I had a realization this week, as I was trying to get home from the Lower Mainland area (which is for the record, against traffic). Usually it takes me 45 minutes to get home but instead it took me an hour and 30 minutes because of an accident. Earlier in the week, I was late 15 minutes because of an accident as well clogging up the highways. This is despite leaving the house with 20 minutes to spare. It’s so unpredictable and it really puts a dent in the day. I realized that if I cannot commute for more than 20 to 30 minutes a day. I just can’t. It drains my energy, makes me irritable, it takes up my time, it wastes my gas, and it makes my car feel even older by racking on the mileage.
I know that in many circumstances, there is no choice but to commute, but I think if I had to commute such a long duration to and from work, I would rather take public transportation because the commute would be a productive commute (reading, writing, thinking about life, instead of driving).
Thankfully, reading these PF blog love blog posts really calmed me down and I hope they can help you destress this weekend too. 
Readers, what is the maximum tolerable number of minutes or hours that you can commute for?
PF Blog Love
- Prairie Eco-Thrifter’s staff writer talks about how she traded labor for cookies to do her renovations (good ROI if you ask me!)
- Retire by 40 analyzes how much he spends in comparison to the average American on coffee, pets, beer, electricity, gas.. etc.
- Shawanda shares 10 Things we Love to buy but hate to use (I do love my blender though and I like using it )
- My Broken Coin shares 39 things you didn’t know about her
- Roshawn Watson talks about why we seek security versus freedom (the great education vs entrepreneurship debate)
- Financial Samurai finally gives us a glimpse into his monthly spending
- My University Money tells us that grad school isn’t the answer, especially if you’re afraid of life and getting into the real world (He’s not talking about me.. I hope)
- Boomer and Echo’s Boomer talk about how much we spend on our pets
- Financial Uproar is heading to V-E-G-A-S!
- The Passive Income Earner breaks down how to assess if the Smith Manoeuvre is for you
You might also want to check out these posts:
Public transportation is also greener. Thanks for including Marie’s article. I really appreciate it.
@Miss T- I thought you would like that plug about public transportation
I did!!
I have always walked to where I worked. The commute times in some cities is mind boggling.
In Silicon Valley when I visit for work, it took my 30 minutes to commute 1.3 miles (hotel to headquarters).
@Steve- Ugh- 30 minutes to commute 1.3 miles? That is pretty ridiculous. That was the speed for me the other day and it drove me bonkers. No wonder people are sometimes irritable lol.
I feel your pain. I hate traffic and driving. I could never drive an hour to and from. 30 minutes would be my max. And I would loathe even that! Unfortunately, my fiancee and I both HATE driving . Haha, we’ll have to compromise I have a feeling and take turns.
@Jon- Do you both car pool with each other? I like the compromise
Congratulations on the engagement btw!
It takes me about 30 minutes to drive to work when there is minimal traffic. It can take up to an hour if I hit rush hour though. Public transport takes about an hour and I’ll do that more when the weather warms up. It’s too cold for baby to wait at the bus stop right now so I drive him to daycare.
Thanks for the mention & have a great weekend!!!
@retirebyforty- Yeah, waiting in the cold for a bus is the only downside for public transportation (that and the increased amount of time).
Even though I didn’t live in Calgary during my working years (moved when I was 18), I’m so thankful that I don’t have to put up with big city commuting. I live about 5-6 minutes away from work, and I wouldn’t trade that for the world.
@Echo- 5-6 minutes away!! I need to move into the rural areas! That sounds like an amazingly serene commute. No road rage for you!
I used to commute about 45 min to an hour. I got used to it and it was okay. Now my commute is 20-30 min, and looking back I wonder how in the world I got used to that one hour commute. I think I am really spoiled now.
Thank you for the mention!
@Aloysa- I know a few people who did the same and they were doing the 45 min to 1 hour commute for years (and decades, really) and now their commute is so short. Life is just that much more amazing.
Used to commute an hour and a half each way everyday. I didn’t mind it, though. I wasn’t driving in gridlock…it was just a far physical distance. And I got paid extra $$ to do it.
@femmefrugality- well, getting paid extra money certainly lessens the sting!
Definitely not talking about you Y and T! You obviously took a much different path than graduating and being so afraid of the world that you dived back in. Also, just to make you really jealous, my commute time is exactly 3 minutes and 37 seconds, with one stop sign being the only variable. Friendly rural Manitoba would love to welcome a new blogger
!
@MUM- LOL PHEW! (re: not being a graduate school loser). I officially am very very jealous of you right now!! 3 minutes and 37 seconds? Why do you bother to drive??
(other than the snow factor)
I used to live there and remember those crazy traffic days. It’s nearly impossible to predict. Thanks for some great reads!
Oh, and on another note, I think I’m going to come down that way later this year and would love to meet up and collaborate! Cheers!
@DoctorStock- Sounds good! Yeah, I don’t like the unpredictability. I was all smug initially because I was going against traffic and all.
Good Share.I hope more people discover your blog because you really know what you’re talking about. Can’t wait to read more from you!
Public transportation all the way for me! Someone drives me around and I get to enjoy my RSS feeds or writing a quick post.
@BeatingTheIndex- So if I see someone hammering away on their keyboard on the bus it might be you?
Yeah, I like the idea of conscious commuting.
The maximum commute that I can tolerate is about half an hour. I’ve been living within walking distance (i.e. a few BLOCKS) of my office for the last couple of years, but when I move to my condo, I will spend about 20 minutes on the bus. I am okay with this because having some separation between home and work will be good for me, plus that will give me back some daily reading time which I’ve missed since I moved closer to work.
An hour and 30 minutes is INSANE! I tend to overanalzye my finances on long drives, so it’s probably good for me to not take long drives all that often.
@Leigh- LOL I DO THE SAME THING!! Driving is sort of a waste of time- either listening to music, or ruminating about my life. I think I should sign up for some podcasts, at least then it will be somewhat productive.
Y&T As you know I live close to work, less than a 10 minute drive or a short bus trip. I wouldn’t trade this for anything!! I would honestly go nuts if I had to commute over an hour each day – been there done that
Cheers
@The Dividend Ninja- Yes you lucky devil you!
Yeah, a short commute is priceless!
I typically don’t commute very far. For one job though, I commuted anywhere from 10-15 minutes to 4.5-6 hours one way (not a typo). I agree with you. I certainly am happy not to have to be doing that currently. I still wouldn’t prefer to take public transportation unless it was very convenient.
Thank you so much for the link! I really appreciate it!
@Roshawn- Ugh! How unpredictable! Was it from accidents/ traffic jams?
Those occurred, but it was mostly the fact that they would send me all over the state to work.
Thanks for linking to my article!
I HATE driving long distances to work. I think it makes me a little insane. So, I moved closer to the company I worked for. When I had to go into the office, it usually didn’t take longer than 10 minutes to get there.
Even with public transit, it’d take about the same length of time since the bus near my apartment dropped me off directly in front of my office building. As a matter of fact, when I was looking for a job in the D.C. area, I told the recruiter that I wouldn’t even consider a job at a company that wasn’t within walking distance to a train station. Some may think that’s a little extreme, but just thinking about spending an hour or an hour and a half commuting each way makes me anxious.
However, when gas was about $4 a gallon and I was trying to pay off my debt, I’d take the bus from the place I lived at the time to work. Which took about 50 minutes. It actually wasn’t too bad because I could read, listen to audio books, go back to sleep, or chat with a friend (as quietly as possible) on the phone while I let someone else do the driving.
@Shawanda- Good for you for negotiating! I like letting someone else doing the driving too
Especially if you don’t need to entertain or talk to them lol 
I’m used to commute for an hour in one way. I wish I could move the office. Hate wasting time. Better to spend time with wife. You know what I mean?:)
@Alexander Collins- Yes, wife time is always good. I hope my BF is reading this.