Commuting to Victoria
 

Apologies if this has already been answered, I did do a search and couldn't find anything!

We are wishing to move to Vancouver Island some time next year once our SW application has been completed. We would ideally like to move to a quiet area (but not remote) such that I can work in central Victoria and commute each day. Does anyone have any advice on how far out of Victoria you can live whilst still being able to do a max commute of around 1 hour into Victoria each day? For example, would Sooke be a good area to look at?

I know Google etc does have drive times, but I always suspect that they don't take real traffic into account!

If you also have any advice on which areas are particularly good (or bad) around Victoria, I would welcome it. We have a small amount of equity in our UK house, but no where near enough to afford some of the more luxurious houses!

Many thanks

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Have you downloaded Google Earth? Tis good for distances etc.

Dont know about Victoria's commuting times im afriad.

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

I don't think Sooke would be good for a quick commute. It is quite a ways out of town and to get to Victoria you would have to go through some heavy traffic (at least by Victoria standards).

I lived on the Saanich Peninsula which was pretty quiet (at least it was 10 years ago). I used the bus to get downtown - about a 40 minute ride on the direct route or well over an hour on the milk run. Unfortunately there isn't too many choices for transit out there. A decent buses in the morning and a few in the afternoon. Otherwise you visit every street between Sidney and Victoria and if I remember correctly there may be only one bus every hour.

So if you don't live in the city itself, a car may be required. In which case I still think the Saanich Peninsula will be the best choice.

Remember of course that my experience is 10 years out of date ;)

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Hi, we live in the Cowichan Valley which is about a 45 minute drive to Victoria. It is a nice area and is becoming a bedroom community of Victoria. We have friends who commute to both Victoria and Nanaimo from here as we are situated about halfway between the two. Commutable areas to Victoria from the here are Shawnigan Lake, Cobble Hill, Cowichan Bay, Mill Bay and Duncan. My wife is a Realtor and has noticed that the Cowichan Valley is being "found" more and house prices are rising but it is still cheaper to buy here than Victoria. There is a real sense of community here and the schools are good. Hope this is helpful.:)

What work do you do?

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Thanks for that, it's useful to get a feel for what prices are like in areas that are commutable from Victoria. I don't mind traveling by car, although would prefer not to, and up to an hour is OK by me (though less is better).

I currently in the Environmental sector, although being a middle manager means that I may be able to transfer to another job and am not a specialist as such (I just manager them!). I figured that getting into the BC government in Victoria may be a good stepping stone into the wider world as they have similar conditions to where I work now. Ideally I'd like to get into an engineering firm or similar as a project manager at the middle/senior manager level, though I accept that without an engineering degree, I may be pushing it (I have got project manager qualifications and a degree in ecological science plus 5 years senior manager experience).

The big challenge now is working out the process of landing such as houses, cars etc!

Any advice on areas to the south of Victoria would be welcomed.

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Hi again, a couple of links you may find useful. Job bank http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/ and BC Government Jobs http://employment.gov.bc.ca/index.php?rLoad=1

Buying houses is actually an easier process than the UK. As a buyer you only need to work with one Realtor, they can show you any house listed. Once you have put in an offer and it is accepted you have an agreed amount of time to remove subjects eg finance, building inspection. Again the Realtor will be involved setting these up and meeting building inspectors etc. During this time no-one else can gazump you. Once you remove subjects the house is yours. When we bought our first house from putting in the offer to moving in was 3 weeks! Obviously not always this quick but still a lot easier and quicker than the UK.

Buying cars can be cheaper if bought out of Victoria eg Duncan, Nanaimo. It is a lot easier to drive here. Car insurance is expensive here compared to the UK, even when given the appropriate discounts. You will need a letter from your insurer(s) for the last 8 years stating your driver history and continuity of insurance. You will need this for each driver. You can also drive here for 90days but will then need to take a test.

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Thanks for this, it's all useful info.

I have been looking on the BC government web site for a while now, but I can't yet apply as I haven't got the PR status confirmed. My main concern was that there is no point in looking if we couldn't afford to buy a house there (a reasonable house, not a bedsit!). With your info about locations at hand (and the ever interesting MLS), I can start to examine if Victoria is a real option for jobs/house etc. No doubt once the job is sorted, cars etc will be the next major issue!

Thanks again on the advice.

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Hmm... this is a photograph taken in Victoria, looking south. The land you see is the USA. Were you thinking of living on a boat? :p

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Hiya,

For example, would Sooke be a good area to look at?

we were out in Victoria in July (god its seems sooooo long ago :( )

We took a run out to have a look around Sooke and by the time we got there I was convinced I couldnt do that run twice every day !!

The town itself didnt seem to bad, although not as nice as Saanich where we were staying. But the road was very twisty with very few passing oppertunities (but no-one seemed to bother trying to overtake anyway !)

Only problem we found with Saanich area was that if there was a problem on the "Pat Bay Highway" then everything ground to a halt :thumbdown:

Good Luck

Adbru

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Hi Molson

Have been reading with interest your threads regarding a possible move to Vancouver Island, and it would appear that you're very much in a 'chicken & the egg' situation.

I don't want to appear rude or disrespectful, but have you thought about going out on a reccie trip. There's nothing like getting first hand experience of the island and where everything is in relation to each other.

We did alot of research before our 1st visit in Feb '05 and it is amazing how different places are in the flesh and especially working out distances etc,. It would also give you the chance to make possible contacts re employment opportunities before visiting and arrange to meet up whilst there. I'm from a travel/tourism profession and made lots of contacts, which I followed up in person on our subsequent visit(s). Most people there seem very receptive, co-operative and go out of their way to help in any way they can.

We fell in love with the island and left our 1st visit (Feb '05) having started the purchasing process on our dream house in Nanaimo. Unfortunately, it's taken alot longer than initially anticipated, but hope we are now nearing the end!! It's been abit of a struggle financially, but well worth it :eek:

I'm sure if you get the chance to visit you'll get a much better appreciation of the island and find the ideal location for your future relocation :wub:

Lots of good luck in your future ventures.
Best wishes Sue :thumbup:

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Hi Molson

Have a look at http://www.bctransit.com/regions/vic/ for the timetables for transit around Victoria. It might give you an idea of how long it will take to commute by transit.

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Hi Molson,

we moved to Victoria around 2 years ago, my wife is in the environmental sector as well. I was reading both your posts, jobs and communting. The west shore communities are more affordable but there is only 1 main road into Victoria which gets very bussy. We lived on the Saanich peninsula and enjoyed it very much. There was easy commute to Victoria with loads of outdoor activity to do as well. The main problem we found there was the work. My wife got work there prior to us moving but I found it much harder. Victoria is a very desirable part of Canada to relocate to and the competition for jobs is exceedingly tough. Government jobs are particularly sought after and I found Victoria to be a place where knowing people certainly goes further than qualifications. In addition, the Canadians value academic qualifications far more than experience.

We are no longer there. I ended up taking a position in Calgary, where there is an abundance of work. It was a shame to leave the area as it's beautiful but with so little work available, there was no other choice.

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Thanks all for the advice.

The recce trip would be an ideal scenario, but costly in the short term (and rather complicated by a 6 month old). However, if we do a recce trip (which is by far the ideal and could be a much better longer term plan), we want to make sure we are looking at an area we want to be in. The cost of houses in Victoria may be prohibitive unless we can commute from an outside area - hence the question.

Getting the job is the primary concern, of course and I have read the Wiki with great interest (took about 45 mins in all!). Again though, we need to be sure we would want to live in Victoria before I apply for jobs there (in all the different ways that you 'apply for jobs).

Sue - you mentioned that you made lots of contacts before you went out there, did you just pick up the phone and start talking or did you have a lead in already (as a lead can always make it much easier!)? I can see that this is clearly an excellent way to start moving the job seeking forward and keen to start looking into it.

Thanks again all for the advice.

Re: Commuting to Victoria
 

Hi Molson

I didn't have any contacts to start with, but as the research started began to find leads which I then emailed. I started with the tourism office which sent me some tourist information, but this also included details of realtors that offered relocation packs which were posted to us.

I've found a few websites which I thought may be of help for you to peruse at your leisure:

www.greatervictoria.com/careerandjobs.htm (also go to the home page)
www.tourismvictoria.com (go to the business directory, where there's details of all types of business etc.
www.vancouverisland.travel
www.vancouverisland.com
www.employmentvictoria.com
www.victoria.ca (this is the City of Victoria gov website)

The above had quite alot of detail and you may be able to request info packs which they will send to your home and from which you may find more indepth details regarding the areas, commuting etc.

It's quite hard to start the ball rolling and find the right lead, but from the above, if you find something that fits with your profession give them an email. I found that if they didn't know the answer to my questions they would pass me onto someone who did. They appear to be great networkers!!
I also contacted the local Economic Development Officer & Chamber of Commerce who I also found were a great help and pointed me in the right direction.

Hope this helps, but if I can be of assistance further, please give me a PM.
Vancouver Island is a fantastic location, especially to bring up a family and alot of areas appear to be developing all the time.

Good luck and hope to hear more......
Sue :thumbsup: