The daily commute

head_honcho · 30-07-2014 12:06pm #1

Wondering how long a commute people face each day? Thanks

kieran. · 30-07-2014 12:12pm

Depends on the mode of public transport if its a bus then 110km each way would be approx 4 hours per day on public transport that would be two much for me. I would imagine that would exhaust you after a while.

But then again if you were getting a non-stop train foe the trips, it would'nt be too bad.

carlmango11 · 30-07-2014 2:35pm

Cycle -20 minutes

But if I'm not bothered, public transport - Up to 80 minutes. 2 trains and a bus. Not too bad although it would be shorter if I weren't commuting from two disconnected places.

I could drive but traffics crap and the effort of parking/being tied down to the dropping the car home etc.

Cookie_Monster · 30-07-2014 10:22pm

7 minutes down hill in the morning, about 12 minutes home in the evening. Though I'm about to go from 3.2km currently to 5.1km in the next week as we move house so will end up considerably longer, maybe 15mins each way total.

Shedite27 · 31-07-2014 12:09pm

25min walk each way.

_Kaiser_ · 31-07-2014 12:18pm

Now: about 10-15 mins max each way by car (local suburban trip)

Previously: about 80-90 mins each way by car (95% motorway)

Previously again: 90 mins - 2 hours by bus (for a trip that takes 20 mins by car via M50)

Ciaran_B · 31-07-2014 12:33pm

25 minute cycle or 45 minutes on the bus, including walk to bus stop and walk from bus stop to work.

Pretty good really. Cycling gives me some exercise and the bus lets me read or listen to pods. Can’t complain.

smellmepower · 31-07-2014 12:40pm

25 mins on the bus from Clondalkin to Ballyfermot then a 10 min walk to Chapelizod atm.Will have to get to Ballymount in September and the public transport options are slim to none so will have to cycle,which I'm dreading.

Am waiting on a learner permit currently, so sooner I do the lessons and get a full license the better!

Bravobabe · 31-07-2014 12:41pm

Hi, now I do a 7km trip twice a day
Got a bike last week (cycle to work scheme), so I'm currently cycling, takes about 20 to 22 mins.
Prior to last week, I was using car, took about 15 mins. Maybe reverting to car from October as I may have to give lift to son to catch train for college.

Problems with cycling are: security of new bike, weather, no shower facilities open in morning, other road users (motorists and cyclists who think it's the Tour de France).
Advantages: Fresh air, exercise, less stress.

Alkers · 31-07-2014 2:31pm

30 min each way from Mount Merrion to Swords through town on a motorcycle.
Probably 2 hours if I were to take public transport. Probably 45min if I were to drive a car through town, or about 35min if I took the M50 but I'd have the toll to pay and a significantly higher fuel bill.

Daemonic · 31-07-2014 3:02pm

30 mins each way via bus from Celbridge to City Centre, but that will jump to best part of an hour when colleges/schools are back in September.

rp · 01-08-2014 1:01pm

45mins cycling each way, Maynooth to Pearse St., longer when the wind is blowing...

Micilin Muc · 01-08-2014 1:14pm

31km+ each way into Galway city from Connemara. 23km are rural. 14km where I rarely meet more than 5 cars

head_honcho · 13-08-2014 4:07pm

Cheers.Nice to see many of you haven't far to go! I am considering a 4 hour daily commute ,not sure if clever!

laoisfan · 13-08-2014 4:18pm

head_honcho wrote: »

Cheers.Nice to see many of you haven't far to go! I am considering a 4 hour daily commute ,not sure if clever!

I currently do around 4 hour daily commute using the train. Been doing it for 11 years now :eek:

stop · 13-08-2014 5:12pm

Total round trip of 25km cycling (40 mins uphill in morning, 30 mins downhill in evening).

smellmepower wrote: »

25 mins on the bus from Clondalkin to Ballyfermot then a 10 min walk to Chapelizod atm.Will have to get to Ballymount in September and the public transport options are slim to none so will have to cycle,which I'm dreading.

Going to Ballymount from Clondalkin, can you get a bus to the Red Cow or Robinhood/Long Mile Road & walk from there?

If cycling, the Red Cow interchange is a pain for cyclists using the footbridges, but attempting to go with traffic takes nerves.

Emme · 13-08-2014 6:52pm

laoisfan wrote: »

I currently do around 4 hour daily commute using the train. Been doing it for 11 years now :eek:

That's tough. How are you still alive? What station do you commute from?

I have been commuting 3 hours a day by train for the last 2 years. I am currently off work with a stress related illness and even though my job is very demanding I blame the train journey for my illness. I commute from Carlow. The Waterford line is hellish.

I used to cycle 20 minutes to and from work before and could deal with the stress of my job.

Jem72 · 14-08-2014 9:54am

I've been doing Edgeworthstown to Dublin city centre by train for 10 years now - it's a little over 2 hours door-to-door each way but I can work from home three days a fortnight which helps enormously. Personally, I can manage it but I can't take the commuter trains any more as they are just too noisy and cramped. I find it a relatively easy commute on the Intercity trains but it is tough going if I have to travel all 5 days in a week.

hallo dare · 14-08-2014 9:59am

I used to communte every day between home and Dublin. 2 hours each way. 20 hours a week. Almost €200 a week in fuel and tolls, Madness. But at the time I had no choice. Thankfully that's changed these days and I could cycle to work now anyday.

Lombardo86 · 14-08-2014 10:00am

Emme wrote: »

That's tough. How are you still alive? What station do you commute from?

I have been commuting 3 hours a day by train for the last 2 years. I am currently off work with a stress related illness and even though my job is very demanding I blame the train journey for my illness. I commute from Carlow. The Waterford line is hellish.

I used to cycle 20 minutes to and from work before and could deal with the stress of my job.

Can i ask a) how you do that? and b) how do you utilise the time? When commuting, i think of ways to try be productive/better myself rather than just listening to music/reading fiction etc.

I haven't managed to actually get much done to date but read/listen to music but wondering how people occupy themselves on those long journeys

may06 · 14-08-2014 11:14am

Lombardo86 wrote: »

Can i ask a) how you do that? and b) how do you utilise the time? When commuting, i think of ways to try be productive/better myself rather than just listening to music/reading fiction etc.

I haven't managed to actually get much done to date but read/listen to music but wondering how people occupy themselves on those long journeys

4 hour round trip daily, by train , 2 hours each way. Pass the time in so far as is possible by sleeping - not a problem in the mornings I can tell you! Evening time, I sleep or catch up on some work if I can.

head_honcho · 14-08-2014 11:24am

thanks for the replies. A lot of people are undergoing long commutes. Is it from choice or necessity, i.e. to save money?

Tazzimus · 14-08-2014 11:32am

10 minutes walk, 40 minute train journey, 20 minute walk.
Then reverse for the journey home.

Used to commute from Edgeworthstown to Leixlip for two years, it sucked.

Moved up to Maynooth then for the new job in city centre. Still not the shortest of commutes but I refuse to move any closer to Dublin, originally from the city centre ish and wouldn't move back again.

Emme · 14-08-2014 12:02pm

Lombardo86 wrote: »

Can i ask a) how you do that? and b) how do you utilise the time? When commuting, i think of ways to try be productive/better myself rather than just listening to music/reading fiction etc.

I haven't managed to actually get much done to date but read/listen to music but wondering how people occupy themselves on those long journeys

Productive...utilise...better myself - do you live in some sort of corporate jargon cloud? I doubt very much that you do long commutes on the Waterford train.

I was commuting 3 hours and working 5 full days a week, often working lunch and staying late. I am now off work sick and burnt out.

I started off UTILISING the time by using the bussuu app to learn Italian on my train journey. That lasted a month. Learning a language wasn't really compatible with standing for the best part of an hour on a crammed airless train or being sat opposite a noisy family eating smelly takeaway food - this happens regularly in the evenings. Then there are the day trippers and shoppers with all their bags. The months coming up to Christmas and the January sales are crazy. The Waterford train is hell on earth!

I have to be productive during my working day. I spent 4 years (before I started commuting) doing a degree by night with 3 hours of lectures 3 times a week and weekend assignments. Nobody can accuse me of not being productive.

The longer I commuted the more exhausted I became. After a few months I was too tired to read on the train whether it was chicklit fiction or quantum physics. I used to listen to music if I could hear it over the noise and slept whenever I coud - difficult on the crazy Waterford train. Eventually I got burnt out from it all, regularly collapsed on the train and was forced to take time off work.

One of the things that really annoys me on trains is people who pull out their laptops and try to look big and important. Maybe they are working but much of they time they aren't. If these people were as important or successful as they appear to be they wouldn't have to do long commutes - they could afford to live in Ballsbridge or somewhere nearer where they work. Personally I would rather put in the extra hours at my desk rather than try to work on a crowded train. I don't know how anyone can concentrate there or get anything done.

Emme · 14-08-2014 12:15pm

head_honcho wrote: »

thanks for the replies. A lot of people are undergoing long commutes. Is it from choice or necessity, i.e. to save money?

It's by necessity. I could never afford to buy in the city or nearer to where I work. I'm single and relatively low paid. I was renting in Dublin for years and moved out in 2012. I couldn't afford to rent there now even if I rented out my house in Carlow and moved back up. In hindsight I might have been better to buy in Portlaoise because the train service and train lines seem to be better there but my family all live in the Carlow/Athy area.

I am currently questioning the viability of commuting and working in Dublin because of the effect it had on my health.

may06 · 14-08-2014 12:15pm

Emme wrote: »

One of the things that really annoys me on trains is people who pull out their laptops and try to look big and important. Maybe they are working but much of they time they aren't. If these people were as important or successful as they appear to be they wouldn't have to do long commutes - they could afford to live in Ballsbridge or somewhere nearer where they work. Personally I would rather put in the extra hours at my desk rather than try to work on a crowded train. I don't know how anyone can concentrate there or get anything done.

I pull out my laptop on the train..Not to look big and important you naively put it but in fact i do have a certain amount of hours in my working day I have to complete. I am lucky in the sense that my company will allow me staggered hours in the sense that I leave for my 1600hr train home, which in theory cuts short my standard daily working hours by nearly 45mins. However, by pulling out my laptop, I am in the position to not only make up the remaining standard hours (As per Company policy) it also enables to me at least get home at a normal hour.
Maybe you are living in a bubble, but that doesn't make me a successful person - I'm just a normal hardworking taxpayer trying to make ends meet and do my job. I couldnt afford to live in Ballsbridge, I dont want to, I like where I live in the midlands, despite my 4 hour round trip daily. I'm not complaining, its my choice to do so. Am i happy with the service provided by Irish rail - no, not really, but i'm a passenger and unlike yourself, I'll focus more on what I'm doing on the train and my reasons for being on the train and not worry about the business of other passengers and why they're on the train.

Emme · 14-08-2014 12:23pm

may06 wrote: »

I pull out my laptop on the train..Not to look big and important you naively put it but in fact i do have a certain amount of hours in my working day I have to complete. I am lucky in the sense that my company will allow me staggered hours in the sense that I leave for my 1600hr train home, which in theory cuts short my standard daily working hours by nearly 45mins. However, by pulling out my laptop, I am in the position to not only make up the remaining standard hours (As per Company policy) it also enables to me at least get home at a normal hour.
Maybe you are living in a bubble, but that doesn't make me a successful person - I'm just a normal hardworking taxpayer trying to make ends meet and do my job. I couldnt afford to live in Ballsbridge, I dont want to, I like where I live in the midlands, despite my 4 hour round trip daily. I'm not complaining, its my choice to do so. Am i happy with the service provided by Irish rail - no, not really, but i'm a passenger and unlike yourself, I'll focus more on what I'm doing on the train and my reasons for being on the train and not worry about the business of other passengers and why they're on the train.

You are very lucky to have such understanding and accommodating bosses. I don't. I have to be at my desk from 9.00 to 5.30 5 days a week. Because of the train times I usually arrive in work at 8.30 and I'm expected to be "on" the minute I arrive. Wen I was commuting I would leave the house at 6.45am and get home at 8pm. That's not exactly a life.

Jem72 · 14-08-2014 12:34pm

4 hours a day works relatively well for me but to do it long-term you need an understanding employer. There is no way I could be doing it 5 days in a row. I get the laptop out for the journey and either work, mess about on the internet or play strategy games. I also have a good quality pair of noise-cancelling headphones that reduces the ambient noise to tolerable levels.

You also need a good reason to put up with it. For me, it is that my children have a much better quality of life because they have the run of 5 acres of our own land and of a 200 acre forest that borders it. There is no way I would do the commute if I was younger and I felt the need for an active social life.

may06 · 14-08-2014 12:46pm

Emme wrote: »

You are very lucky to have such understanding and accommodating bosses. I don't. I have to be at my desk from 9.00 to 5.30 5 days a week. Because of the train times I usually arrive in work at 8.30 and I'm expected to be "on" the minute I arrive. Wen I was commuting I would leave the house at 6.45am and get home at 8pm. That's not exactly a life.

I'm at my desk @7.45am, take 30 min lunch break and finish at 3.45pm. After that on the train I'll make up any time i need to get stuff done. It's about earning a wage while having a quality of life. I leave my house daily at 5.30am, i'm home 6pm. After 6pm my life begins once home.

Lombardo86 · 14-08-2014 12:54pm

Emme wrote: »

Productive...utilise...better myself - do you live in some sort of corporate jargon cloud?

Apologies for having grammar.

KD345 · 14-08-2014 1:42pm

Emme wrote: »

One of the things that really annoys me on trains is people who pull out their laptops and try to look big and important. Maybe they are working but much of they time they aren't. If these people were as important or successful as they appear to be they wouldn't have to do long commutes - they could afford to live in Ballsbridge or somewhere nearer where they work. Personally I would rather put in the extra hours at my desk rather than try to work on a crowded train. I don't know how anyone can concentrate there or get anything done.

Do you honestly think someone using a laptop on a train looks "big and important"?

You don't know the circumstances behind people choosing to work on a train. The traditional 9-5 office job does not exist for many people. Perhaps it suits to work on the commute home if it means getting the chance to spend more quality time with family. Commuting can be a wasted time, so fair play to anyone who chooses to use it wisely. With electrical sockets and WiFi now common on trains, it's never been easier to work on the go.

I must say, your comments on people "trying to look important/living in Ballsbridge" are bizarre.

Boulevardier · 14-08-2014 1:55pm

I'm lucky. It is a bus ride in (20 mins in Summer, 35 in Winter) and I walk home in about 50 mins whenever weather permits.

_Kaiser_ · 14-08-2014 2:22pm

I'd happily commute an hour or so (did it before as above and I enjoy driving) if it made financial sense to do so

However, what I'd save in rent would be eaten by increased diesel and wear and tear on the car - that's why I had to move back to Dublin a few years back.

I'd much rather be living somewhere like I used to, but along the M7 in this instance, but I don't think it'd make sense

JillyQ · 14-08-2014 2:33pm

I have a relatively easy one when im office based for a day. Salthill to Ballybrit 30 minutes each way which isnt bad @ all.

nc19 · 14-08-2014 3:04pm

25 minutes by bicycle

18 minutes by motorbike

20 - 40 minutes by car

depends how I feel in the morning

Chris_5339762 · 14-08-2014 9:41pm

Rathfarnham to Kilmainham (roughly) by car every morning.

17 minutes in the morning as I go in before traffic, about 20 - 25 home in the evening. Could be done by bike but I haven't cycled in 25 years.

head_honcho · 18-08-2014 5:10pm

Thanks for all the replies! Can I ask are people saving money by commuting instead of moving closer to their place of work? If it was a case of commuting being as or more expensive would you just move for handyness?

Tazzimus · 18-08-2014 5:29pm

Works out cheaper for me as no parking in work so I'd have to use paid car parks which would cost a fortune, plus diesel.

Also, commuting means not sitting in traffic for ages (I work in the city centre)

TheBandicoot · 18-08-2014 5:38pm

Moving closer to work if you work in the city centre of Dublin is simply not an option for the vast majority of people, at current wage/rent/mortgage/credit availability levels.

Personally I would move closer to work to cut my commute in an instant, but it is not worth it financially.

JillyQ · 18-08-2014 5:49pm

Free capparking @ work I just wouldn't move over to the other side of galway.

laoisfan · 19-08-2014 9:59am

Emme wrote: »

That's tough. How are you still alive? What station do you commute from?

I have been commuting 3 hours a day by train for the last 2 years. I am currently off work with a stress related illness and even though my job is very demanding I blame the train journey for my illness. I commute from Carlow. The Waterford line is hellish.

I used to cycle 20 minutes to and from work before and could deal with the stress of my job.

Only saw you reply above. I commute from Ballybrophy (the odd time Portlaoise). In my previous job I was able to work 2 days a week from home (did it for something like 10 years). Plus I would work on the train also, emails etc.

My current job (Park West) does not allow me to work from home on a regular basis, only when I have something to do e.g. NCT or maybe if Irish Rail strike.

Emme wrote: »

...
...
One of the things that really annoys me on trains is people who pull out their laptops and try to look big and important. Maybe they are working but much of they time they aren't. If these people were as important or successful as they appear to be they wouldn't have to do long commutes - they could afford to live in Ballsbridge or somewhere nearer where they work. Personally I would rather put in the extra hours at my desk rather than try to work on a crowded train. I don't know how anyone can concentrate there or get anything done.

Bit of a generalization there? :rolleyes:

Maybe they are replying to emails before they get into the office or replying to collegues who maybe just coming into the office (different time-zone) while they are on their way home. Perhaps they are working on a report or presentation offline.

:P

L1011 · 19-08-2014 10:11am

20 minutes drive, ~15 minutes train, 5 minutes walk is the usual one. Irish Rail don't seem to think that offering direct trains, or low wait time transfers with shelters from the Maynooth line to the Docklands line at any of the 6 shared stations is a good idea. So I drive to one of the served stations with a carpark.

Driving in when the schools are off is horribly tempting though, can do it in 35 minutes most days in summer, christmas/easter/midterm etc.

The daily commute

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