Commuting from Edin to UoG

Good afternoon guys, I hope results day went well for all the English people I'm makin this post just to basically gather personal experiences from people who commuted to uni and how it's worked out for them.

I'll be studying at the University of Glasgow this September and currently reside in Edinburgh and will stay at home with family. Commuting will take me approx. 2 hours each morning and then 2 hours back at the end of the day, so 4 total. I really don't mind this as I love traveling and could use this time to revise or crochet + it'll be free as buses are free for under 22y.o.s in Scotland.

I've read a few posts about commuting to different cities for uni already and most people's concern is that their social life will crumble, but tbh it's not that big of a deal to me. My closest friends are people I've met in high school and mainly talked to there, and we'd go out to the movies or hang out maybe only once every few weekends. I don't know how much interacting with people changes at uni but I imagine that friend groups like this will exist there as well so overall I'm not worried about social life (also I don't drink so idm if I miss out on going out to party or whatever).

So, to any past or present commuters reading this: how'd it work out? Are you able to manage the commuting on top of uni workload + maintaining friendships? Are you able to effectively map out your travel schedule and plan ahead for any unforeseen circumstances that could affect you during the journey? I'd really appreciate any advice that you have to offer me! Thank you in advance. ^^

You'll be about hour & ten minutes by coach from St Andrews bus station to Buchanan Street station then you have to get to the university from there. Obviously you have to add commuting time to get to bus station in the morning. Depends on what part of Edinburgh you going from.


Trains are about 45/50 to Glasgow Queen Street from Waverley station.
Same applies to above for getting to the university from station etc.

I think it takes about 10 minutes or so by bus at Buchanan Street to Glasgow university.


I would recommend traveling by coach as far cheaper and free if you have a under 22 bus pass.
Trains are almost double the price for traveling before 9.15am . Remember to allow extra time for any travel issues - diversions, road works/ closures, accidents on the M8 and weather conditions in the winter months.


I studied in Edinburgh at Napier university ( 4 years ago since I qualified) but I wouldn't travel to and from Glasgow south side each other day for when I was on very early morning placement starting time as it would have added another two hours plus each way ( bus into Queen Street, then train to Edinburgh, then catch a bus to the royal infirmary and also allowing time to get changed into uniform) , also had to get to university five days a week for about 8.30am so I decided to flat share with someone in Edinburgh for three years and just went home when free. I'm back in Glasgow now.

Hi, yeah I was planning to go by coach and aim to arrive for 8:40am or earlier if lectures start at 9am just to make sure I don't be late for any reason like traffic etc.

I'm about 20 minutes from St Andrews bus station which is good. The only real downside to my commuting imo is that it won't give me time to have a job along with studying, but at least it'll allow me to dedicate all my energy into revising (also I'll try looking for places that might need weekend hires or jobs that let you choose your own shifts which will fit me better).

I won't try flat sharing cause the reason I'm doing all this in the first place is to stay with my family until I graduate as they're what matters most to me.

Thanks for the reply!