What is your commute time?

I thought this article about the cost of commuting was very interesting.

It may cost your life. We often think of that commute to work as a waste of time sitting in the car and spending a fortune on gas, but there is a hidden cost. There was a recent piece on Forbes about how unhealthy our commutes really are and what some of the consequences are.

The article goes on to mention hidden consequences such as air pollution, accidents, and lifestyle choices.

Ross and I were talking about this last night. He is working at Starbucks in the Minneapolis airport. Since he has to park in employee parking and take a shuttle bus to the terminal and go through security, he has to leave an hour earlier then he would if he was working for the neighborhood Caribou.

For Ross, a confirmed night owl, the commute issue is not the monetary cost of gas and wear and tear on the car, but it is all about the hour of sleep he misses.

I used to have a 50 minute commute to and from work (on a good day). What made it bearable was being able to work from home 1 day a week and the flexibility to alter my work time to avoid the heaviest traffic times. When I started my search for a new position, a short commute was one of the top 3 things I considered when looking at job offers. Like Ross, I resented the time spent commuting.

Life is full of compromises. The key is to really look at the trade offs you are making to be sure they are worth the risks.