How lengthy is your commute?

[RNOTODAY]

How far do you travel for work?

I accepted a position in another state, its 100miles one way...3 days per week...Am I crazy??? lol Salary, opportunity and benefits far outweigh what I can get locally, or I would have never considered it......

So, how lengthy is YOUR commute?

[GilaRRT]

Currently, I am looking at about 54 miles. This can take 45 mintes to over an hour depending on traffic. Next month, I am looking at approx 110 miles, or just over two hours depending on traffic. However, I do 24-48 hour shifts.

[Luv2BAnurse]

If I had taken a position that far away, I would be looking into moving closer. I walk to work...it takes me about 3 steps from my bed to my desk. Working at home is wonderful. I do PRN at the local hospital, it takes me ten minutes to get there. I sure hope you get plenty of sleep. If you plan to work nights and are not used to them...be extra extra careful when driving.

[Wendy_RN]

Personally, I would not commute that far. I have a 15 minute commute and would love it if it were even less. I don't want to have to get out of the bed any earlier or get home any later. The shifts are long enough and I can't see adding addition time for travel. My last job was at least an hour commute each way and I absolutely hated it. I made a little bit more money, but by the time my gas, personal time, and wear on my car was figured in, it simply was not worth it.

[santhony44, MSN, RN, NP]

Currently, my commute is approximately an hour, one way. I live in West Texas and have Interstate/four lane highway all the way. Light traffic. It gets tiring, and it's expensive. I've done longer; I did a 90-mile commute, one way, for six months. I loved the job, it's one of the best I've ever had, but I left it for an opportunity 15 miles from home. I left that job for this one because I was miserable in it.

The bottom line is, it's different for everyone. Some people find 15 miles/15 minutes too much. Some can do a hour and a half one way with no problem. At some point, the scales tip one way or the other. Work conditions, co-workers, benefits, pay, and so forth weigh against wear and tear on your car and yourself, how much sleep and rest you're getting, your personal tolerance for driving, your home and family life, your social life, and so forth, and something comes out on top.

So. Make a trial run or two, and see how you like it. See if there are places to stop on the way if you get sleepy, particularly on your way home. Consider your other options. Can you rent a small inexpensive apartment near the job; would that work for you, your family, your finances? Would the employer consider allowing you to stay in an empty patient or on-call room? Could you purchase a used camper to park nearby to stay in while you're working? Have you asked around to see if anyone has a friend or relative who has a room or mother-in-law apartment they'd consider renting to you? Is there anyone else in your area working at that facility, or in the same town? (Carpooling)

There may be possibilities other than driving 100 miles twice a day three days a week.

[Rebekah24]

I live with my husband 140 miles/2 hours from work mostly interstate. Our goal is to eventually move to near where I am working when he can find a job close that he likes.

Luckily, my mother lives halfway in between so I stay with her when I am working and requested my 3 together so that I can save on gas and have days off together to spend with my husband. Even staying with my mother I have about an hour commute. I like it most days, it gives me time to wake up and get ready for my day and I use the drive to call family and friends that I may not have time to talk to otherwise. I also love music so I bring my ipod and plug it into my stero, energizing music for the drive in, easier more relaxing music for the way home :nuke:. My motto is "I can do anything for a year." Try it out, you may love it, but if you hate it worst case scenario is you'll get another job. Good luck!

[hpcat]

I'm a nursing student right now, but my day job is almost 100 miles round trip. One of the benefits of nursing is I can work much closer to home. I won't miss another 4 hour trip home in a snowstorm!

[angelwingsamy]

i have just accepted a job about 10 minutes away. i dont start until may 19th but im pretty excited. i didnt want a long commute. i love everything about the job so far and the commute is a huge plus.

[SteveNNP, MSN, NP]

My current commute is 110 miles round trip into NYC. It takes me an hour and fifteen to get to work, 50 minutes home. I do get a little sleepy on the way home, but I sometimes stop and run into Starbucks for a quick coffee, and that usually wakes me up.

I work mainly 4-shift weekends, which minimizes my drive time and fatigue. Sometimes I take the train into the city, which is longer, but at least I can sleep.

I am in the process of looking into an apartment in Manhattan, where I'll probably end up paying $1200-$1600 a month for rent. I am currently spending between $800-$1100 a month on gas, tolls, parking and oil changes every 3k miles (avg q 2 months)

While living in the city would be more costly, I would gain back 8 hours/wk of my life, get to experience city life, and be able to work more OT due to my closer location.

[floatRN]

Thats a long commute. Would you be able to consider moving closer if you really like the job?? I think I'd fall asleep driving that far, especially after a 12 hr shift. My current commute is 20 minutes and even that seems too long when I'm exhausted after a rough day. Most days its not bad though. At a previous job, I had a fifty minute commute and only lasted a few months before I started looking for an apartment closer to work. Also consider the rising price of gas and wear and tear on your car. Good luck on your decision!

[K98]

66 mile round trip. When my current contract is up, I'll be finding a position a little (ok, a lot) closer to my home.

[trmr]

about 5 blocks or 2 minutes. Its wonderful. Of course, not so wonderful when everyone else lives furthur away, and there is a big bad snow. Guess who they call when no one else can make it???? you got it!

[2bTraumaRN2008]

One hour, 50 miles one way. I do not mind the drive. It's literally one long wide open country road with no traffic lights or traffic for about 40 miles and the last 10 miles take me directly to the hospital. I only encounter 3 back to back traffic lights right before getting the the hospital driveway. It's just lovely, I listen to my sirius , and of course smoke tons of cigarettes because we are a smoke-free facility, which really SUCKS!!!

I will take this any day over being in any type of surburban area again. I love having the road to myself and no neighbors looking in my windows, LOL.