Forums » Smalltalk » How far do you commute to work?

I was just curious about how far people have to commute to work because I know this is so different in different parts of the U.S., let alone in other countries besides where I am. It might be interesting to see how different this is around the world.

(It can also help us as writers to realistically portray our characters in different settings. For example: having a character ride a bus vs a subway vs a bicycle vs walking...)

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I'll start!

Distance to work: 21 miles

Time it takes: 26 minutes

Mode of transportation: by car

Distance to work: 35 km

Time it takes: 30-35 minutes by the tollway, 45 minutes by the old road.

Mode of transportation: 2011 Mitsubishi Lancer

Distance to work: 10 to 15 miles / 16 to 24 km depending on the route I take.

Time it takes: Quickest is 20 minutes....There have been times where it's taken 2 hours depending on sporting events/traffic incidents/chaos/etc.

Mode of transportation: Usually by car, sometimes public transit.

I live just down the road, so....

Distance: not even a mile? I am not sure.

Time: walking takes about 21 minutes. being dropped off takes about not even 5 minutes.

Transport: walking or being dropped off via car.

Ah...interesting. Tollways in Australia. We have them here too. Our commutes are roughly the same.

Not a bad commute. And...must be a busy street/area. There's an area like that near my mom's house, right by a football stadium.

Nice! I wish I still lived where I could walk to work. Nice, nice, nice. It's always less gas, even when someone drives, and more time to sleep in the morning. Plus walking has the health benefits too. Hopefully the weather's not too bad on the days you have to walk though. And congrats on the job.

Does school count?

I ride a moped because it's cheaper than a car and far more accessible than a bicycle, though I've regularly ridden the distance on a pedaled bike too.

To school and back home is 20km a day, so about 10km each trip. Takes about 15-20 minutes by moped, 45-50 by bicycle and then back home same time.

Thanks. Summer in my area is hot, while winter tries to freeze you. Upstate NY is fun.

School counts!

Oh, interesting. A moped was a mode of transportation that hadn't even occurred to me. That's neat. It's nice that you're not far from school. That sounds like a long bicycle ride to me (but I only rode them as a kid, so my perception on long and short bike rides may be skewed) but that commute doesn't sound bad at all in a moped. Plus you get some sun (vitamin D!).

You're welcome! Ah yes, walking
(hopefully riding) in a winter wonderland.

Approximate mileage per day - 650-700 (but I've been known to hit up to 750 on occasion)

Time it takes - about 11 hours

Mode of transportation - 2015 Volvo 780 (semi truck)

Commuting is the job, definately all about the journey for me

LOL. That's a lot o' commuting!

I guess another way to look at it is that the commute to your job is 0 miles, because as soon as you hop into your truck, you're at work!

I suppose you could see it as less than that even, most days I dont even need to hop in my truck, just roll out of the bed in the bunk and I'm there

Distance to work: .02 miles according to a steps-to-miles converter on Google. In actuality, 37 steps.

Time it takes: Roughly 5 minutes.

Mode of transportation: Walking.

I work from a home office So I just got up and counted the steps from my bed to my bathroom, then to the kitchen to feed the kitties and grab breakfast, then to my desk. 37 total. Time varies depending on how many times I trip over hungry felines (I have two and they are quite needy) and what I end up getting for breakfast.

Hahahaha.

Definitely the shortest commute so far. 😸

For years, I drove 30-45 minutes.

But for the last couple years, I've been in the same boat as Ethys. My office is just right upstairs. Whoo! It's so nice. (Ethys, you probably win on actual shortest commute though since I've got to walk outside to feed and water the chickens.)

Occasionally, I have to hop on a plane and go visit my employer's site for a week, but not too often... every 6 or so months.

Distance to work: about 15 km, I think.

Time it takes: between 30-45 minutes, depending on how everything comes together. I'm always at least 25 minutes early, though (:

Mode of transportation: public transport. Honestly, if I'm working during the daytime, it would take me twice as long to get home by car.

One slide of my butt from my bed into the chair next to my bed where I get onto my computer. 😛

Going with the more active/frequent job...

Distance to work: 22 miles by car, most direct I can find is 16 miles by foot

Time it takes: normally hour and a half to hour and 50 (depending on the time of day), but some construction started today that's sure to add on; would be shorter if I drove

Mode of transportation: public transit (mix of busses and lightrail trains)