How long a commute is TOO long?

[ChoralScholar]

I'm applying for several teaching jobs - and, just by the luck of the draw, the schools with open jobs in my subject area are on the opposite side of the Little Rock metro area. Given that the first ten miles of my commute is 4-lane US Highway, and the remainder of any of these would be Interstate, do these commutes seem too long? My family is no help.. all I hear is 'Man.. that drive's gonna get old!"

Relocating is not a possibility, as we just bought this house.

School #1 North Little Rock High West - 38.9 miles (35 minutes in no traffic)
School #2 Mills University Studies High School - 47.0 miles (45-48 minutes in no traffic)
School #3 England High School - 67.3 miles (1hr 10 minutes in no traffic - school is quite a way off the interstate)
School #4 Lonoke High School - 61.7 miles (55-58 minutes in no traffic)

I'm guessing that, in other areas of the country, these are not unreasonable drives?

[jp11]

1. Up to you and how much time behind the wheel you are willing to put up with

or deal with for the job over another and whatnot. I'd prefer the shortest commute possible, preferably where I could take a train.

People drive all sorts of distances for work, from getting a foot in the door to having to transfer to get a promotion or a site closes etc. Just know that you spend that time to and fro everyday at the minimum in addition to time at work, if you work late etc on top of that time. If you are okay with that or don't have a choice you make do/deal with it as long as you have to or can.

I think most people would agree around 2+hrs is 'too long' but you might not have much in the way of options.

[ChoralScholar]

3. Incidentally, the shortest commute is the most desirable job...

I really hope I get it.

[stray cat]

22. I do too - please let us know; any is better than no job

and maybe you can take one and keep your eyes open for something closer?

[ChoralScholar]

30. Thanks guys - will do EOM

[charlie and algernon]

2. Personally, I wouldn't want any more than an hour commute

For my last job, I had an hour of stop and go traffic EVERY. SINGLE. NIGHT. home and it sucked.

Just going by commute and nothing else, I personally would choose either Schools 1 or 2.

[ChoralScholar]

5. Fortunately, because of school hours,

I think I will be too early for the morning and afternoon rushes. In Little Rock, there's only a couple trouble spots for traffic, and if I get to leave school at 3:40, I'll beat them I think.

[charlie and algernon]

7. you're probably right about beating the morning commute

but can you garauntee being able to leave by 3:40 every day? What happens when you start having kids stay late for extra help or you end up moderating clubs, etc?

[ChoralScholar]

8. Yeah, I know - I do tend to end up doing that...

Although, lately I've gotten in the habit of doing more things before school, because I'm ready to follow the kids out the door at the end of the day...

[Gormy Cuss]

4. Test drive them. Make the trip back and forth several times in the same day.

See if that gets old. If it does, imagine doing the trip five days a week.
The two that are about an hour with no traffic may be a very different story WITH traffic even when the schools aren't in session. Then there's the occasional weather events that will slow down traffic. I don't know how often that factors in for the Little Rock area.

[ChoralScholar]

6. We only get icy/snowy weather a couple times a year -

and it doesn't take much to cancel school on those days... :)

[Kali]

9. is there any public transportation?

I don't know what I could stand I hate the fact that it takes me nearly 20 minutes to get out of here and it is only 3 miles (bad dirt, er rather ROCK roads) but then ten more minutes to town.

If you get stuck doing a commute be sure to get into recorded books and a player instead of talk radio!

[ChoralScholar]

10. Little Rock is a perfect example of a community that needs public

transpo, but has none... Tons of people commute in from the inner and outer suburbs, but there's only an ad-hoc carpool plan run by the highway dept.

[MiddleFingerMom]

11. When I got out of the Army, I got a job making boxcars for the railroad...

.
.
.
.
.
...about 40+ miles away from where my (now)ex and I were
living.
.
We had this little tiny dream A-frame WAY back in the
Tennessee woods, set about 10 feet off the ground on posts
with a little, tiny creek that ran UNDER it.
.
We weren't movin' fer NOTHIN'!!!!!
.
.
.
.
Commute 50-60 minutes on mostly back state highway (I drove
FAST and it was REALLY back state highway).
.
.
.
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Knowing what I was coming home to at the end of the day --
t'weren't NOTHIN' t'make that drive.
.
.
.
.
Not even the day I got called into the office and told that
my neighbor called about my waterbed having burst open --
I couldn't see HOW she would know that unless she had seen
my home become its own li'l mini-waterfall -- so I drove
home at 95 MPH (WANTING to get there in 2-1/2 minutes)
only to find they had gotten the message wrong. My ex had
found a pinhole leak, drained the mattress and had to leave
for HER job, so she was letting me know to fill it back up
when I returned.
.

[ChoralScholar]

12. You always tell the best stories, MFM... :)

[MiddleFingerMom]

18. Thank you. I wish I were better at the oral tradition...

.
...I would've LOVED to have been a children's storyteller.
.
.
.
.
I was going to try to talk any cop that pulled me over into
coming along with me to see the catastrophe -- figured it'd
make a great story for HIM/HER to tell and I'd not get into
any trouble.
.
.
.
Darn good thing I didn't get pulled over. :rofl:
.

[Lars39]

13. Get as close as you can to where you work.

Time is precious. :hi:

[KeyWester]

14. I ride my bike sometimes.

My wife rides hers everyday to work.

Getting in a car seems like to long of a commute

[femmocrat]

15. Can you move closer if you get the job?

We have teachers in our district who commute from the other side of Pittsburgh-- an hour or more in very slow traffic.

I really feel bad for them when there is bad weather. I think it would zap all your energy, personally. I am home and out of my school clothes in less than 10 minutes!

Best wishes on getting the job! :hi:

[ChoralScholar]

29. Can't right now - just bought this house back in February...

we'd end up losing money at this point.

[struggle4progress]

16. I figure more than 30 minutes each way driving sucks up too much of the day

I might go a bit beyond that if the job hours and the driving route allowed for some banking and routine shopping on the way home; otherwise, there's more of the day driving for that

I might also go a bit beyond that if the trip involves sitdown public transportation, allowing me to do some work or recreational reading

Any time I've done 90 minutes in and 90 minutes back, I've been a complete zombie at the end of the day

[MajorChode]

27. Long commutes definitely sucks the life out of you

With a few exceptions, I've always lived within a 30 minute commute of work and I've turned down jobs that would have forced me into longer times. In the short periods where this wasn't the case, it just didn't take me long to figure out it wasn't worth it. There's simply nothing enjoyable about spending much time in traffic and too much of it turns you into that much more of a slave to production. I don't mind longer biking or public transportation commutes as both are considerably more relaxing.

[Crystal Clarity]

17. Well I don't know

I can't relate as far as city driving goes. Any of what you've described would freak me out far more then the mileage/time factor. :scared:

But I can say this in favor of long distance travel because I've learned to accept it here in the boonies as a given... I use it as a time to wind down. Audio books, great tunes, or just time to think can be a great stress reliever. I also always have on hand a voice tape recorder as a reminder of tasks ahead for work, home ect.

So with this in mind, I hope you that travel concerns won't trump what you'd truly enjoy as a teaching position. Travel, a factor for consideration yes, but not a deal-breaker, I hope. Good Luck to you! :-)

-Just my 2 cents

[taterguy]

19. It would be unreasonable to me but I'm not you

I live in a house that was picked due to its central location.

My wife's job is less than a mile away.

My job is 2.8 miles away.

Don't know what we'd do if either one of us had to change jobs and I'd rather not think about it.

[backwoodsbob]

20. I drive 40 each way every day

you do what you have to do :shrug:

[bigwillq]

21. Go for the shortest route

Will save time and money and resources.

[Mopar151]

23. An hour without traffic is about my limit

And it depends on how the job schedule works out then. Also factor in likely delays - an overloaded highway gets held up much more easily, especially if there is no viable paralell route.

[SwissTony]

24. I went from a two and a half hour commute (each way!)

to ten minutes (each way).

I used to live south of Rotterdam (in The Netherlands) and work in Amsterdam. A distance of 110 kms (68 miles) through lots of stop-start traffic. The Dutch had electronic boards above the highways which told you how long the traffic jam ahead was. I used to be happy to see that the next one was only 13 km long. Didn't like those above 20 km. Happiness is sometimes relative.

Since then, the boards indicate how long you can expect to be driving to get to the next junction, but not what you can expect after that.

I now live in Darwin (Northern Territory, Australia) and live about 500 yards from my work. I ride my bike slowly and 5 of the minutes is spent putting my bike into a secure compound. I'm happy.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

25. the first and second one = OK

#3 and #4 = :thumbsdown:

[grace0418]

26. The first one is the most I could bear, but we do what we have to do to get by.

I had a long (public transportation) commute a few times in my life and hated it. Before I started working at home (NO COMMUTE!), my car commute was 15 minutes in no traffic, but could easily triple in traffic or bad weather. That seemed about as long as I was willing to stand.

[ChoralScholar]

28. Well, everyone

I interviewed at school #2 and school #1 today.

School #2 was a wash - they seemed to be uninterested in me because I hadn't taught in a district with sufficient 'diversity'.

School #1 was a fantastic interview, with the principal saying "If you get in a situation where another district is offering you a job, and you need to give an answer, CALL ME FIRST" - He also spent twice as much time with me as the candidate before me, showed me around campus and whatnot.

I'm feeling good about School #1 - keep your fingers crossed!

[handmade34]

31. I'd go with school #1

;-)

[Lisa D]

32. Good luck!

I think the nice thing about a long commute is the chance to listen to audiobooks or my favorite podcasts uninterrupted.

[ChoralScholar]

33. I listen to XM Comedy, channel 150. :)

[fujiyama]

I personally can't stand commutes over 45 minutes to an hour

Ideally I'd prefer a commute of a half hour or less.

It depends on a bunch of factors though. If you live in a place with great weather and traffic isn't that bad, maybe 45 minutes is reasonable.

[quakerboy]

34. Is moving an option? How much do you like the people you live with?

For me, anything over about 20 minutes would be an imposition on my good nature and would definitely detract from my life. But then I really enjoy the woman I live with.

For my father, back in the day... He would get a job. Then we would move closer to make it more economical. Then after a few months, he would suddenly get a new job on the far side of town. Always the farthest side of town, making a commute anyone else would have called ridiculous. Fortunately for him he was in a field, at a time, with the experience to be able to grab a new job at will.

[wickerwoman]

35. More than 40-45 minutes would be too long for me.

The exception would be if I could carpool, or take a single bus/train/subway without transfers and could read or play PSP for a good chunk of the time most days.

My cousin gets books on tape from the library for his commute and says they help a lot.

Traffic does suck though and the price of gas can really add up.

Good luck and hope you really enjoy the job whichever one you pick!

[uncommon]

36. Those are normal commute times. It takes me 30 minutes right now but when I move

in a couple of months it will take me about an hour and ten minutes and that's pretty standard.

[LWolf]

37. I hope you get one of the jobs.

With all of the RIFS in my state, the only teachers being hired are those brought back after being RIFFED, and the only openings are to fill spots left open by a few retirees.

Obviously, you should hope for the closest, but be glad to get any of them.

I think a 60 minute one-way commute is excessive, until the only other choice is unemployment.

I live 13.5 miles away from school, and can get there with no stoplights and 4 stop signs if I take the back roads, but I live semi-rurally.

[MountainLaurel]

38. I'm impressed by y'all

After surviving DC area commutes for 12 years, I don't think I could do more than a 30-minute commute.