Commute into London?

jpwjpw

Having a single train journey rather than having to change trains/buses makes a lot of difference. I used to have an unbroken hour train ride to work and even managed to sleep some mornings on the train:)

Deep_In_Debt

Yep, I used to live in Brighton and commute to London - journey was easy, about 50 mins to Victoria and then a 5 min walk.

Mrs_Ryan

I commuted for a year in my last job, but to be fair they were extremely lenient with me because of it - I was quite often late due to trains being cancelled/delayed etc but they said as long as I let them know, they were ok, and I know a few people were muttering about the fact that if they were late they got a disciplinary but they didnt bat an eyelid in my case. The stress took its toll on me in the end though and I was signed off sick.
I dont think I could do it again - I now work in a job which is a 15 minute drive from my home and although the job is more stressful, I dont have to commute at least. I live in rural Leicestershire and used to commute to suburban Nottingham to work, but it was a horrible journey and I dont miss it in the slightest...

Woodyrocks

You might be earning 50% more but do factor in how much you shall be spending on travel. I had a friend that used to commute from Reading into London...not a happy man tbh.

Sharon87

I live in London and travel for 1 hour and 15 minutes to and from work (that's if I get the bus or the tube - takes the same time) - for a rubbish minimum wage job. I wouldn't mind travelling that long if it was for my career but it's not.

If you have to do a lot of commuting it will tire you out eventually, especially travelling in peak times. I'm lucky in one respect as I rarely travel at peak times, but when I done a 2 week placement in central London even the 45 minute journey was horrible - although that was mostly due to the horrible Metropolitan line!

chuckley

people within london can commute for up to that length of time so...

Reds-on-Sea

thanks for all the comments!

I've figured it will cost me £3,824 for a travel card, and I currently spend at least £1500 on petrol getting to work. my insurance should go down as I won't be doing as many miles too.

that would still give me a 7k payrise. :j

It currently takes me at least 45 mins each way, and I'm anticipating 1hr45mins each way door to door.

10hrs a week (extra) travel for 7k = I can live with that?

I doubt I'd have to leave much earlier, and I think the main thing that would suffer would be the washing up!

I'm trying to look at the big picture. Maybe doing this job for a year or two will lead to something nearer with good money. I do worry I'll be stuck at my current job FOREVER!!:eek: like everyone else there. #lifers!!

And yes, I do have a wonderful OH who would have the dinner on the table as soon as I got in :heartsmil

but....I do also worry that I'll hate commuting and be tired & miserable. it's a big step as I've never done it before. it'd be different if I'd done a shorter train commute before, but this is nothing to 1hr45!

gelato_cat

Reds-on-Sea wrote: »

I was just wondering how many of you commute into London, and how far you come. I Live in the commuter belt, but have a potential job just further than I was willing to go.

The money would be great (50% more than I'm on now) but I'd be commuting over 1.5hrs each way. Always fancied the train as I'd love more time to read/sleep/Nintendo DS it up!

I've never done the commute into London before, but all my friends do (admittedly on the nearer side of town). I've always had jobs I've had to drive to.

Heya Reds...

I live in one of the London commuter belts and have had three jobs in London, all in different areas:

Aged 23 I was straight out of uni and had never worked outside my home town before. My commute was approx 1hr15min-1hr30min (10-min lift to station, 40-min train, 10-min Tube, 10-min walk). I absolutely hated it for a few reasons:

• It was my longest commute ever
• It was January so it was dark when I got out of bed and dark when I got home
• I wasn't guaranteed of a seat on the train in the morning OR in the evening and wasn't used to it
• I began to hate the job and therefore started to resent the commute

It was ironic as it's the shortest and easiest (due to having lifts to and from the station) London commute I've ever had. I just wasn't used to it.

Aged 26 I got another job in London after a couple of years out of it. Commute was about the same length (5-min lift to station, 45-min train, 15-min Tube, 1-min walk). This wasn't so bad as I'd got a bit wiser to the whole setup, I always got a seat on the way in and out (although not on the Tube, but was a pro at Tube-surfing by that time ) and I liked the job. It was a lot more sociable too and I'd go out after work and not even care that I was getting home at some ungodly hour.

I now (aged early 30s) have the longest commute ever as I work on the other side of London from where I live (much like the journey you are contemplating). I don't get a lift to the station any more, so it's 30-min bus ride, 50-min train ride and 15-min walk. It's generally a two-hour commute although I can do it in 1hr40mins on a good day. When I first got the job I didn't think I'd be able to hack it but I guess I'm now used to it. It doesn't feel like it's a two-hour commute, maybe because I only do bus and train rather than bus-train-Tube. I used to get the Tube instead of walking the last bit, but they started putting on more trains to the nearest overground so I walk from there now - I've lost a bit of weight and I don't have to pay for Tube travel on my season ticket

To be honest, I now hate getting the Tube, esp in rush hour, and I can't believe I did that a) on a daily basis and b) in heels!!! I must have been bl--dy mad!

BTW, the reason why my numbers don't add up is because, unless I am lucky, there is always waiting time between each leg of the journey. When I got a lift to the station, we'd time the arrival for 5-10 mins before the train was due. Then you'd get to London and have to walk to the Tube platform and wait for the train etc. If you're unlucky there are delays and suchlike. On the way home I've always found it difficult to tie up with the train times as they're only once every 15-20mins or so so if I miss one (easy to do when you're putting your coat on and your boss then decides they want to start a conversation with you) I've lost a lot of time.

I'm in the process of moving to London and my commute is going to be well under an hour (15min-walk to station (or 2-min bus journey), 12-min train journey (trains are every three mins as well!), then 15-min walk the other end). I can't wait, as I'm moving in with bf and I'll actually get an evening to spend with him!

Hermia wrote: »

I used to have a 1.5-2 hr commute into London. I wouldn't want to do it again. I did it for a year and found that I was burnt out by the end. Plus I had no life outside work because by the time I got home it was too late to go anywhere or join any classes or social groups etc.

I know what you mean about not having a life outside work... I get home after 7pm now and by the time I've settled down and had something to eat it's 9pm and nearly time for bed. I'd love to join a running club or something like that but never have time. I'd kind of resigned myself to the fact that was how it was always going to be, until we decided to buy the house in London.

Suze

FlameCloud

I have a fairly strange commute in that I live in central London (Westminster) and commute out of London for 2 days a week to Romford. At least the trains are quiet!