How far is too far of a commute

Hi everyone,

I study in Sheffield but recently moved back home to my town near Manchester. On average it's a drive of around 1 and 1/2 hours. I like driving but was recently in two crashes in two days (long story) and so now am very nervous, and obviously the drive from Manchester to Sheffield isn't the easiest. Trains are super expensive and I need to stay home due to mental health matters. I'm in my final year so this isn't forever, but I am in 4 days a week. Has anyone a commute of this length or even longer and how did you find it? Was it worth being at home or were you totally exhausted by the end?

Reply 1

ChiefBrody

20

Sorry to hear you are struggling, there are things you can do to mitigate

I commuted Sheffield to Manchester by train for about 14 months. Parking at Dore and using a (weekly or monthly) season ticket made it tolerable - and you could actually use the time for something

During that time I used to stop over in Manchester a fair bit, mostly if I could get cheap accom (ie sub £35 Travelodge / Campanile) but I think the days of hotels approaching train prices are long gone.

FWIW I had a mate who used to kip at the Uni, but I wouldn't fancy that myself

I also commuted to Scunthorpe by car for over 2 years, this only worked because I was able to car share with 2 other folks - so it wasn't crazy expensive on petrol and I got reading / down time 2 out of 3 trips

Personally I find driving commuting more tiresome than train, though TPX service was (still is?) truly awful to Manchester. I also find, knowing it will end makes the worse aspects actually more tolerable

Not sure if that helps . . .

Original post by bellag0ff

Hi everyone,

I study in Sheffield but recently moved back home to my town near Manchester. On average it's a drive of around 1 and 1/2 hours. I like driving but was recently in two crashes in two days (long story) and so now am very nervous, and obviously the drive from Manchester to Sheffield isn't the easiest. Trains are super expensive and I need to stay home due to mental health matters. I'm in my final year so this isn't forever, but I am in 4 days a week. Has anyone a commute of this length or even longer and how did you find it? Was it worth being at home or were you totally exhausted by the end?

Hi,

I am sorry to hear you are struggling with this. Have you spoken to your university about this? They might be able to structure your timetable differently/give you specific advice. This seems like a lot of travel time but it is worth seeing what the uni can do. At first it might be helpful to ask your supervisor (if you have one) or head of school so they can point you in the right direction.

A good routine will be important to keep up with this lifestyle for final year so try stick to waking up and going to sleep at the same time everyday. By joining Facebook groups (there may be one for people who study in Sheffield and live in Manchester) you may find someone who is in a similar situation who you can car share with?

I hope this helps. :smile:

Alia
University of Kent Student Rep

Reply 3

University of Sheffield Students

Official Rep

14

Original post by bellag0ff

Hi everyone,

I study in Sheffield but recently moved back home to my town near Manchester. On average it's a drive of around 1 and 1/2 hours. I like driving but was recently in two crashes in two days (long story) and so now am very nervous, and obviously the drive from Manchester to Sheffield isn't the easiest. Trains are super expensive and I need to stay home due to mental health matters. I'm in my final year so this isn't forever, but I am in 4 days a week. Has anyone a commute of this length or even longer and how did you find it? Was it worth being at home or were you totally exhausted by the end?

Hi,

Sorry to hear you were in two car crashes.
Have you spoken to the university about this, either your personal tutor or the wellbeing service, as they may be able to offer more advice?
You may be able to apply for DSA (disabled student allowance) if you have a mental health condition or other disability which may be able to help cover the cost of trains. I don't know if they would as it is a case by case basis and depends on your exact situation and would also take awhile to apply and have the needs assessment but it could be something to look into.
Could you also consider maybe spending a night (or a couple) a week in Sheffield so then you have less commuting?
As someone else mentioned, you could look at getting trains to places near Sheffield and then transport into the city, sometimes that works out cheaper, you could also look at buses or coaches that might run between Sheffield and Manchester. Even if you only did that for one day, it could give you a little break from driving.

Hope you work something out and it gets better for you,
Lizzie (BSc Maths and Philosophy at the University of Sheffield)

How far is too far of a commute

Quick Reply

Related discussions

Latest

Trending

Trending

Articles for you