The Commute

YoureSoVain

Just watched The Commute on RTE1. I pity the people who have to travel so far to work, but I'm wondering how much they could possibly be getting paid to make it worth their while. They have to shell out for plane fares, accomodation etc and come home at the weekends etc. Can't see how its feasible

davemc180

YoureSoVain wrote: »

Just watched The Commute on RTE1. I pity the people who have to travel so far to work, but I'm wondering how much they could possibly be getting paid to make it worth their while. They have to shell out for plane fares, accomodation etc and come home at the weekends etc. Can't see how its feasible

well according to the news over recent weeks the average household is left with under 50 a month after paying, bills etc

so if they were left with double that itd be worth while, plus there may be no work in there profession in ireland left...

i.e im an electrician and im strongly thinking of following trend and leaving

orourkeda

you probably think this thread is about you

starbelgrade

davemc180 wrote: »

well according to the news over recent weeks the average household is left with under 50 a month after paying, bills etc

That couldn't possibly be true.

I'm sure there's a lot of people for whom it is true, but I'd suspect that they are actually in a minority & that the "news" are spinning stuff like they usually do.

Kojak

YoureSoVain wrote: »

Just watched The Commute on RTE1. I pity the people who have to travel so far to work, but I'm wondering how much they could possibly be getting paid to make it worth their while. They have to shell out for plane fares, accomodation etc and come home at the weekends etc. Can't see how its feasible

Most of them on the programme only see it as a short term thing. Maybe they would consider it a bigger waste of money to up sticks and move to their work location for the sake of a few months or years.

All of them were adament that it was only temporary - I hope for their own sakes that they are correct.

Hotblack Desiato

Bog-warrior whinge fest. They want their choice of world-class careers, they want them on their doorstep, and they want them now! And it's not as if anyone living in Dublin has ever emigrated... most of the people featured aren't commuters in any sane sense of the word, just emigrants in deep, deep denial.

TheUsual

Didn't see the show but I read on twitter that a man drives from Cork to Dublin for work 5 days a week. A 6 hour round-trip.

How the hell can he do it, it's savage, on the petrol costs, car wear and mental strain.
Stay in a B&B for 3 nights or something, would be the same as petrol.

orourkeda

TheUsual wrote: »

Didn't see the show but I read on twitter that a man drives from Cork to Dublin for work 5 days a week. A 6 hour round-trip.

How the hell can he do it, it's savage, on the petrol costs, car wear and mental strain.
Stay in a B&B for 3 nights or something, would be the same as petrol.

Thats insanity. I havent seen the programme either but have it recorded.

No job should have that imoact on ones quality of life

mikemac

The only thing you can never get back is time

Driving from Cork to Dublin every day is adding so much stress you're heading for an early grave



Sure there were houses in Borris-in-Ossory in Laois marketed as starter homes and commuting for Dublin :rolleyes:
You're almost in Tipperary

opti76

i commuted from cork to dublin for 2 years before the motorway .. stayed the odd night on a buddys couch .. a long slog.

ninja900

ninja900 wrote: »

............. most of the people featured aren't commuters in any sane sense of the world, just emigrants in deep, deep denial.

Most definitely, they are not commuters at all.

TheUsual wrote: »

Didn't see the show but I read on twitter that a man drives from Cork to Dublin for work 5 days a week. ..........

Sheer lunacy if it's true.

Dotrel

ninja900 wrote: »

Bog-warrior whinge fest. They want their choice of world-class careers, they want them on their doorstep, and they want them now! And it's not as if anyone living in Dublin has ever emigrated... most of the people featured aren't commuters in any sane sense of the world, just emigrants in deep, deep denial.

That's the impression I got from the ad. Glad I didn't watch it now.

TheUsual

ninja900 wrote: »

Bog-warrior whinge fest. They want their choice of world-class careers, they want them on their doorstep, and they want them now! And it's not as if anyone living in Dublin has ever emigrated... most of the people featured aren't commuters in any sane sense of the world, just emigrants in deep, deep denial.

People in Co. Dublin have short commutes, but you can spend 1.5 hours getting into work just not moving very fast.
Traffic / Dart/ Luas / Bus ... it adds up when you cannot park in the city centre. My young brother used to have a horrible commute to Dun Laoighaire (no parking there).

TheUsual

RoverJames wrote: »

Sheer lunacy if it's true.

True yeah.
I read about it in the paper last week about the show. Then checked it on twitter ... true and sad.

mikemac

TheUsual wrote: »

People in Co. Dublin have short commutes, but you can spend 1.5 hours getting into work just not moving very fast.

Scooters/mopeds

Bought one when I moved to Dublin and they are the best thing ever.
Fiver a week in fuel, tax is about forty euro and insurance is cheap too

Considering an annual bus ticket can cost several hundred they're great little things

DEFTLEFTHAND

I'm currently doing a 4 hour round trip on the train 4 days a week. It really does start to wear you down after a while both mentally and physically, I spend the week in a constant state of tiredness and crankiness which really affects my productivity in what I do.

orourkeda

opti76 wrote: »

i commuted from cork to dublin for 2 years before the motorway .. stayed the odd night on a buddys couch .. a long slog.

Was it worth it?

syklops

Watching it now. Its a bit too extreme. There is one guy who lives in London 5 days a week, but goes home at the weekend to play hurling for his county. Dude, pick one. I know its tough, but thats not healthy, plus imagine the money he spends. They have hurling clubs in london you know.

I felt sorry for the midwife, recently qualified and having about 7 kids to feed, and she was crying, leaving, even for 3 days. You have to wonder if what she brings home is worth the heartache. She hasn't much of a choice, but a few of them, I think they have decisions to make.

The guy who commutes to dublin from limerick everyday. Why not get digs in dublin? The money you would spend on trains alone. Why wouldn't you just move up to Dublin? He has been doing it for 3 years. Thats nuts!

Cill Dara Abu

mikemac wrote: »

Scooters/mopeds

Bought one when I moved to Dublin and they are the best thing ever.
Fiver a week in fuel, tax is about forty euro and insurance is cheap too

Considering an annual bus ticket can cost several hundred they're great little things

Small price to pay for looking like a tit

TheUsual

mikemac wrote: »

Scooters/mopeds
Bought one when I moved to Dublin and they are the best thing ever.
Fiver a week in fuel, tax is about forty euro and insurance is cheap too
Considering an annual bus ticket can cost several hundred they're great little things

You are preaching to the converted here man, been on a bike since 1996. Accident free too ... touch wood.

No tolls over the Liffey at the Eastlink or the M50, free parking anywhere.
Cheap fuel and you can do a lot of the servicing yourself.

My bike is 900cc but I have always said that a scooter is just as fast around Dublin as my bike and it's true.

shannon_tek

3-4 hours on the train takes its toll. It's bit stupid. I wouldnt mind if it was just over an hour highspeed. It should be. its only 2hours 20 by car. It would be anybodys while to travel

mikemac

Cill Dara Abu wrote: »

Small price to pay for looking like a tit

Hey, I look badass in biker gear :cool:

TheUsual wrote: »

You are preaching to the converted here man, been on a bike since 1996. Accident free too ... touch wood.

No tolls over the Liffey at the Eastlink or the M50, free parking anywhere.
Cheap fuel and you can do a lot of the servicing yourself.

My bike is 900cc but I have always said that a scooter is just as fast around Dublin as my bike and it's true.

Have a bike too
But I keep that for weekends and spins

The scooter is handy for zipping to work and the shops and things like that.
You're right, just as fast

With AON anyway, if you insure one bike it's fifty euro for a second.
Lots of people have two bikes or a bike and a scooter

Jess16

ninja900 wrote: »

Bog-warrior whinge fest. They want their choice of world-class careers, they want them on their doorstep, and they want them now! And it's not as if anyone living in Dublin has ever emigrated... most of the people featured aren't commuters in any sane sense of the world, just emigrants in deep, deep denial.

And you've got a big, big chip on your shoulder. I can't believe you're getting bent out of shape because a programme featured country people instead of Dubs -there's a whole world happening outside of Dublin you know!

mikom

YoureSoVain wrote: »

Just watched The Commute on RTE1. I pity the people who have to travel so far to work, but I'm wondering how much they could possibly be getting paid to make it worth their while. They have to shell out for plane fares, accomodation etc and come home at the weekends etc. Can't see how its feasible

Somethings got to pay for the granite worktops.....

TheUsual

Cill Dara Abu wrote: »

Small price to pay for looking like a tit

30 minutes to work in any traffic and you can use the bus lane .... the real tit is you Kildare !

syklops

I knew a guy, who was married. He worked as a storage specialist in Brno, his wife was on the dole in the UK, and he travelled home every 2 weeks. I didn't understand why she couldn't move to Brno and live with him. He said he could not support her, but surely the amount he spent on flights would feed and clothe her? Obviously I don't know the full story, but as another poster said it seems some people are emigrants, but their in denial, because they can get home so quick. I feel sorry for them.

Killer Pigeon

Wait, you're telling me teleportation hasn't been invented yet?!

*Gets back in cryogenic box*

Hotblack Desiato

TheUsual wrote: »

People in Co. Dublin have short commutes, but you can spend 1.5 hours getting into work just not moving very fast.
Traffic / Dart/ Luas / Bus ... it adds up when you cannot park in the city centre. My young brother used to have a horrible commute to Dun Laoighaire (no parking there).

You might have thought the programme would have been about the realistic concerns of rational people - until you watched it.

TheUsual

mikemac wrote: »

With AON anyway, if you insure one bike it's fifty euro for a second.
Lots of people have two bikes or a bike and a scooter

AON for the win ... have 3 bike on them , the last 2 just for 100 euro extra on the policy.
I drove a friend's Suzuki Burgman 400cc automatic for a while, and I have to say anyone who is not into bikes or afraid of gears and falling off ... buy one.

Hotblack Desiato

Jess16 wrote: »

And you've got a big, big chip on your shoulder. I can't believe you're getting bent out of shape because a programme featured country people instead of Dubs -there's a whole world happening outside of Dublin you know!

No the problem is that the programme was extremely poor. It set itself up as addressing the concerns of everyday people but instead focused on a few people who can best be described as lunatics who refuse to emotionally commit to moving their families to where their work is.

starbelgrade

I used to have a Vespa when I lived in Dublin. It was a 1974 model... it looked cool as fuck & ran like a dream - two stroke engine and all!

I didn't know how to drive it when I bought it, so I pushed it up to the local park to try it out. After about 20 minutes of getting nowhere & looking like a tool, a local tracksuit wearing youngfella came up to me & said "Here mister.. I'll show ya".

I looked at him with complete disbelief... he was 12 years old at the most. But in under 5 minutes he'd shown me that he was true to his word & I spent many happy years scooting around the capital on my trusty bike.

Kinda miss it, it has to be said.

syklops

Im starting to go off the midwife, she was saying she was feeling sorry for Irish people she knew who moved to London and were trying to make a life for themselves, but she got to go home after 3 days. It feels a bit like having her cake and eating it too. Like: "I get to have my family in Cork, and my career in London, and I get to be on the telly crying woe is me".

Another guy was introduced as "this is kevin smith, he is arriving home after being away for a month". To be honest, if you're away for a month, your not commuting.

Yeah, its a poor programme.

Storminateacup

Both myself and my partner commute daily, both working in dublin, which is about a 2.5hr commute in the am and 1.5hr in the evenings. He has to be in work earlier than me and is home before me, so we both have to drive.

We have a 5 month old child and to be honest, it's horrible having to commute so far knowing if something happens godforbid, we are both so far away.

Sometimes I feel incredibly guilty, being away from her for so long, and it broke my heart going back to work when she was two months old but ultimately were both doing it for her. We're both young, both starting off in our careers and Dublin is where the best oppertunities are.

Very aware how judgemental people are of young parents, how theyre stereotyped and I don't want that for my child.

If it wasn't for her, Id have no problem taking a lesser paid/lesser experience job closer to home, but that's how it is.

I know it will be worth it in the long run

syklops

Storminateacup wrote: »

Both myself and my partner commute daily, both working in dublin, which is about a 2.5hr commute in the am and 1.5hr in the evenings. He has to be in work earlier than me and is home before me, so we both have to drive.

We have a 5 month old child and to be honest, it's horrible having to commute so far knowing if something happens godforbid, we are both so far away.

Sometimes I feel incredibly guilty, being away from her for so long, and it broke my heart going back to work when she was two months old but ultimately were both doing it for her. We're both young, both starting off in our careers and Dublin is where the best oppertunities are.

Very aware how judgemental people are of young parents, how theyre stereotyped and I don't want that for my child.

If it wasn't for her, Id have no problem taking a lesser paid/lesser experience job closer to home, but that's how it is.

I know it will be worth it in the long run

Why cant you move to Dublin?

Jess16

ninja900 wrote: »

No the problem is that the programme was extremely poor. It set itself up as addressing the concerns of everyday people but instead focused on a few people who can best be described as lunatics who refuse to emotionally commit to moving their families to where their work is.

Why the 'bog warrior whinge' attitude if your gripe is now with something else? For someone talking about other people complaining, you're doing a fair bit of it yourself. You do know that woman commuting to London has a house, presumably with a mortgage, her seven children in school and her husband's business all in Cork -is she supposed to pop all of that in a suitcase and bring it to London? I admire anyone who will make sacrifices to put the needs of their family first.

Son Of A Vidic

starbelgrade wrote: »

After about 20 minutes of getting nowhere & looking like a tool, a local tracksuit wearing youngfella came up to me & said "Here mister.. I'll show ya"

I was was hoping to read that he hopped on your Vespa and then sped away on it . But oh no, you had to go and ruin it for me.:(

syklops

Jess16 wrote: »

Are you so heartless in real life too? That woman commuting to London has a house, presumably with a mortgage, her seven children in school and her husband's business all in Cork -is she supposed to pop all of that in a suitcase and bring it to London? I admire anyone who will make sacrifices to put the needs of their family first

Yeah, but the lad who was 'commuting' home to play hurling every week. Surely he can be classed as a lunatic, no?

Storminateacup

syklops wrote: »

Why cant you move to Dublin?

Because we have planning permission on a site where I live and we are hoping to build our own home. I don't want my child growing up in Dublin and I don't want a complete stranger looking after my child, when she could be around people who love her instead.

starbelgrade

Corvus Maximus wrote: »

I was was hoping to read that he hopped on your Vespa and then sped away on it . But oh no, you had to go and ruin it for me.:(

That thought seriously crossed my mind at the time, but he turned out to be a sound little fecker!

HavingCrack

The woman who moved between Cork and London, surely the amount of money spent on accomodation in London and flights back and forth pretty much cancels out most of the financial benefit's that she's earning working in the UK?

Jess16

syklops wrote: »

Why cant you move to Dublin?

God almighty, do people here actually realise that not everyone wants to live in Dublin

yourpics

The people featured in the programme may spend a lot of money commuting and not have much leftover but they are gaining experience which will be invaluable when (or if) jobs come around in Ireland.
You could say short term pain/long term gain or you could say they are looking at the bigger picture especially in the case of the midwife.

syklops

Storminateacup wrote: »

Because we have planning permission on a site where I live and we are hoping to build our own home. I don't want my child growing up in Dublin and I don't want a complete stranger looking after my child, when she could be around people who love her instead.

Well fair enough, but, I hope you dont think your current situation is going to be permanent. Would you not prefer to put your 20 hour a week travel costs towards a safe home for your husband and child to live in, near your place of work, for a year or two, rather than this mammoth commute every day. It cant be doing your relationship any good. Do you get to spend any time with the child when you get home?

TheUsual

starbelgrade wrote: »

Kinda miss it, it has to be said.

Buy a cheap second hand Suzuki Burgman 400cc for 2,000 euro, they have an option for automatic, no gears or clutch, trust me you will love it.

You know you want to relive your youth !

HavingCrack

Jess16 wrote: »

God almighty, do people here actually realise that not everyone wants to live in Dublin

To be fair, if you're doing a round trip communte of 4 hours plus, it does seem vaguely sensible to at least move a bit closer to Dublin even if you don't neccessarily want to live in the city itself.

syklops

Jess16 wrote: »

God almighty, do people here actually realise that not everyone wants to live in Dublin

Of course I understand that, but given the choice of living in Dublin and commuting for 4 hours, I would much rather live in Dublin and get to spend the evening with my loved ones, then spending it on a Bus or train, or in a car on my own listening to Mary Kennedy or Miles Dungan.

Try and engage in the conversation, or take your knee jerk disgust elsewhere.

Hotblack Desiato

Jess16 wrote: »

Why the 'bog warrior whinge' attitude if your gripe is now with something else? For someone talking about other people complaining, you're doing a fair bit of it yourself. You do know that woman commuting to London has a house, presumably with a mortgage, her seven children in school and her husband's business all in Cork -is she supposed to pop all of that in a suitcase and bring it to London? I admire anyone who will make sacrifices to put the needs of their family first.

She's still a whinger. She decided she was going to move into a certain profession and is now whinging that that profession is no longer recruiting here. Cry me a river. Also, nobody forced her to have seven frigging kids or to live in a big house. To be fair, she's not a bog warrior whinger as her job prospects would be equally poor in Dublin!

Storminateacup

syklops wrote: »

Well fair enough, but, I hope you dont think your current situation is going to be permanent. Would you not prefer to put your 20 hour a week travel costs towards a safe home for your husband and child to live in, near your place of work, for a year or two, rather than this mammoth commute every day. It cant be doing your relationship any good. Do you get to spend any time with the child when you get home?

I'm hoping it won't be permanent. It may be for my partner but at the minute, I'm striving to gain as much experience as I can because as soon as I have enough experience, I'd like to open my own business closer to home. It's not doing our relationship any good - as Sundays are really the only days we have together, but we're strong and we both want the best possible start in life for our child. I do get to spend time with her when I get home and we do take her into our bed, so at least she's next to me as she sleeps, but it is hard leaving her for so long.

It won't be forever though, and it'll all be worth it, fingers crossed, in a few years when she has everything she could possibly want.

TheUsual

HavingCrack wrote: »

To be fair, if you're doing a round trip communte of 4 hours plus, it does seem vaguely sensible to at least move a bit closer to Dublin even if you don't neccessarily want to live in the city itself.

Some home were built in Co. Meath with the "45 minutes from Dublin" lie ..

yeah in a helicopter.

Storminateacup

HavingCrack wrote: »

To be fair, if you're doing a round trip communte of 4 hours plus, it does seem vaguely sensible to at least move a bit closer to Dublin even if you don't neccessarily want to live in the city itself.

it does seem like the sensible option but you know it's just different circumstances for different people
ideally, I'd still be on maternity leave, but that really wasn't a luxury I could afford to take. Ideally we'd get to spend more time with my child and less time travelling, but we're then leaving her for 10 hours a day with someone she doesn't know, and someone who doesn't love her.

HavingCrack

TheUsual wrote: »

Some home were built in Co. Meath with the "45 minutes from Dublin" lie ..

yeah in a helicopter.

To be fair commuting from Navan or Ashbourne is handy enough, especially if you're working in the Blanchardstown area. If anyone commuting from the Westmeath or Cavan borders believed it was a 45 minute commute to Dublin City centre without bothering to check it themselves the deserve what they got to be honest.