It's like you're trying to annoy me

July 29, 7:46 AMDC Transportation ExaminerKatherine M. Hill

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This is 83 South on a weekday. NOT my commute.
Katherine M. Hill

Oh, if only it were so easy for all of us to change our schedules to miss rush hour, work from home, rely on public transportation, and carpool!

Because even your trusted DC Transportation Examiner can not fulfill any of those desired commuting goals. (I should be back on the long bus commute next month.)

Regrettably, a lot of people think this is possible. And for some, it is. (See The Washington Post's mildly interesting Sunday feature.) But for me, and most of DC, it's not. We suffer the beltway. I suffer 270: Today there was not only an accident a few miles from my exit, but an accident on my detour, so instead of arriving 20 minutes early (a rarity!) I was 40 minutes late.

Productivity 501 is the latest to strike my ire, with an otherwise helpful list of 17 Things You Should Stop Doing. It seems unrealistic to expect that we enjoy sitting in traffic, twiddling our thumbs and suffering through rush hour radio. I present to you No. 9, 10, and 15:

9. Commuting to College — Take your classes online. Spend your commute time studying instead of driving.

10. Commuting Through Heavy Traffic — Talk to your boss about working from home–even for just a few days a week. Shift your schedule to miss rush hour.

15. Wasting Time in the Car — Subscribe to podcasts and get a connector for your MP3 player in your car. Spend your time learning instead of just sitting there driving.

I can see the point to No. 9, but I want to argue it anyway. My college offered a limited number of online classes, and it offered the same quality, content, and options as other University of Maryland schools. After my freshman year, and most sophomore level courses, the general education courses are done. Post-core level, the major specific classes are unavailable. At no point was a course I needed offered, which included general education courses, since I tested out of the English and technology courses primarily offered. I would have loved to work on a science or history course on my own, but it simply wasn't possible. It's worth noting that when I lived off-campus I was within walking distance and could take the bus from my apartment to campus, so I definitely wasn't driving. And if I wasn't riding my bike, I was probably studying. (I still know where the curbs are too high or two low, where the branches have probably fallen, where the sidewalks are cracked, etc.)

As for No. 10 and 15, I'm annoyed. My time in the car is my time, and I think it's irritating that I'm supposed to pack more in my brain than I already have. Plus, I am that person listening to podcasts in the car. I listen to financial podcasts, This American Life, and Savage Lovecast when I feel too worn out to listen to music.

As for carpooling, I can't seem to line up my average doe hours with anyone I work with, anyone I commuting to Metro, or anyone working in the area I'm in. Working from home is generally frowned upon (though my supervisor has never said so, so big ups to him, for letting me work from home when I need to!), and if anyone is going to line up and behave, it had better be me. I don't even mind coming in five days a week. I like the people I work with, I enjoy the environment, I love that if I don't pack my lunch, there is a superb taco joint less than a mile away, and I know that I have a better opportunity to remained focus. (There's no remote begging me to turn on the TV and watch Maury.)

Moreover, what about those of us who don't work in a typical office and can't telecommute? Yes, it would be better for the roads, and our mental health, but sometimes we can't and it would be nicer if those dispensing advice (less Productivity 501 and more Other People) would recognize that. 

I need my quiet time. I don't enjoy that I work more than 30 miles from home, but I've realized that the time it takes to get home allows me to unwind, and the time it takes to get to the office allows the rest of me to "wake up" so I can form coherent sentences. If I lived nearby, I'd probably get up just as early and sit around, waiting for my mouth to catch up to my brain. Unfortunately, until I find that bus pass, this quiet time will be in my car instead of the commuter bus.

Finally, wouldn't it be better to combine these points and allow a person to learn something new on public transportation? Wouldn't that also remove clutter the roads and open up our time to accomplish something?