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« Janelle's Out For 2008 | Main | Office 2008 SP1 » May 9, 2008The New CommuteMy commute has changed quite a bit over the last couple of weeks. For starters, I'm on two wheels once in a while. May is here, which is Bike To Work Month (with Bike To Work Day on the 16th). May also represents the last month before the Alcatraz tri, which means that, assuming I don't want to flail spectacularly in San Francisco, I needed to get out, buy a bike, and actually start using it pretty regularly. My solution has been to start riding to work a couple times a week - or, in some cases, ride to work one day and then ride home the next or the day after. I'm very fortunate in that 99% of my ride is along the Burke-Gilman and Sammamish River bike trails, which are mostly flat, 100% free of cars, have periodic water stops and bathrooms, and run through some spectacular scenery. The total work-home commute mileage is around 26 (each direction), which takes me just shy of 2 hours. We have lockers and showers in the building adjoining MacBU, which makes it even simpler. It's a easy, gorgeous ride, and a hell of a way to start the morning. I can't recommend it more highly. When I'm not on my bike, I'm on the bus. I've moved from regular Metro transit to Microsoft's private bus service - "The Connector." The company rolled out Phase 1 of the service back in September, and recently kicked off Phase Two, adding a bunch of new routes (one of which is right by our place). I was a bit torn about switching to the Connector. While it's a great perk for people with poor bus service to campus (e.g., you live in the suburbs, or a less commute-friendly part of Seattle, such as Ballard), we've got great bus service where I live. Further, the Connector seemed to be a bit of a push in terms of transit time (it's a private bus, not a private helicopter, so we're still stuck in the same traffic with everyone else), and the system requires advance reservation (through a Web site) to ensure that everyone gets a seat. In fact, the service is amazing. First, in terms of real-world throughput, Connector buses are actually faster than Metro. The shuttles leave precisely on time, which is a godsend if you've ever played the 5 - 15 minute waiting game that sometimes happens with popular Metro bus lines. It's understandable - Connector routes have 3 stops, total, while a typical Metro bus will stop, you know, 14,000 or 15,000 times over a decent-sized route. With such precise timing, you spend less time checking your watch at a Connector stop, and you can rely on the Connector being ready at the same time every day. Second, Connectors all have free WiFi. While this isn't unique (many SoundTransit buses have it, too), the thing that makes it awesome is... Third, Connectors guarantee you a seat, and have space for your bags. This is the big one. Being guaranteed a seat - and knowing that it won't be Sardine Can Seating - means you can walk out the door with your laptop under your arm and be confident that you can do some violence to your e-mail (or Web surf, or whatever) while on the road. It's wonderful, because I know I can defer some of my last-minute work to when I'm on the bus, be confident of getting it done, and walk through the door of my condo with a clear mind and a closed MacBook Pro. Connector Phase Two was just rolled out this week, and the buses are already at capacity - a trend I expect to continue as the good word spreads. Part of this is simple gas-price economics - as BusinessWeek wrote, "Suddenly, It's Cool To Take The Bus", and, indeed I've seen several e-mail threads from car-centric colleagues extolling the virtues of not having to drive in our stop-n-go traffic anymore. More than anything, the biking and the bus-riding have helped me reclaim some of my commute as "me time" - time to get healthy, see my community, get a few more things done in the day - instead of feeling like it's The Great Sucking Sound of emotional energy and patience that I associate with driving. If you're sick of your commute and are ready for a change, try your bike or a bus. You won't regret it. Posted by Gavin Shearer at May 9, 2008 12:43 PM. Posted to MSFT | Transit. Trackback PingsTrackBack URL for this entry: CommentsDoesn't Google deserve most of the credit for this? Those obnoxious Bauer buses in the Bay Area are everywhere. Direct service plus internet connection is a mighty nice company perk - all of the other big Bay Area companies are starting to follow suit. All in all tho, seems to be an environmentally friendly trend, so I guess I can't fault Google too much. But man, those buses take up a lot of room on the road. :P Posted by: E.Chen This morning I rode to work on my bicycle (first time). I agree that it does change how your whole day feels when you start the morning on two wheels. Hmmm sounds like a haiku is coming on.... White Cherry blossoms Posted by: Chris Condit I've got a ten minute walk to work. Life doesn't suck in that regard. Posted by: Richard Barrett Unrelated but nice post over on Slog. : ) Posted by: Allie Post a commentThanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out) (If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.) |
