How far do you commute?

ocean24 · #1 12-07-2006, 08:05 PM

Possible job offer an hour away and no chance I could move. Worth it? The pay is decent.

pisces2473 · #2 12-07-2006, 08:09 PM

*Paging CTGirl*

I work about 30 miles from home, and it's about 20-25 min. ride.

WorkInProgress · #3 12-07-2006, 08:11 PM

Depends on whether you can stand that commute and whether the pay raise a)covers your new commuting costs and b)gives you a little left over. And if it's a better job that the one you have. And, and, and.

I currently commute 20-25 minutes in the opposite direction of rush hour. It will soon be 30-40 because my office is moving. I think that'll be about my limit (insofar as it's doable) and I'm considering moving considerably closer to cut my commute time, but that depends on a lot of things.

wordsmith · #4 12-07-2006, 08:18 PM

A block and a half. I've never had a job more than a few miles from where I live and prefer it that way.

CTGirl · #5 12-07-2006, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pisces2473

*Paging CTGirl*

lol, *bows*

I commute 55 miles each way to my new job, and thanks to traffic here, that takes me between an hour and 15minutes to 3 hours each way depending on the time of day and how many people decided to crash into something that day.

But, I LOVE my new job, so I deal, and when my lease is up in a couple months, I'll move closer.

ocean24 · #6 12-07-2006, 08:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wordsmith

A block and a half. I've never had a job more than a few miles from where I live and prefer it that way.

So you just walk to work everyday? That must be nice! I can't imagine that...everything around here is pretty spread out so driving at least some distance is a must.

wordsmith · #7 12-07-2006, 08:57 PM

No, I have to have my car handy, because I work for a newspaper and have a lot of driving over a three-county area for coverage, all of which is pretty remote and spread out. But my office is within view of my living room.

SmilesSoSweet · #8 12-07-2006, 09:10 PM

There was a time that I was living a good 30 miles from my job, but it was over an hour long to get there (one way) due to the traffic. Going home was even worse.

So when you say an hour away, is it a good 60+ miles? I'm just used to measuring distance by time, not miles.

Currently when there isn't any traffic, I'm a good 10-15 minutes from work (one way). It's six miles from my apartment to my office.

#9 12-07-2006, 09:11 PM

For me, it's not. I commuted for about 2 years and won't ever do it again. The commute was about an hour or an hour and a half depending on traffic. I seriously had breakdowns in my car.

My commute now is only about 10 minutes now.

wordsmith · #10 12-07-2006, 09:15 PM

It would seriously hinder my quality of life. Even for my more remote coverage, I never drive more than an hour one way, and even that's not a regular thing. At most, I'm flitting around within a 20-mile radius on a regular basis.

That's the main reason I have to work in places with affordable COLs. I need to be able to live where I work.

ocean24 · #11 12-07-2006, 09:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SmilesSoSweet

There was a time that I was living a good 30 miles from my job, but it was over an hour long to get there (one way) due to the traffic. Going home was even worse.

So when you say an hour away, is it a good 60+ miles? I'm just used to measuring distance by time, not miles.

Currently when there isn't any traffic, I'm a good 10-15 minutes from work (one way). It's six miles from my apartment to my office.

Mapquest says 45 minutes, but that would be without traffic. So I would say an hour, especially since this freeway is notorious for traffic.

#12 12-07-2006, 09:36 PM

Are you a patient person? I am not and that's one of my biggest hells with commuting in traffic. I just go insane and feel like I'm wasting my life sitting in a car, inching forward, wanting to scream.

ocean24 · #13 12-07-2006, 09:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kitty

Are you a patient person? I am not and that's one of my biggest hells with commuting in traffic. I just go insane and feel like I'm wasting my life sitting in a car, inching forward, wanting to scream.

I'm really not a patient person, but it could almost be a good time to unwind. I'm an early-riser, so the commute there might not be horrible. The commute home, however, could be frustrating.
There really aren't any opportunities like this in my area, so I might have to take a chance.

PenforPrez · #14 12-07-2006, 10:00 PM

My commute is just under 30 minutes right now. Of course, I now work in the town I attended college in, and I drove back and forth daily for four years doing that. So it's a drive I know very well.

Paul

capella · #15 12-07-2006, 10:00 PM

I've commuted before and it was complete hell. My first real job out of college was about a 90 minute to 2 hour drive each way depending on how traffic was. It was 60 miles, but the traffic on any major highway in the DC metro area is insane.

I moved closer for a while and it was 45 to an hour. That still sucked.

Then I moved here and when I lived in my apartment it was about 15 minutes to work. Then I moved to my house and it was a hour each way (or more in the morning). This was a drive that should take maybe 30 minutes without traffic. I concur with Kitty's assessment of commuting. Inching and rolling forward a little more each minute is infuriating. I had lots of breakdowns.

I did that commute for a year and a half. I, too, thought that it would be a time to unwind, but all it really did was stress me out because I just wanted to be home already. I was exhausted and really didn't feel like dealing with assholes on the road.

I tried leaving earlier, but I would have had to leave at 5 am to miss the traffic and I didn't need to be at work until 8:30. I would have been at work before the building was even open (it opened at 7 am). Plus I still would have had to work until 4 and drive home in traffic. The traffic is getting worse each month here with all the growth.

Now, I drive 2.5 miles and about 7-8 minutes. I need to work close to where I live. I am just not OK with commuting. It's really more of a personal preference.