I'm hurt by that suggestion! I'm busy enough with my own reno projects, without picking up her half-done jobs too.

From the south end of Calgary (Evergreen) to downtown every day:

Leave house at 7:35am
Park up at Calgary "C Train" Station at 7:38am
Catch Train at 7:45am
Arrive in town at 8:10am
At my desk with coffee at 8:15 am

It costs me $70 per month for train pass (parking free) - I find this very easy and convenient.

UK:

Worse commute was when I lived in Crawley and worked in central London. Had to leave the house at 7.15 to get train to Victoria, then Tube/Bus (depending on how big the crush was to get into the Tube) to Kensington High Street. I'd be lucky if I got in before 9.15. It should have cost me around 2.5k a year for the travelcard, but as there was never a conductor at Crawley station, I always just bought a Zone 1 Travelcard to get me through the gate at Victoria (naughty girl, me!)

I then moved to Clapham and from there, I cycled to work which took me around 45 minutes. A bit smelly behind the buses, but with a mask on it was more bearable - and it had the advantage of being free and good exercise!

When offices moved to Paddington, got train from Clapham to Victoria and then Tube from Victoria. Always took at least 45 mins, if not longer - and no way near as healthy as the cycling!

Toronto:

7.00 - wake up (or maybe 8.00 if beer consumed the night before - if so, add an hour to all times below!)
7.45 - out the door
7.55 - on subway
8.20/8.40 - at desk (depending on which office I'm working at)

Bliss.
The only thing I miss about the London commute is that with the time it took on the Tube, you got to read a good portion of your book!

aawww im sorry souvenir...i take it all back..

Door-to-door it takes me roughly the same time from South Ottawa to Kanata, as it did from Abergavenny to Newport. But - and a big but, I don't half miss Radio 1's Chris Moyles from the UK drive to work!!! Majic100 in Ottawa just isn't the same!

I'm curious to know what all the Ottawa-area residents do for a living. What is there, apart from government?

Nothing, it's all government.


BTW, my best commute was in Hong Kong. They have the world's longest escalator there. A 30 second walk to the escalator from my flat, carried along to Starbuck's a block away, large Mocha, skimmed milk, no cream with a sausage roll, back on the escalator for 3 more blocks before beig deposited at the front door of my office. The whole trip was about 6 minutes, three if I didn't get a coffee.

No I have a 40 minute drive by the side of a beautiful river, not a single traffic light for 60km!

Me - telecomms technical support. I think Kanata is a very hi-tech area, looking at the names on the buildings on the way to work there.
* Edit *: I should add Kanata is about 30k's outside central Ottawa.

We've been no further up that road than Chelsea. Is there nice stuff to look at, other than scenery? It's a bit dull on my side of the river.

I should have said government and IT/telecoms.

O.K. heres mine. Used to live in St Ives, cambridgeshire would leave the house at 6:30 for a trip down the A14 and M11 to Babraham south of cambridge. Journey around 30 miles, usually would take about 40-45 minutes. Except that faitful day when the snow came when the return journey took nine and a half hours!!!! Cost - I would fill up once a week about 35 quid. I had an economical car.

Here in Calgary I set off at 7:30 for a run across town. Takes between 20 and 35 minutes. I have never seen real traffic even when conditions are bad. I fill up once a week (but that is only because I have been driving to the mountains each weekend since I have been here!). The cost is about 40 dollars but that is premium gas as I drive a VW. That is still much cheaper and less stress than I had in the U.K.

I am very happy with the move so far.

Phil

you have my deepest sympathies as i used to live in the potteries and travel to warrington 3 times per week....never a nice journey but for the last 3 months i have been living in southern alberta..now i have a 50 minute or 80 k commute and see perhaps a dozen other cars until i hit the local town..what bliss another fantastic point is that every day i see either coyote,deer or jackrabbit

Wakefield is really nice, there's a stream train that goes there a couple of times a day although it only takes 20 minutes to drive if you want to explore a bit.

There's a couple of nice pubs, restaurants, a great hotel conveted from an old watermill, they're opening up a spa there this summer. Down the road there's the highest bungie jump in North America, there's some caving and also motor racing on Friday nights, finally there's a good music venue called the Black Sheep.

We were going to move to Wakefield but the lakefront properties are a bit further up the road, that's why we're in Low but it's not too difficult to take a drive down when we fancy a night out.

Let us know if you ever make it up there and I'll buy you a drink.

I will bear it in mind. I have my mum coming over during the summer, so I'm looking for things to do with her. I doubt that the delights of Ottawa will keep her amused for a full two weeks.