My Week as a Downtown Commuter

Time is my most valuable commodity. Which would you prefer, at the end of the day or year or later: a few more dollars or a few more minutes? If someone has a half hour drive to work each day, that means at least an hour a day in the car. So commuting takes almost an entire day each month. Each year, this commuter would spend almost two weeks going back and forth to work. And a half hour is a very reasonable commute. That is a great deal of life to spend. That is expensive.

I am very fortunate to live next door to the school at which I teach. My commute is a six-minute walk, even in the worst of weather. However, this past week, I got a taste of a very different routine. I signed up for a seminar being held on Northwestern’s Chicago campus.

I could have driven downtown. That would have taken about an hour in the car each way and then finding and paying for a place to park. My other option was to take public transportation. This would mean I would need to leave about a half hour earlier and give up my flexibility to come and go as I please. However, it would make the ride time usable time. I could read, write, or relax. It was also less expensive. Since I drive all the time, I decided to take the train and bus and see what it was like.

On a normal school day, I get up around 5:30 am and get to school around 7:30. My train left at 6:44, so I needed to get out of the house no later than 6:30. My train ride to the city was the most relaxing part of the commute. Once I arrived at Union Station, I needed to find a CTA bus to take me to campus. That ride took about twenty minutes. I usually arrived in the classroom about twenty minutes before class starts.

Of course there were a few glitches. One day, I exited the train and got turned around. I ended up on the wrong side of Union Station and struggled to find my bus stop. I sometimes had difficulty finding a bus to take me back to Union Station.

Sometimes, I was afraid I was going to miss my bus or train. I was worried I would get on the wrong bus or train. Once, I had a very large (and smelly) man sit next to me. However, as the week progressed, I got accustomed to the routine.

I read on the train; I wrote letters to my children at camp. I wrote this blog posting on the train. It was safer to make phone calls (quietly) on the train. I realized I could actually get tasks done on the train. The work I did on the train gave me more time when I got home. And once the train or bus left and I calmed down, I really began to enjoy the ride. This was especially true on the bus. I was like a tourist, appreciating the great beauty of the city. I people watched. Once the tension of catching the train or bus was gone, it was a far more relaxing trip than any drive downtown.

If I had to commute a long distance, I think I would take the train much of the time. But I am not willing to spend my time that way. A friend once said to me, "You are so lucky to live so close to your job." There is no luck involved. It was a very conscious decision. I know that not everyone can make that choice. I am very grateful that I could.