He commutes to work 7 hours a day...and back...daily

[LucharesuFan619 0]

http://articles.news.aol.com/news/article....S00010000000001

 

370-Mile Drive Wins Longest Commute Contest

Studies Show Americans Travel Longer, Farther Than Ever to Work

 

By Ellen Wulfhorst, Reuters

 

NEW YORK (April 20) - Dave Givens drives 370 miles to work and back every day and considers his seven-hour commute the best answer to balancing his work with his personal life.

 

The winner of a nationwide contest to find the commuter with the longest trek, Givens is one of millions of people who are commuting longer and farther than ever before.

 

Studies show Americans spend more time than ever commuting and for a growing number, getting to work takes more than an hour. In the most recent U.S. Census Bureau study, 2.8 million people have so-called extreme commutes, topping 90 minutes.

 

Givens, a 46-year-old electrical engineer, has an extreme commute between home in Mariposa, Calif., and his job in San Jose. He leaves home before dawn and returns after dark.

 

His trip landed him first place among almost 3,000 entries in the search for America's longest commute, sponsored by automotive services provider Midas Inc. and announced last week. But as harrowing or tedious as Givens' trip may sound, he says it's the way to keep the home and job he loves.

 

"I have the balance right now," Givens told Reuters. "I could do similar jobs closer, but not with the work reward and job satisfaction I have. And I could live closer, but I wouldn't have the lifestyle that I desire.

 

"To me, this is not that long a commute," he added. "It's just something I do to go to work."

 

Longer commutes frequently involve people who live in one suburb and work in another, said Alan Pisarski, author of "Commuting in America."

 

Such a pattern tends to begin with companies moving out of a city to a suburb, enticing workers to move to less-expensive outer suburbs, he told Reuters. "People see this as an opportunity to go farther away," he said.

 

Such a move may provide more affordable housing or better schools. Even high fuel costs -- Givens spends about $185 a week on gasoline -- can pay off in a better quality of life, Pisarski said.

 

Doreen DeJesus rides a bus from her home in Tobyhanna, Pa., across New Jersey to her job in Manhattan.

 

The payoff is a house in the country, she said.

 

"It's a matter of getting away from the hustle and bustle of the city," said DeJesus, 37. "It's not an easy thing, but most days it's really worth it.

 

"My boss thinks I'm nuts," she added.

 

Studies show 7.6 percent of U.S. commuters traveled more than an hour to work in 2004, the most recent data available, up from 6 percent in 1990. The average one-way commute grew by 13 percent to 25.5 minutes between 1990 and 2000.

 

In 1990, only in New York state did more than 10 percent of workers spend more than an hour to get to work, Pisarski said. Now that situation can be found in New Jersey, Maryland, Illinois and California as well, he said.

 

Added to long commutes is increased congestion, according to the Texas Transportation Institute's 2005 Urban Mobility Report. Commuters typically spent 47 hours a year in traffic jams, up from 40 hours a decade earlier, the study showed.

 

"That's the time wasted above and beyond just being able to make the trip," said David Schrank, co-author of the report.

 

But the trips can be worthwhile, said Kay Phillips who works in Chapel Hill, N.C., 164 miles from her home in Granite Falls.

 

"I really love what I do, so I don't mind," she said.

 

While Givens spends much of his commute listening to the radio, especially traffic reports, Philips, 52, uses her five-hour commute in her own way -- she prays.

 

"I say a long prayer starting out every morning for everybody, and it gives you quite a bit of time to do that," she said.

 

04/20/06 16:08 ET

[bob_barron 0]

Fluff

[Guest NYankees]

What a fucking moron. Guess spends his whole entire day awake driving his car and working. Fuck that.

[EricMM 0]

gas crisis much?

[haws bah gawd 0]

Why not move closer to work? Guy probably drives that far just for attention.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

Double post...deleted this one.

[Guest Princess Leena]

So, if he works roughly 8 hours a day... and drives 14 hours a day...

 

Yeah, lock this quack up in some mental institute before he kills someone on the road.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

I'm guessing he doesn't work a full shift every day, because:

 

7 hours X twice a day

+

8 hour work day

=

22 hours a day

 

So, does he only sleep two hours a day or what?

 

In retrospect, that article was really short on details. I assume he's making a ton of money to justify that drive, and I doubt he works a full five days a week. Maybe he only goes in two or three times a week, and works out of his home the rest of the week, or something.

[Guest Princess Leena]

Actually, Maricopa to San Jose isn't that far... it's probably only a 3 1/2 hour drive. Adding up to 7 hours a day.

 

Either way, lock him up.

[Art Sandusky 0]

This is actually quite current and relevant. We're reaching the farthest limits of the current societal setup, before the energy crisis changes everything.

[EricMM 0]

If he's willing to sacrifice so much of his time, he'll spend anything on gas as well.

 

This is why the market isn't strong enough.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

Oh, OK...3.5 hours one way is a little more believable (though still too damn long as far as I'm concerned). It seemed like they were saying his one way trip was 7 hours, probably to sensationalize it a bit more.

 

But yeah...I know unleaded regular gas in some parts of California is up to four bucks a gallon...who the hell would want to spend that much driving to work in one day?

[SuperJerk 0]

"I have the balance right now," Givens told Reuters. "I could do similar jobs closer, but not with the work reward and job satisfaction I have. And I could live closer, but I wouldn't have the lifestyle that I desire.

He's secretly fucking some woman he works with. There's no other rational explanation for this.

[MrRant 0]

Even then..

[haws bah gawd 0]

Y2Jerk Apr 21 2006, 01:53 PM Post #13

 

QUOTE

 

"I have the balance right now," Givens told Reuters. "I could do similar jobs closer, but not with the work reward and job satisfaction I have. And I could live closer, but I wouldn't have the lifestyle that I desire.

 

 

He's secretly fucking some woman he works with. There's no other rational explanation for this.

 

Thats got to be the best pussy known to man to be worth the 7 hour drive everyday.

[Sideburnious 0]

Whats the point in living in a nice area if you're never there to enjoy it.

[Guest Princess Leena]

True.

 

I've actually known someone almost as crazy as this. She'd drive from near Syracuse to Buffalo, which is at least 150 miles. She'd only work like 2-3 days a week, though, as a nurse... and would spend time with the rest of her family down here.

[Guest NYankees]

The article states that the guy spends $180 a week on gas.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

I live 9 minutes (7.4 miles) from work if I dont hit any lights, but if I hit one set I usually hit all 3 and it ramps my time up to 13 minutes, but I usually time leaving to not hit the lights.

[EricMM 0]

I slightly hate you.

 

3 miles, 15 minutes.

 

I work off of US Rt 1 as it passes through College Park.

 

oy

[2GOLD 0]

True.

 

I've actually known someone almost as crazy as this. She'd drive from near Syracuse to Buffalo, which is at least 150 miles. She'd only work like 2-3 days a week, though, as a nurse... and would spend time with the rest of her family down here.

 

This isn't very shocking. Delaware has lots of doctors who live here and then drive to John Hopkins and Baltimore and places like that.

[Paul Stanley 0]

My commute is 1hr - 1 hr 1/2 one-way

[BruiserKC 0]

My wife's uncle used to make a 90-minute commute each way to work...and I used to think he was outside his mind. This guy from California clearly tops that.

[Guest Princess Leena]

My previous job was about 2 minute drive away.

 

This one is about 5 minutes. Blah.

[Art Sandusky 0]

Wow, I think it's a bitch when my current trip takes 40 minutes if traffic's present.

[NoCalMike 0]

This new chick at work drives from Modesto to Sacramento everyday and back, however she just got the job and is looking for residence here in Sac.

[tekcop 0]

I drive about 11 miles one way. It takes me a little less than 15 minutes to get there.

[Guest]

It takes my dad an hour to get to work, about 2 and a half to get home.

 

Southern California Traffic.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

Yeah, my commute is only about 15 minutes right now, but soon to be more like five minutes when we move next month. Of course, that's just my drive to the office...I have a sales job, so I'm on the road quite a bit during the day. At least work pays for most of my gas expenses.

[treble 0]

If not for gas prices and whatnot, I'd probably like to have a semi-long commute. Where I used to work, it was about a 2 minute walk, cutting through parking lots and stuff. Now, it probably takes about 5 to 10 minutes depending on traffic, lights, and whether or not I hit a train.

 

I'd just like some time to listen to the radio, or whatever, like half an hour or so, nothing too long.