[revvy_bhala]

I don't feel the measures taken by me are significant but would like to share my bit. I stay near CV raman Nagar, Bangalore.

1. Unfortunately, no WFH for me YET (it's in pipeline), so I stay 6kms from office. Also, current office requires me to be at work by 8am so I leave home at 7.30 on bike and RAT RUNNING mentioned by smartcat is what I do. I strictly follow no honking and moderate speed.
2. For trips to CBD or Majestic, metro to the rescue. Other places, an auto to cover short distance and a cab for longer ones.

I wish that our public transport becomes a very effective way for our daily commute.

Cheers!

[TNiranjanT]

I live in London, and don't own a car because
a) I'm not rich - and value my money
b) I'm not stupid - average IQ I'd say
c) I care for the environment - this is not just in transportation but also other works of life, wife and I do our best with our limited knowledge to reduce our carbon foot print
d) London traffic - nuff said
e) Did I say the costs are prohibitive?
f) Public transport is way way cheaper!

That said - I do have membership to car clubs such as Zipcar which I can find 5 minutes away from my house. Also, right now my client is based near Milton Keynes (about an hour drive away) so I drive because it is the only sensible way to get there. I confess, I made this choice after a lot of internal debate and you might find it a bit hypocritical of me after everything I said above

Coming back to the topic - the point I'm trying to make is, where you live impacts your choice of mobility. Driving in London, especially central London is a foolhardy venture. In fact the city authorities make it harder for you to do so.

That said - going back 10 years ago when I was working in India. I was probably the only person in an office of 200 people, who cycled to work. I had the option to ride but I made it a point to cycle the 6 km to work every day. I'm not trying to paint myself to be a saint but I think we can all make a small difference as long as obviously its safe, reasonable, economical and is a sensible use of your time.

*drops the mike and walks away....

[RoadSurfer]

I have been working in Bangalore for last 8 years. For almost 6 years I used office cab simply because it would start at 6.45am from my place and reach office in Whitefield by 7.15am. So 30mins for 12kms in morning and 40mins for way back is like a dream in Bangalore. But then slowly the travel time started increasing. Also once I learnt that the metro extension work will start in and around Whitefield, I started to look for own apartment near to office. Me and wife visited a ready to move flat on our anniversary and booked it in 3 hrs flat. Now I mostly walk to office and it takes 20mins. Our son's school is just a km away.

Oscar Wilde — 'Life is not complex. We are complex. Life is simple, and the simple thing is the right thing.'

[Honda Monk]

I endured the 2 years of Del-Ggn-Del route, 6 days a week and that too when metro work was on going on MG road and the notorious del-gurgaon toll used to be like a parking lot from 7 to 11 in morning.
So when I opened my own venture I selected offices within 3 km range from my home.

[Sheel]

My daughter's school is at 8:45 am, if I am on that time or a bit late, it is chaos because a renowned school is on way and a lot of coaching institutes timing ends/starts at 9:00 am, so I try to drop her off at 8:30 am.

If some day that does not work, I prefer taking a longer route. At almost all places where it is crowded, I prefer to ride and if I am taking out the car, prefer taking a longer but less congested route, try to park way away from crowd/jams.

[SHANKY11]

When I started working 10 years back, the daily commute was short- 20 kms or so from home to office and traffic was not such a big menace in Delhi- NCR. Hence, it took me 30-45 mins each side. Although my average daily driving was 75-100 kms or so easily due to travelling for meetings etc. Still, driving was really enjoyable back then. Last year, we decided to move our office to Gurgaon, which is the corporate hub of NCR and where majority of our clients are based. I was clear since day 1 that I will move my house also to Gurgaon and was fortunate enough to find a good place 1 km away from the office. For the 2 months gap of shifting home (office got shifted earlier than anticipated), I used to time my commute in such a way that either I start from home by 7:30 in the morning or I leave after 11. Similarly, while coming back, the idea was to start off before 5 PM or else wait till 9 PM.

Post shifting and settling down, I am very comfortable being so close to the office. I started the habit of walking to the office or taking an uber instead of taking my own car because parking is a major issue here and the total driving time between destinations is lesser than the time taken to park and unpark at the basements of major business complexes. After sometime, I devised a new formula. A pre-owned innova was purchased and a driver was hired. This became the daily beater car for transporting me. It also does various other tasks for the needs of the company. I was lucky to find a great driver also, who takes care of the car properly and drives well also- Neither too timid, nor rash. For the longest time in my mid 20s, I was dead set against hiring a driver since I love driving too much. But as they say, with age comes wisdom and practicality took over. No points for guessing how happy I am with my daily routine now. The cars I drive stay parked safely in my apartment's basement and are taken out only on late evenings and weekends.

After almost 2 years since relocating, I have realized that I am able to find time for myself, I can eat better now and devote more time towards fitness activities. At the same time, my day at the office is much more productive since I am always in a cheerful mood. No more brain frying over idiots on the road. We have recently directed HR to make it a policy which gives preference to candidates who stay nearby or else incentivize them to relocate.

[locusjag]

I met up with a relative of mine who has settled in Hosur inside a gated residential community. He has started a software company. He walks 30 steps from home and gets to work.

You can't touch this, in MC Hammer's words.

Here's a sombre ode to all of us who live out our horrors, commuting to and from work.

[avisidhu]

Reading this post two big ironies become apparent. One is that the bigger the city (direct correlation to traffic mess in case of India), the smaller is the cocoon in which everyone has to ensconce themselves. Anyway there isn't much to do in most cities, but you're eventually restricted to a tiny radius and would seldom venture out. Beyond a certain age, this is not such a scary prospect.

Another irony is that technology was supposed to free us from such burdens. 15-20 years, everyone used to predict that people will move back to their hometowns and work from homes. The exact opposite happened, with tech centers like Bangalore and Bay area now a nightmare to commute.

I want to understand something: those that move very close to their office, do you keep a contingency plan in mind? After all, with kids in school and missus working too, one can't keep moving here and there, even within a city!

[blackwasp]

Originally Posted by GTO

Even within the Team-BHP office, Aditya & ChiragM live 5 minutes away. Blackwasp has a long commute, but he works from home on alternate days (comes to office just thrice a week).

Not just the time saved in commute, those working from home also save the planet.

Switching to flexible working, that allows employees to work from closer to home and cut commute time, may reduce the levels of carbon dioxide emissions by 214 million tonnes per year by 2030, a new study has revealed.

Source: TOI

[LOL_FWD]

Moved to Bangalore approx 4 years back. I arrived two weeks early to my joining date at my first job to figure out the "Scene" here.

Few observations:
1. Transport - BMTC was too slow and inconvenient. Most of the Auto Rickshaw's take the longest route possible and charge "Wonnedhaaf, Saar!". Cabs would be expensive as my company does not provide that facility and i was just starting off with my career.
2. Traffic - I HATE traffic. Bangalore traffic puts other cities to shame. I still feel it sets the benchmark for most cities.
3. Time - Most precious commodity. I get distracted very easily, so being productive while commuting was not gonna happen.

What i did:
1. Location - I chose Frazer Town/Cooke Town. Its close to the Outer Ring Road, MG Road, Indiranagar and Kammanahalli at ~15mins travel time when there's no traffic.
2. Accomodation - Found a 1BHK apartment within 10 mins walking distance from work in Cooke Town. The streets are clean with good footpath and it's a peaceful residential area. Even though the price is 2X of a regular 2BHK in Bangalore in a prime locality, it was worth is as it would save me the transportation cost and loads of time. Plus walking to and fro from work gives an extra health benefit
3. Transport - Even though i love to drive i decided not a buy a car or get the spare Swift P back home to Bangalore. The city is plagued with squids and rogue taxi/rickshaw drivers who will not think twice to put a dent/scratch on your prized possession. For regular use i have a Honda Aviator and i use OLA/Uber for commutes within the city. I rent cars from Zoomcar/Drivezy/Avis for the weekend getaways if required.

Been at this since almost 4 years now and i'm really happy with my decision. I reach work with a fresh mind everyday and don't have to worry about the parking space, EMIs, depreciation, servicing charges and extra moolah for the dents and scratches on the new car if i had bought one.

Hopefully will buy one soon in the coming years when the '18 Octy vRS start hitting the pre-owned market.

Cheers!