I managed travelling 7h per day for a job
I had a good job in Tallinn.
I joined that team when I was living 37 km from office. My salary was decent, colleagues were great and I was brand new in this field: designing buildings. The company on the other hand had been operated over 30 years in this field and just gotten a new CEO.
Everything was great!
But in 2022 I moved to the other side of the country, closer to my family.
So I was living in Tartu, but still working in Tallinn - the capital city of Estonia. Over 180 km in a country that doesn’t have highways!
Image 3,5 hours journey from one side of the country to the other side. 5 times per week, 2 trips a day, 3,5 hours to the office and 3,5 hours back home.
From 7 o’clock to 20; that made my workdays 13 hours long.
Yes, I worked some days from home too, but as a project manager in the field of designing buildings you have to visit construction areas and your clients or business partners too. I had several projects on the tabel so it meant visiting Tallinn 3 to 5 days per week.
Estonia is so small. From Tartu to Tallinn it is just like from New York to Dallas.
How do you travel so far so often and get to work at the same time?
I could use a car, bus or a train.
Car
It would have been more comfortable going there by car. From door to door 3,5 hours. But you cannot drive and work at the same time. It isn’t safe and you can’t concentrate on driving nor what you are actually saying to colleagues by the phone. No answering e-mails or searching some info on the drawings. Besides 10 trips per week like that means you are heading to a bankruptcy with the speed of light. Fuel here costs just so much.
1.75 € / liter, 180 km a trip, my car took up to 17.4 l/100 km = 550 € /month just for going to work. My salary then was only 1500€ / month. What a waste of time and money!
And let’s not talk about traffic jams or what kind of a delay you are going to have when an accident might happen.
Bus
You can go there by bus, but it took much more time - 3 h 45 min.
By one bus from home to the bus station. By the other one to bus station in Tallinn and by tram from the bus station to the office.
There is wifi on board and electricity socket under your seat so your laptop won’t die. And in some busses you can drink coffee, tea or cocoa for free.
But you won’t have space, because the business class ticket costs twice and you don’t want to become bankrupt. Be warned too - you have to be always prepared with your tickets. You might not get a ticket during holidays and if you are working late or decide too late that you’re working from home - you will lose your money.
So to sum up travelling by bus - you have to work in a tiny area, but on a comfortable guaranteed seat.
Aircraft
By plane? Unfortunately you have to own a private jet for that.
Train
So, I used a train. Two busses from home, a train and a 15 minute walk and I was at my office. Took a little bit less time than going only by bus, because of no traffic jams.
Seats
But Elron doesn’t have a quite good train ticket system here in Estonia. Imagine you cannot buy a classical ticket where you can see where you can sit. You can buy a ticket, but there’s no guarantee you will get a seat at all! You also cannot buy a ticket to the first class, because it’s always full and expensive to buy 10 tickets per week and for the sweetest travelling hours - morning and evening express trips.
Ticket system
As a student and regular passenger order a monthly ticket, use non-express trips and save some money.
Here are some prices.
Congratulation! You want to live a peaceful life besides your family, but work with a decent salary in country’s capital city. You don’t want to become bankrupt and you need to work at the same time as you are heading to the office.
Ok. Ok. I bought a period ticket that cost less for a student, but I hadn’t any guarantee for seating.
How to get a seat every time?
I had to study the regular travelers. What are they doing so that they get every time a seat? Like every time!
Firstly, they waited the train at the right spot. In the winter it is quite easy to see where exactly the train is going to stop and doors are located - there are a lot of footsteps on the snow. Meanwhile without snow watch the regular travelers and remember the spot. Is it next to some building element or lighting post…
Next you have to be the first one in or at least one of the first ones entering the train. Then you can quickly take the first free seat. So follow the regular travelers.
There’s even more to guarantee your seat. Usually the train has several parts and several doors. Take the first part of the train, where’s the first class and choose the nearest free seat in regular seating zone. Choose the right doors! Don’t waist time on choosing between seats - you won’t get any seats then at all!
I had to stand only one time and that was also only during the first part of the trip.
I was too late leaving office. So next time (all of the next ones) I set two alarms:
1) when to start packing my bag and dress up;
2) when it was the last minute to leave the office.
Internet connection
Ok, I got a seat, but I need some kind of internet too! If you were lucky enough to get a seat next to the first class, the internet connection is stronger there than in the regular seating zone. Pluss if you buy a first class ticket only once a month, there’s a password to the first class internet. They change the password once a month and as a regular traveler, you will notice the date and remember that date when to buy another first class ticket.
If the train should be overcrowded, the “regular zone” internet connection is very poor and you won’t be able to do any work. Yes, no watching YouTube videos or reading news either.
I used my mobile hotspot, because it is safer and the connection strength was more stable. Make sure your hotspot has a password.
I tried seperate device too, but it was as same as if you were using your mobile phone.
There’s areas where you won’t have any internet connection, because the train drives through “nowhere”. Then choose such work you can do without the internet. Write something or pre-download your files. If there is no internet connection you won’t be able to make phone calls either.
The EU made a promise to allow new 5G internet connection devices on moving vehicles. Estonian politicians once promised 1h train trips too. Let’s see, how old am I then…
Dealing with Noise
The noise. I use noise canceling headphones by Soundcore. Lowers the noise and you can listen to music too. Besides no one is going to disturb you also, because if they notice you are wearing over head headphones, they won’t get all the attention they will need. You can have them here. Click on the link.
Smells
The smells. Next to the first class is clean and tidy. But in the middle of the train where is the toilet - there you don’t want to sit. Yeah there’s only one toilet for the whole crowd! Even first class travelers use that one smelly dirty place. Be prepared - do your things at home, don’t drink too much during the trip and hold on till you have arrived your sweet comfy office.
Furthermore, there is another smell. The smell of burning diesel fuel. Every time the doors open, you’ll get some breathe of that. Not healthy at all!
Something good too
There’s good things too.
You get your work done, some more leg space and you meet new people. Sometimes it is the only place where you actually meet new people. Especially if you are always working. From home to office, from office to home. No spare time besides family and work.
And during Christmas they read poetry via speakers. It is nice to have something to redeem your presents from Santa.
So much free space
Travelling back home I wasn’t going with the express train. With that little move I could guarantee much more free space around me.
The view
I cannot describe the view from the window. Estonia is amazing and travelling by train you can see so much untouched nature and wildlife.
After a year
It was great for a year. I could manage that.
Almost 1 year and a month I couldn’t do it anymore.
I needed some time for myself to not think about where can I get a new job in my hometown. Moving was stressful enough and all my worries with school and family already took all the energy.
So after a year and a month travelling in such way, my life had headed back to normal and it was time to move on with my job in Tallinn. I quit my job and took a one and a half month break. Traveled (no no, not by train!!!), got to know my hometown again and spent time with my family.
That was a nice period that I will never repeat again. So much energy draining just for a job.
Travelling all the time makes you so tired.
Even with the most effective strategies you just want to get faster home and straight to bed.
Last day
I was so sick of travelling by train, I couldn’t even sit still more than an hour. One thing that you just can’t manage anymore - your own psychology. There wasn’t any purpose left.
What I learned
I can be very disciplined,
when I want to.
Nothing breaks me,
if I only have a purpose.
Still cannot travel by train in 2023 december. Tried it again.
