The 5k commuting club

[Nearly Sane]

I am not far off this

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40936050

[Rhiannon]

That's what it costs to commute from my local town, well over £5k when parking and Tube travel is added.

[Udayana]

Is £5000 a lot to commute around 100 miles to work and back each day? It's around £25 a day for choices unthinkable in previous eras.

[Rhiannon]

Is £5000 a lot to commute around 100 miles to work and back each day? It's around £25 a day for choices unthinkable in previous eras.

Depends what you earn.

[Robbie]

That's one way of looking at it Udayana but it does seem an awful lot of money.Most firms give annual season ticket loans which works out cheaper, the ticket can be used for leisure as well as travelling to&from work. The downside is it ties you to a job for a year & you might want to get out fast. Salaries are much higher in London than elsewhere, over and above the extra travelling expense but honestly no-one is going to be happy about paying out so much on fares, something to ponder whilst being squashed like a sardine in a tin & strap hanging.

[ProfessorDavey]

It's around £25 a day for choices unthinkable in previous eras.

What choices?

[Udayana]

Essentially, how far to live from your workplace or work far from your home. How much should it cost to travel a hundred miles (often far more) to work every day? 100 years ago such a commute would be unthinkable.

[Udayana]

That's one way of looking at it Udayana but it does seem an awful lot of money.Most firms give annual season ticket loans which works out cheaper, the ticket can be used for leisure as well as travelling to&from work. The downside is it ties you to a job for a year & you might want to get out fast. Salaries are much higher in London than elsewhere, over and above the extra traveling expense but honestly no-one is going to be happy about paying out so much on fares, something to ponder whilst being squashed like a sardine in a tin & strap hanging.

Agree that it can be horrible and time wasting, but I don't think the problem is with the fares, but with the organisations requiring people to commute.

ETA: Of-course it would be very nice if the railway companies would use the money to keep the system in good order and minimize emissions instead of on bonuses to executives, but it seems we can't run a railway without them.
 

[Rhiannon]

Essentially, how far to live from your workplace or work far from your home. How much should it cost to travel a hundred miles (often far more) to work every day? 100 years ago such a commute would be unthinkable.

Choice? Not really. People tend to live where they can afford.

[Udayana]

Choice? Not really. People tend to live where they can afford.

Yes, taking into account fares for transport to work. But which is really too high - railway fares or house or rent prices in certain cities?

[Rhiannon]

Yes, taking into account fares for transport to work. But which is really too high - railway fares or house or rent prices in certain cities?

For most people you are talking rock/hard place.

[ProfessorDavey]

Essentially, how far to live from your workplace or work far from your home. How much should it cost to travel a hundred miles (often far more) to work every day? 100 years ago such a commute would be unthinkable.

I don't think for lots of people it is a choice - particularly near London. It is a trade off between affordability of a house and the cost/time commuting. There aren't many people who would choose (all things being equal) to spend £5k a year on a season ticket and 3-4 hours a day commuting.

And you are right that there wasn't this 'choice' 100 years ago, but there has been for decades. For many journeys into London the commute time now is no shorter (indeed may even be longer) than it was in the 1970s and 1980s and the relative cost was lower then too. People tended not to commute so far back in those days because houses were more affordable nearer to London (or even in London) compared to wages.

[Udayana]

When the commuting cost is seen as lower, or the time taken for the journeys drops, then people from even further out will choose to commute. eg. Once HS2 is in place, even with higher prices, even more people will commute to London from the Midlands.