Commuting - Any POSITIVE Experiences?
#41
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Oct 2017
Posts: 459
Exactly, most early morning shows at my airline are around 5am, which means you're waking up at 1:30am to start your drive. A lot of my days are 10-13 hours long, if not longer. That means some days I'm on the go for nearly 20 hours. My airline loves to throw in a deadhead at the end of a long day. It's not too bad if you're on a multi-day trip but if you're getting a lot of day trips you can see why that would suck. Still, driving is better than a flying commute.
Expense wise, the mileage is what adds up. I've done a 1-2 hour commute in traffic (Seattle area). That's not too expensive because the miles are low. But a 350 mile round trip (3 hour) commute starts going through gas, tires, oil, etc. faster than you would expect. Before committing to it I would sit down and really crunch the numbers so you know what to expect.
Expense wise, the mileage is what adds up. I've done a 1-2 hour commute in traffic (Seattle area). That's not too expensive because the miles are low. But a 350 mile round trip (3 hour) commute starts going through gas, tires, oil, etc. faster than you would expect. Before committing to it I would sit down and really crunch the numbers so you know what to expect.
#42
I am in the almost exact same scenario. I’m also looking at XJT. I’m still reading and trying to research the 121 lifestyle. IAH is about a 3.5hr. drive for me. I imagine this would get old driving every week. It seems I read mostly about 4 day trips. Is there anyway to lump more days together to only have to commute 2-3 times a month vs. 4?
#43
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Sep 2005
Posts: 1,735
It’s a 1:50 - 2 hr flight for me, with 9 -13 flights a day on 5 different airlines. (depending on the time of year). I also have 2-3 flights a day on my own airline. Being able to reserve the Jumpseat a few days early makes a big difference. Commuting is horrible, but I refuse to move myself or family to any of our bases, since I don’t want to live in any of those cities. I don’t think there’s such thing as a good commute, just some are better than others.
#44
On Reserve
Joined APC: May 2018
Posts: 11
I’m in one of the odd situations where commuting works out very well. I live in a city with direct hourly shuttle service to my base on 2-3 different airlines. My airline has a commuter policy that protects me as long as I have two options that get me to work and gives me positive space on the second attempt. In the event weather/delays I’m a 4ish hour drive from base. All that combined with the occasional trip that ends in a deadhead (which you can swap for a direct flight home/get released and commute on your own direct) and it’s a very good QOL for a lineholder. I acknowledge that such an arrangement is rare but “good commutes” like this might exist in some city pairs.
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