, my bicycle. (I even figured out a way to bike to the major airport where I was a badged shopper.) Even though I could frequently put together nice little groups of nearby shops, or find a shop near somewhere I was already going, I think it would be pretty much impossible to make anything approaching a full time salary shopping a metro area on public transit. Even with bank and apartment shops you'd pretty quickly go through the ones in the areas best served by transit before you get into outer areas which might involve a complicated and lengthy trip that would eat up too much of your day to be worthwhile.
However, public transit shopping is great for lifestyle shoppers (finish that integrity bar shop drink, you're not driving) or for making a few extra bucks on the side. I always get $30 to shop a MF burger shop that is listed as "difficult" because there is no guaranteed parking, even paid, nearby -- it's a college area with mostly resident only parking spots. And I can certainly finish that burger shop's report on my phone on the bus ride, so I arrive home without any reports hanging over my head. I wonder if any passengers thought it was odd I was staring intently at my receipt while I typed in the lengthy transaction number. I could also read or catch up on texts/emails. While I wouldn't have asked a friend or relative to take me to a retail shop, there were plenty of times where they happily drove me to a dining or bar shop so they could be my guest. MarketForce, A Closer Look, and DataQuest all have shops that will pay for parking, and occasionally other MSC schedulers will agree to do so if you ask -- and of course there are parking lot and valet shops.
I got a car shortly before Covid. During the peak of Covid I decided it was better to do further, higher paying shops (especially ones where I knew masking and distancing would be feasible) than to take the risk of doing a lot of shorter ones closer to home. I like driving and got to enjoy lots of podcasts and radio shows. I also made a point of finding nice little nature preserves/hiking trails near each shop where I could stretch my legs before walking home.
Now, however, as my state has fully reopened, traffic has returned, and my interest in staying out an extra hour so I can grab that dinner burger shop has evaporated -- coming home that close to rush hour would really lengthen my day. I have a new job helping out a friend at her office a few days a week. While the pay won't come close to matching my best shopping days, it'll also be a lot better than my worst shopping days, and I can continue to take the shops that pay well or that my family enjoys.
Finally, the OP talks about shoppers here saying they make $60 an hour. I really wouldn't get hung up on that number. Sure, every experienced shopper has had days where they made that, or a lot more. But given how familiar most of the people who post here are with bread and butter $15-$20 hour shops, it's clear that many of us are not making anything approach that every hour of every day. I personally use different factors for every shop I accept or decline, including not just pay, but also ease of report, my relationship with the MSC, guidelines, etc. If you find using transit relaxing and you can get other things done, you can factor in that time a lot differently than if you find it stressful and annoying.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/05/2021 05:04PM by NinS.