I’m thinking of doing the commute from Sydney to Bathurst for work.
I will stay in Bathurst for four nights so it would be 2x 2.5 hour drives a week.
Has anyone been in a similar situation? Was it sustainable?
Would love to hear your thoughts.
Commuting from Sydney to Bathurst
kalifornia on 06/07/2018 - 13:14
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Depending where you live in Sydney I'd suggest the drive to Bathurst would be well in excess of 2.5 hours.
If the other 3 days are all rest, this should be fine depending on your tolerance for long-distance driving. I wouldn't recommend it of course, but it's doable.
Its two trips a week @ 2.5 hrs, you'll be fine.
Doesn’t sound much fun driving over the Blue Mountains in winter tho
That is approximately the distance and travel time of Canberra from Sydney. Canberra has tens of thousands of professionals that do the weekend trip back to their home cities. My colleagues that did this were always in a relationship or had a family and have been flying every week or fortnight for more than a decade.
If you are single then its a different proposition. How much do you value that 5 hours a week?
I lived in Bathurst a few years ago for uni and would trek back to Sydney about once a month. Unless you're living in far west Sydney, your trip will be closer to 3 hours. I quite like the drive and got used to it after a few months, but it is exhausting. Driving through the mountains can be pretty dangerous particularly sunrise and sunset (bloody roos nearly wrote off my car) and VERY foggy/ icey in the evenings/ nights in winter. On a foggy night, you'll struggle to see a couple metres in front of you. If you're going to be tired from working and driving outside of daylight hours, those aren't risks to take lightly. At the risk of sounding melodramatic, remember that people die on the roads, particularly through the mountains
Doom and gloom aside, Bathurst is a really nice town. Let me know if you'd like some tips!
Catch the train, I used to live in Bathurst (also going to uni - switched to distance, have just finished and going to graduate in August yay me) and there were a few that went all the way to Bathurst where you didn't have to change at Lithgow. Just plan carefully (it isn't any fun being stuck in Mt Victoria for the night if the train terminates there and there's no buses that evening).
You will get sick of the drive pretty fast, at least on the train you can play with your phone or a video game or read a book or snooze. I hate driving through the pass near Mt Victoria, too scary for me. I can't imagine doing that twice a week.
If you are currently choosing where to live, I would vote Lithgow or Mt Vic over Bathurst, just for the extra transport flexibility.
Good point about the public transport. There's that quick train as well (I forget what it's called - all I remember is that I'd get flyers about it with the MPs face on it haha). Some of those trains are really cosy - set out like planes with your own table etc
PS Good work on (almost) graduating!!
I used to live at Springwood and occasionally travel to Bathurst and Cowra. In fine weather it was not a problem. However, if there was fog or rain or snow (or a combination) then it became difficult and unsafe. When it snows you can get it all the way from Lawson through to Bathurst and beyond. I once had to wait in Bathurst for three days for the snow to clear.
What's your personal background? Single? Renting? Work experience? Etc.