6 ms·

How long is your commute?

8 points by buzzlightyear 12y ago

I work for a start-up as a developer and travel 32 miles to work each day - with traffic this takes me 50-60 minutes a day. Everyone I work with thinks this is weird. What about the rest of you?

rtcoms 12y ago
My office is just 0.5 km from my home. It takes only 5 minutes on foot
harnhua 12y ago
50 minutes each way on the train + 10 minutes by bus, in Singapore. Hence, 50-60 minutes each way is normal to me. I'm guessing that you drive, and have to focus on traffic, but do you listen to audiobooks and stuff along the way? Crowded trains aside, I try to make use of the commute time as much as possible - reading, emailing, etc. If there's a comfortable sling of some sort where I can strap my laptop to and work in the train, I'd buy that in a flash!
shiftpgdn 12y ago
30 minutes to 1 hour there and 1-2+ hours home. 13 miles.
laurisb 12y ago
60 miles roundtrip in 2 hours by car each day.
monroepe 12y ago
45 minutes each way by public transit.
laurenproctor 12y ago
12 minute walk in NYC, 8 minutes door to door if I hustle.
smt88 12y ago
0 min (work remotely). Why don't you work remotely at least a few days a week? The average cost/mile of operating a car is something like $0.50, so you're spending ~$30/day driving. If you pay a tax rate of 30%, your salary is decreased by ~$9,700, just because you commute that far every day. Then you have to factor in losing 2 hours of your life every day sitting in a car, the health risks of commuting[1], and your impact on the environment. You could also sleep an extra 2 hours in the morning! If you have an open office plan, you probably also take a hit to productivity because you're not alone[2]. 1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3261090/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3261090/ 2. http://www.fastcompany.com/3019758/dialed/offices-for-all-why-open-office-layouts-are-bad-for-employees-bosses-and-productivity http://www.fastcompany.com/3019758/dialed/offices-for-all-wh...
csorrell 12y ago
I'm able to work remotely now, but in the past my commutes were about 30 minutes each way. I think 30 minutes is reasonable, and I never minded it. At one time I had a job where I was commuting 1.5 hours each way, but that didn't last long. That drive really wore me down and had me completely burned out after a few months.
matthewmcg 12y ago
9 minutes by bike 25 minutes walking 20 minutes by car
- mod 12y ago
  Those are interesting numbers. I'd virtually never opt for the car (just in bad weather, I guess).
GregBuchholz 12y ago
Maybe this should be a poll? Anyway, my commute is about 11 or 12 minutes one way.
marssaxman 12y ago
That sounds awful. I would not be able to sustain that for very long without becoming exhausted and depressed. 30 minutes is about as long a commute as I can stand.
sondring 12y ago
47 miles one way. I time my commute to miss the bulk of traffic and on average it takes me 60 minutes. I also WFH 1-2 times per week and have a carpool partner. I'm in Silicon Valley and my commute is on the upper range of normal.
eswat 12y ago
I freelance. I can’t be productive at all working from home, so I just work at coffeeshops, anywhere from a 1-minute walk or a 20-minute bus ride.
- mrfusion 12y ago
  Do you alternate coffee shops? Any tips for working at coffee shops? Have you considered coworking?
  - eswat 12y ago
    Yeah I alternate. There’s about six within a 10-minute walking distance of my house, so if I feel I’m not really getting any work done I’ll just move onto the next or come home for a quick nap. Working at these places is not for everyone, specifically if you really prefer a quiet environment and without music, even your own. I used to always wear noise-cancellation headphones while working here but now I just use normal-type earbuds and can tune out the background noise without much trouble. The seating is not ergonomic; even if you do the standing desk thing and work at a bar-height table, your neck is still going to be at a position that works against you. So to offset the bad posture you’re going to develop at these places, it’s important to fix that in your off-time (strength training, yoga, massage therapy, etc.). Also keep security in mind: tether when you can, use a VPN if you have to use someone else’s wifi, figure out what you’re going to do before stepping into a coffeshop to work so you can seat yourself accordingly (if you’re dealing with sensitive documents you might get a bit anxious if you work with them with the entire cafe being able to view your screen). I’ve done coworking before but I haven’t found the spaces in my city to be more than “just a place to work” for me. If I’m going to be going to one I want to have a support network as well, but the coworking spaces here cater to businesses and people I can’t really relate to. You also lose random events like running into a client who just needs a break or a student asking questions about the stickers on your laptop. Hope that helps.
crazypyro 12y ago
10 minutes without weather/traffic. 15-20 average. 2 hours minimum when it ices. (Fucking bridges and people don't work well together with ice, I guess)
smeyer 12y ago
I walk about 30 minutes each way. It's about 10 minutes by car (cab or uber in my case).
brudgers 12y ago
If you're in the US, no it's not weird. If there are valid reasons for not relocating it's not even unreasonable.
ekr 12y ago
12 minutes by bike, 40 min by bus at rush hour (yeah that's a case of terribly inefficient public transportation, an tge reason why 99% of the time i cycle).
FlopV 12y ago
I work remote. It sounds like you could swing working remotely a few days a week. Honestly I get a lot more done remote than when I'd go to the office. Less distractions, more productivity, less stress from that drive. Would that be something you want to do? If you have a good reputation at your company I'm sure they'd be open to the discussion.
sighype 12y ago
2.5 hours, round trip, car+train+walking (1/2 mile one way walking.) Most of the train ride is productive, but I hate walking when there's snow and ice. The summer is awesome though. I try for remote if I can get it, but can live without it.
kalagan 12y ago
about 45mn one way in the crowded Tokyo train.
dirktheman 12y ago
47 miles, which will take me about 75 minutes. One way, including a bike ride to the train station, the train ride, and the metro ride to my work. I get about 50 minutes working time during the train ride, and it's the most productive time of my entire day. I do work 4 days a week, 1 of those telecommuting. So I only commute to the office 3 times a week, which is totally OK. I also religiously leave office at 4.30PM so that I can have dinner with my family. Any remaining work I can do in the evening, but those occasions are pretty rare.
iamjoday 12y ago
I live 3 miles from office. It takes anywhere from 7-10 minutes to get to work. I once used to commute about 40 miles one way, used to take 70-90 minutes one way. It was very tiring and used to take all my energy end of the day... I have since kept, 5 miles or 15 minute principle for my commute. With my free time I can work on projects like, http://joday.com http://joday.com BTW, The average travel time to work in the United States is 25.4 minutes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. http://project.wnyc.org/commute-times-us/embed.html http://project.wnyc.org/commute-times-us/embed.html But if you are in bay area, 32 miles can take upto an hour or more depending upon which direction you are flowing... like living in east bay and commuting to peninsula is easy hour one way. Nash, http://joday.com http://joday.com
pathy 12y ago
It currently takes me around 35-40 minutes by public transport to get to work. Luckily It is just one buss stop then the same subway line all the way, so at least it is reasonably hassle free commuting. I would prefer a shorter commute but it is not too bad.
hackerboos 12y ago
4.6 miles. Takes about 20 minutes on public transport (bus) which can be very unreliable in my city.
geldedus 12y ago
distance irrelevant in miles or km. around 50-60 minutes by two commuter trains and a tram (I live in Paris Area)
matt_s 12y ago
35 minutes on dry roads, one way. If it is snow and ice time then that could be double. Yesterday it was -9F when I left for work but the roads were dry so it was all good. I can and do work remote at least 1 day a week or more. I love the flexibility I have, but the job is boring as all get out.
marsvskittens 12y ago
50-60 minute commutes are very common among my coworkers. My boss commutes over an hour each way. Long commutes make me miserable, so I decided to live closer to work than most of my colleagues. It's a manageable 10 minutes by car. It would be ~30 minutes by bike, but this part of NJ is unbikeable.
timjahn 12y ago
If I go into the office, 45-50 minutes door to door by walking/L or by biking. If I work remotely, 0 minutes.
GotAnyMegadeth 12y ago
If I ride my bike 30 - 35 mins If I drive 20 - 60 mins
iisbum 12y ago
About 20 miles each way, about 40-50 minutes a day. Also have the option to work from home, which I do 2-3 days a week.
scmoore 12y ago
I live about a mile from work, so: 20 minutes on foot 5 minutes by bike 5 minutes by car I'd say I walk about 90% of the time. I don't think your commute is unusual for the US, which is where I am, but I'd definitely be unhappy with it.
ugisozols 12y ago
5min max if it's a slow walk.
codegeek 12y ago
Used to be 2.5 hours one way but as of tomorrow, it will be zero. I quit my job, woohoo!!!!
- mlwarren 12y ago
  Any interesting plans for the future?
  - codegeek 12y ago
    yes quite a lot actually. WOrk on my bootstrapped business from home :) and spend time with kids. Love that no more 5-6 hours round trip commute.
    - mlwarren 12y ago
      Sounds awesome, I wish you well!
mlwarren 12y ago
When I work remotely, 0 minutes. When I drive 20-60 mins one way depending on traffic. I'll be moving to a smaller town farther away from work soon and my drive commute will be 35-40 minutes. A little longer on average but not as variable due to traffic. Hopefully it'll allow me to plan evenings better on in-office days.
Jeremy1026 12y ago
13 miles, about 20 minutes or so depending on city traffic.
akbaralis 12y ago
5 minutes walk 10 minutes by car Winter (during snow): 20 minutes by car
iSloth 12y ago
Currently about 10min each way by car, however our start and finish times are about 1 hour before most other companies, which means we miss rush hour otherwise this would be 30-40min. Even people that don't like early mornings seem to enjoy the earlier start as an extra hour after work can be very useful!
invaliddata 12y ago
I'd love to live within a few miles from work where I could reasonably bike or walk. However I don't have a few million dollars sitting around to buy a house here. I'd assume this situation is common in this area (bay area), and people live as close as they can afford to.
karaujo 12y ago
1,5 hour - walking, train, subway
leesalminen 12y ago
8 mins. car, 20 mins bus/walk
stevenspasbo 12y ago
I drive about 25 miles each way, I don't really mind. I have a reverse commute so traffic isn't bad, and I listen to NPR on the drive.
lazythrowaway 12y ago
Hour and a half bus ride each way, NYC.

8 points by buzzlightyear 12y ago

I work for a start-up as a developer and travel 32 miles to work each day - with traffic this takes me 50-60 minutes a day. Everyone I work with thinks this is weird. What about the rest of you?

rtcoms 12y ago

My office is just 0.5 km from my home. It takes only 5 minutes on foot

harnhua 12y ago

50 minutes each way on the train + 10 minutes by bus, in Singapore. Hence, 50-60 minutes each way is normal to me. I'm guessing that you drive, and have to focus on traffic, but do you listen to audiobooks and stuff along the way? Crowded trains aside, I try to make use of the commute time as much as possible - reading, emailing, etc. If there's a comfortable sling of some sort where I can strap my laptop to and work in the train, I'd buy that in a flash!

shiftpgdn 12y ago

30 minutes to 1 hour there and 1-2+ hours home. 13 miles.

laurisb 12y ago

60 miles roundtrip in 2 hours by car each day.

monroepe 12y ago

45 minutes each way by public transit.

laurenproctor 12y ago

12 minute walk in NYC, 8 minutes door to door if I hustle.

smt88 12y ago

0 min (work remotely). Why don't you work remotely at least a few days a week? The average cost/mile of operating a car is something like $0.50, so you're spending ~$30/day driving. If you pay a tax rate of 30%, your salary is decreased by ~$9,700, just because you commute that far every day. Then you have to factor in losing 2 hours of your life every day sitting in a car, the health risks of commuting[1], and your impact on the environment. You could also sleep an extra 2 hours in the morning! If you have an open office plan, you probably also take a hit to productivity because you're not alone[2]. 1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3261090/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3261090/ 2. http://www.fastcompany.com/3019758/dialed/offices-for-all-why-open-office-layouts-are-bad-for-employees-bosses-and-productivity http://www.fastcompany.com/3019758/dialed/offices-for-all-wh...

csorrell 12y ago

I'm able to work remotely now, but in the past my commutes were about 30 minutes each way. I think 30 minutes is reasonable, and I never minded it. At one time I had a job where I was commuting 1.5 hours each way, but that didn't last long. That drive really wore me down and had me completely burned out after a few months.

matthewmcg 12y ago

9 minutes by bike 25 minutes walking 20 minutes by car

mod 12y ago
Those are interesting numbers. I'd virtually never opt for the car (just in bad weather, I guess).

GregBuchholz 12y ago

Maybe this should be a poll? Anyway, my commute is about 11 or 12 minutes one way.

marssaxman 12y ago

That sounds awful. I would not be able to sustain that for very long without becoming exhausted and depressed. 30 minutes is about as long a commute as I can stand.

sondring 12y ago

47 miles one way. I time my commute to miss the bulk of traffic and on average it takes me 60 minutes. I also WFH 1-2 times per week and have a carpool partner. I'm in Silicon Valley and my commute is on the upper range of normal.

eswat 12y ago

I freelance. I can’t be productive at all working from home, so I just work at coffeeshops, anywhere from a 1-minute walk or a 20-minute bus ride.

mrfusion 12y ago
Do you alternate coffee shops? Any tips for working at coffee shops? Have you considered coworking?
- eswat 12y ago
  Yeah I alternate. There’s about six within a 10-minute walking distance of my house, so if I feel I’m not really getting any work done I’ll just move onto the next or come home for a quick nap. Working at these places is not for everyone, specifically if you really prefer a quiet environment and without music, even your own. I used to always wear noise-cancellation headphones while working here but now I just use normal-type earbuds and can tune out the background noise without much trouble. The seating is not ergonomic; even if you do the standing desk thing and work at a bar-height table, your neck is still going to be at a position that works against you. So to offset the bad posture you’re going to develop at these places, it’s important to fix that in your off-time (strength training, yoga, massage therapy, etc.). Also keep security in mind: tether when you can, use a VPN if you have to use someone else’s wifi, figure out what you’re going to do before stepping into a coffeshop to work so you can seat yourself accordingly (if you’re dealing with sensitive documents you might get a bit anxious if you work with them with the entire cafe being able to view your screen). I’ve done coworking before but I haven’t found the spaces in my city to be more than “just a place to work” for me. If I’m going to be going to one I want to have a support network as well, but the coworking spaces here cater to businesses and people I can’t really relate to. You also lose random events like running into a client who just needs a break or a student asking questions about the stickers on your laptop. Hope that helps.

crazypyro 12y ago

10 minutes without weather/traffic. 15-20 average. 2 hours minimum when it ices. (Fucking bridges and people don't work well together with ice, I guess)

smeyer 12y ago

I walk about 30 minutes each way. It's about 10 minutes by car (cab or uber in my case).

brudgers 12y ago

If you're in the US, no it's not weird. If there are valid reasons for not relocating it's not even unreasonable.

ekr 12y ago

12 minutes by bike, 40 min by bus at rush hour (yeah that's a case of terribly inefficient public transportation, an tge reason why 99% of the time i cycle).

FlopV 12y ago

I work remote. It sounds like you could swing working remotely a few days a week. Honestly I get a lot more done remote than when I'd go to the office. Less distractions, more productivity, less stress from that drive. Would that be something you want to do? If you have a good reputation at your company I'm sure they'd be open to the discussion.

sighype 12y ago

2.5 hours, round trip, car+train+walking (1/2 mile one way walking.) Most of the train ride is productive, but I hate walking when there's snow and ice. The summer is awesome though. I try for remote if I can get it, but can live without it.

kalagan 12y ago

about 45mn one way in the crowded Tokyo train.

dirktheman 12y ago

47 miles, which will take me about 75 minutes. One way, including a bike ride to the train station, the train ride, and the metro ride to my work. I get about 50 minutes working time during the train ride, and it's the most productive time of my entire day. I do work 4 days a week, 1 of those telecommuting. So I only commute to the office 3 times a week, which is totally OK. I also religiously leave office at 4.30PM so that I can have dinner with my family. Any remaining work I can do in the evening, but those occasions are pretty rare.

iamjoday 12y ago

I live 3 miles from office. It takes anywhere from 7-10 minutes to get to work. I once used to commute about 40 miles one way, used to take 70-90 minutes one way. It was very tiring and used to take all my energy end of the day... I have since kept, 5 miles or 15 minute principle for my commute. With my free time I can work on projects like, http://joday.com http://joday.com BTW, The average travel time to work in the United States is 25.4 minutes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. http://project.wnyc.org/commute-times-us/embed.html http://project.wnyc.org/commute-times-us/embed.html But if you are in bay area, 32 miles can take upto an hour or more depending upon which direction you are flowing... like living in east bay and commuting to peninsula is easy hour one way. Nash, http://joday.com http://joday.com

pathy 12y ago

It currently takes me around 35-40 minutes by public transport to get to work. Luckily It is just one buss stop then the same subway line all the way, so at least it is reasonably hassle free commuting. I would prefer a shorter commute but it is not too bad.

hackerboos 12y ago

4.6 miles. Takes about 20 minutes on public transport (bus) which can be very unreliable in my city.

geldedus 12y ago

distance irrelevant in miles or km. around 50-60 minutes by two commuter trains and a tram (I live in Paris Area)

matt_s 12y ago

35 minutes on dry roads, one way. If it is snow and ice time then that could be double. Yesterday it was -9F when I left for work but the roads were dry so it was all good. I can and do work remote at least 1 day a week or more. I love the flexibility I have, but the job is boring as all get out.

marsvskittens 12y ago

50-60 minute commutes are very common among my coworkers. My boss commutes over an hour each way. Long commutes make me miserable, so I decided to live closer to work than most of my colleagues. It's a manageable 10 minutes by car. It would be ~30 minutes by bike, but this part of NJ is unbikeable.

timjahn 12y ago

If I go into the office, 45-50 minutes door to door by walking/L or by biking. If I work remotely, 0 minutes.

GotAnyMegadeth 12y ago

If I ride my bike 30 - 35 mins If I drive 20 - 60 mins

iisbum 12y ago

About 20 miles each way, about 40-50 minutes a day. Also have the option to work from home, which I do 2-3 days a week.

scmoore 12y ago

I live about a mile from work, so: 20 minutes on foot 5 minutes by bike 5 minutes by car I'd say I walk about 90% of the time. I don't think your commute is unusual for the US, which is where I am, but I'd definitely be unhappy with it.

ugisozols 12y ago

5min max if it's a slow walk.

codegeek 12y ago

Used to be 2.5 hours one way but as of tomorrow, it will be zero. I quit my job, woohoo!!!!

mlwarren 12y ago
Any interesting plans for the future?
- codegeek 12y ago
  yes quite a lot actually. WOrk on my bootstrapped business from home :) and spend time with kids. Love that no more 5-6 hours round trip commute.
  - mlwarren 12y ago
    Sounds awesome, I wish you well!

mlwarren 12y ago

When I work remotely, 0 minutes. When I drive 20-60 mins one way depending on traffic. I'll be moving to a smaller town farther away from work soon and my drive commute will be 35-40 minutes. A little longer on average but not as variable due to traffic. Hopefully it'll allow me to plan evenings better on in-office days.

Jeremy1026 12y ago

13 miles, about 20 minutes or so depending on city traffic.

akbaralis 12y ago

5 minutes walk 10 minutes by car Winter (during snow): 20 minutes by car

iSloth 12y ago

Currently about 10min each way by car, however our start and finish times are about 1 hour before most other companies, which means we miss rush hour otherwise this would be 30-40min. Even people that don't like early mornings seem to enjoy the earlier start as an extra hour after work can be very useful!

invaliddata 12y ago

I'd love to live within a few miles from work where I could reasonably bike or walk. However I don't have a few million dollars sitting around to buy a house here. I'd assume this situation is common in this area (bay area), and people live as close as they can afford to.

karaujo 12y ago

1,5 hour - walking, train, subway

leesalminen 12y ago

8 mins. car, 20 mins bus/walk

stevenspasbo 12y ago

I drive about 25 miles each way, I don't really mind. I have a reverse commute so traffic isn't bad, and I listen to NPR on the drive.

lazythrowaway 12y ago

Hour and a half bus ride each way, NYC.