Commuting

[Gerrard]

I cycle the two miles to work. The only minor issue I have is that I don't use the cycle pavement in the morning due to the amount of idiotic school kids going the other way who don't look where they're going!

[Biscuit]

I'm usually only 2 miles from work, but i travel around so much and work for long periods in different cities, i get the joy of experiencing the commute around the world. Milan was the most interesting one, they really do drive like psychos!

I think Hugh Dennis' impression he did on mock the week is the best impression of someone on the Underground, cant find a video unfortunately.

What i take from the whole thing is that people are bastard coated bastards with a creamy bitter bastard filling.

[jim]

As of right now, it's a 15 minute walk.

Shortly, that will become a 10 minute walk, a 45 minute train journey, then a 45 minute walk. I'm looking forward to that, I really am.

[Disturbedguy]

I get on my bike, take it easy to Hyde Road, then try to maintain enough momentum over the first mile to hit 30mph at the bottom of the (very gentle) hill.

Managed it once so far, and got above 29 twice. Mostly the traffic lights catch me half way down and kill my momentum

Which end of hyde road? Denton or Manchester?

[scaryjim]

In the middle but heading towards Manchester (I work at the Uni). It's a lovely gentle downward slope that lets you build up speed gradually (unless the traffic lights at Pottery Lane stop you, that is).

[Moby-Dick]

How do you behave when you commute ?

I speed walk to my station , overtaking everyone else who is walking in front of me and also heading to the station. My oystercard is in my hand even ebfore I reach the station. I then do a split second overtaking to make sure I get through the barriers before the next guy who is about to. As I am passing through the barriers, I do a U dance as I gracefully go through!

On the platform, I have already memorized
- which carriage normally has empty seats
- where does this carriage stop
- at which part of the platform should I stand at so that the doors for this carriage open up in front of me and I am the first one to get on the carriage

At anytime, I like peace and quiet on my commute. I eye any chicks on the carriage. Then, I sleep Business-class style : Legs stretched across the carriage and my upper body at a 45 degrees comfort position.

If there's anyone who is playing their music loudly ( mostly it's Africans / British Africans / East Europeans ), I give them a dirty I WILL RIP YOU APART look and I keep staring at them until they reduce their music volume. If they don't, I get my phone out, go sit next to them and play the Modern Warfare 2 Spec Ops theme or the Etihad Airways boarding theme , just so I can pis them off. Obese people are also uncomfortable to sit next to. You feel squashed and unable to move your arms.

When getting off at my destination station, again, I position myself in front of the door that will be nearest to the exit. If I am on a carriage which is far away from the exit, I jump out of the carriage like Batman and then run for the exit zooming past everyone!

If you have to catch a 2nd connecting train and your 1st train has just arrived, indicate with your hands ( like the signal guy on a aircraft carrier ) to people who crowd up near the doors : CLEAR out of the way. I need to GO straight.

While walking to work, I like to avoid these types of slow coaches :
- Old ladies
- Tall men ( they walk like Peter Crouch .. takes big strides but slowly )
- Fat men/women
- Ladies wearing heels

Only ladies who wear boots seem to be good at this. They take long strides and walk fast as well!

If someone is trying to overtake you, don't let them pass you.They will get in front of you and slow you down.

Timing is everything

tl:dr - you are quite selfish ?

[OilSheikh]

tl:dr - you are quite selfish ?

Going to work is like going to war!

[peterb]

I set off early, with a bag on wheels (castor) and walk at a leisurely pace in the centre of the pavement (sidewalk for those across the pond).

I usually manage to get the case to trip up at least one person trying to speed walk past me (castors are good for this), with luck, they will bring down a couple more.

I arrive at the station about 2 minutes ahead of the train before the one I want to catch, then wait until the train is pulling into the station, before approaching the barrier with the case in front of me. That usually triggers the barrier to close on the case until a member of the station staff releases it, just as the doors on the train have closed.

When my train arrives, I seek out standing passengers with earphones that are so loud that you can hear the tinny beat. At a suitable stop, I wait until the doors are about to open, then, whipping out a pair of small wire cutters, I snip the cable, and then jump off the train as the doors are closing before they realise what has happened.

Crossing over to the other platform, I catch the train back home, where I start my day's work using my high speed broadband connection.

I enjoy commuting.

[Tumble]

As of right now, it's a 15 minute walk.

Shortly, that will become a 10 minute walk, a 45 minute train journey, then a 45 minute walk. I'm looking forward to that, I really am.

You'll especially love it when it rains

[IBM]

Welllll, when I was living in London I'd power walk the 20 mins to the station (which, unCrouchlike, at 6'3" made me pretty much the fastest thing on the street) weaving my way around slower pedestrians and making full use of pavements and roads. Certainly position myself at the place where the doors open on the tube, but given the station (Acton Town) not a lot of chance of a seat. Always try to be first off, and intelligently choose the correct gate to exit the station.

Now? Well now I stroll leisurely from my front door and across the drive, admiring the stunning blue skies and the way the palm tree fronds sway gently in the beautifully fragrant breeze. I slide across the supple leather seats of my car, roll down the windows, turn up the music, and make the engine work for its money on the ten minute drive to my office. Screw London.

[OilSheikh]

Welllll, when I was living in London I'd power walk the 20 mins to the station (which, unCrouchlike, at 6'3" made me pretty much the fastest thing on the street) weaving my way around slower pedestrians

I call that the Assassin walk. How, Altair walks in the E3 trailer of Assassins Creed 1, swerving his body around everyone to get through.

[OilSheikh]

End of the year, and I must say nothing has changed!

These days I get on the tube at 7 am and even at 7, you will find some idiots blasting their music ? Why, why at so early in the morning???
Empty seats are like goldmines. When a train pulls in, I can see people's eyes literally light up when they spot empty seats and it's even funnier when two people rush for the same seat and bounce off each other and one manages to get the seat. Does the winner apologize ? Hell, no, it's mannerless London afterall!
But, if I do manage to get a seat early morning, I take my half an hour nap on the train and that really makes me feel all refreshed up for work.

I no longer bother telling people Excuse me and wait for them to move out of my way, for example, when getting off the train and they are blocking the doors inside the carriage or on the platform. I am tired of saying it over and over , over the years. I just lightly push people out of the way. No one uses their common sense anymore.

Single carriage caterpillar trains like the new Hammersmith & City or the Metropolitan are great if you get on the back and you want to make your way to the front. Obvioucly, as there's no separate carriages, you can hear any noisemakers several miles away.

[stilkun]

I hope it doesn't become something like this in the video, find it quite similar getting off Embankment station commuting back home.

[Dooms]

Jump on Bicycle, cycle 10.2 miles as fast as I can while dodging dog walkers and children... repeat after work.

[ik9000]

the tube is definitely getting worse. And those new single tubes are a pain. Carriages are a blessing. Segregation is good. I don' want to hear the football fans all the length of the train. FFS TFL use your brain.

[Saracen]

Someone on HEXUS once called me a bit of a grouch. Thinking about it, it was probably me that said it.

But if anyone thinks I'm grumpy on here, you don't want to see me commuting, when I used to commute into London. Put it this way, the Grim Reaper himself would take one look at my snarl and get the hell out of my way.

I stopped commuting (and I don't mean my current commute to the home office) about the time I decided the perfect commuter accessory was a flame-thrower. I am not a happy commuter.