How far is too far? | GTAMotorcycle.com

How far is too far?

bigpoppa

bigpoppa

Well-known member
Been looking for work and understandably not many people are hiring right now, im thinking about applying to places further away from the GTA...

I will be looking at pay and the individual employers as well, if the pay is decent and they have benefits its worthwhile

for those who have had to commute/travel longer distances daily for work, whats your experience been like? How far did you have to travel daily? How long was the 2 way commute? Does it wear you down after a while? What if the commute is west and away from toronto and the traffic?

Did you like it/hate it/were indifferent?
 
I travel an hour to work in Aurora. Usually I don't deal with much traffic and I enjoy the commute, often on my bike.
Living further north reduces my housing expenses, but I make up for it somewhat in gas and maintenance

Sent from my Redmi 7A using Tapatalk
 
My dad travelled 100km each way for decades. That was a one hour drive each way as there was no traffic. He would have preferred to have more time with the family, but it worked ok. The problem with the gta is an hour commute with traffic isnt very far in km.

Arent you renting? If so, find a job and move to it, that is the huge upside of rental.

I think covid opened a lot of eyes on what life can be like if you work for 8 hours and that uses 8 hours of your day instead of the typical 9.5 or 10 hours. An extra hour a day can be life-changing (relaxation, fitness, seeing your kid before they go to bed etc).
 
GreyGhost said:
My dad travelled 100km each way for decades. That was a one hour drive each way as there was no traffic. He would have preferred to have more time with the family, but it worked ok. The problem with the gta is an hour commute with traffic isnt very far in km.

Arent you renting? If so, find a job and move to it, that is the huge upside of rental.

I think covid opened a lot of eyes on what life can be like if you work for 8 hours and that uses 8 hours of your day instead of the typical 9.5 or 10 hours. An extra hour a day can be life-changing (relaxation, fitness, seeing your kid before they go to bed etc).
Click to expand...


right now just saving money for a house and living with the parents ?
 
I used to commute 1.5h each way in the UK via trains and buses....wasn’t fun. My wife did similar in the car same country. When I came to Canada I actually had an offer at UofT and we (joint decisions) turned it down as we didn’t want any more commutes. Where I am now I’ve changed houses a few times but never had a commute longer than 15mins and it’s a breath of fresh air.
 
I live in Milton and have had 3 very different experiences: #1 - worked in Rexdale at Rexdale and the 401 and while the km weren't bad, because of going with the flow, it often took close to an hour, depending on what time I left the house (leaving 10 minutes later could add triple that amount to my commute) #2 - went to school in Buffalo and while the km were high, due to lack of traffic, it only took 1.5 hours including border crossing, and now #3 - work 2.9 km away and absolutely love it...no traffic, no nothing...takes me a whole 7 minutes and that's if I catch all the lights red LOL...depends on what your end goal is...I worked with guys in Rexdale that commuted from Barrie and Wasaga on a daily basis...the did it because the pay was better, but in all honesty, they probably ate that up in extra vehicle maintenance...if you're in the early stages of your career, find a good employer, stay a couple of years to make sure you like it, then move closer...by that time, you might have enough saved up to buy your own place...
 
Its not how far is too far, its how long is too long.

At 4 AM my commute to work is10-15 mins. At 6 AM it is 30 minutes. At 8 AM it is 45 minutes. In the rain it is double time. In snow it is 4 times as long. In a snow storm.........

Accidents dont add to my time much as there are several different routes but all are about the same times
 
My longest commute was about 45-70min from 427/Burnhamthorpe to Hwy 7 / Dufferin area....I hated every moment of it. Since then I've been very fortunate to either have a short commute, or flexible hours.

If you can move closer to work, but if you're saving money for the future...then definitely it's the way to go. Audiobooks...Podcasts make it much more bearable.

I'm currently back to my FIFO life...and I'm scared I'm so used to it that it'll be hard to go back to a normal life.
 
I'm retired now but my commute was always between 1 hour - 2.5 hours each way on a normal day since I can remember. You put up with what you have to in order to provide the best you can for yourself and your family. For the last 10 years of my work life, I lived in Brampton and worked in East Oshawa (east of the GM plant). That was 1.5 - 2.5 each way depending on time of day and weather. Fortunately, my company paid my 407 bill, which was about a grand a month. Snow storms were the worst. In my later years, I'd just take a vacation day if decent snow was predicted. Towards the end of my time there, I was working from home quite often, even though that was frowned upon. At that point, I didn't really care. The severance would have been sweet if they tossed me ;) Bottom line, you do what ya have to. It ain't pretty but it's doable. Gives you lots of "alone time"!
 
I have an embarrassingly long commute normally (2 hrs) and I would highly recommend against it. I use the GO, I am wearing out a beater car, it's not a good use of my life.

However, if you can get a better job outside the GTA, I would also consider moving outside the GTA close to your new job. Win win
 
Commuting can kill you, it nearly wrote my sister-in-law off twice so far.
 
25-30 min. depending on vehicle. Not a lot of traffic, and it's not boring.

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mimico_polak said:
My longest commute was about 45-70min from 427/Burnhamthorpe to Hwy 7 / Dufferin area....I hated every moment of it. Since then I've been very fortunate to either have a short commute, or flexible hours.

If you can move closer to work, but if you're saving money for the future...then definitely it's the way to go. Audiobooks...Podcasts make it much more bearable.

I'm currently back to my FIFO life...and I'm scared I'm so used to it that it'll be hard to go back to a normal life.
Click to expand...
Ahem..last i checked your commute was a 6 hour flight :p
 
I commuted for almost 20 years and I would rather be on welfare than do it again. Aside from the wasted time, it's a tax on your soul. In all honesty, get a second part time job to offset the hours driving and you'll be much happier and better off financially. I would be elated if I knew I would never have to get on another 400 series highway ever again.
 
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In the early 90s, I commuted daily between Agincourt and Oakville. Took over an hour each way back then, it's probably double that today.

Did that for a year and said f-it. Found another job closer to home.

Funnily enough, today, I would now still be commuting an hour to get to the job that was closer to home.

Toronto is only an hour away from Toronto.
 
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