Morning Commute

One of the arrangements I had to consider when I gave up my car is making a weekly commute to our mission office. It is in a small town an hour west of Toronto (Moffat, ON) and the closest that public transportation gets is in Milton, some 20km (12 miles) away. Some pre-planning is definitely in order. Fortunately a fellow colleague lives in Milton.

Here's my route to get to work on those days (twice a week). Normal driving time from my home is one hour.

I catch the Toronto TTC subway from Lansdowne station to St George station, then switch to another line until the Union Station (30 minutes) (Cost:$2.50). I walk across the street to catch the Milton "GO" bus that leaves at 7:20am or 8:20am. (Cost: $8.25). Because the bus goes against rush-hour traffic, there are few people aboard and plenty of room to stretch my (long) legs. The first half of the route is the same as driving, then the bus makes several stops in town along the way. Total travel time is 95 minutes. Then it is a 5-minute walk to my friend's house. At that point I ride with him and we can "do business" during the 20 minute drive.

So, I leave home at 7am and can arrive by 10:30. That's three and a half hours, versus 1 hour if I drive.
Costs: Public transportation is slightly higher. $10.75 while gas cost  is about $8.50 (and rising!)

What are the Benefits?:

• Reading time. The bus is a coach and conducive to reading the paper, whatever book I am reading, or prayer and reflection.
• Work time. With my smart phone there is time for responding to emails or doing other online research.
• Less-stress. There really is a benefit to letting other people do the driving.
• Being among people. There are hassles for sure, but being among people in the morning reminds me why I am here and doing what I am doing. God is in the redemption business, I can't isolate myself in the busyness of the day.

Fortunately, I don't have to make this trip everyday. I have other duties that require me to be in the city. That was a big factor in deciding to live without my own car.

In later posts, I hope to address the cost issues and how I take longer business trips. Thanks for following!