The Plane

So after riding the train for a year, my wife was discussing my commute with a friend at the gym when the friend mentioned another option.  Her husband was a pilot who commuted to Palo Alto every day in his plane and was looking for more 'plane-poolers'.  Well I'll be...  I never thought about flying to work every day!

So it turns out that there are several guys (all guys at this point) who fly to the bay area every day and some of them are willing (and eager) to take passengers for some of the gas money.  UC Davis  (KEDU) to Palo Alto (KPAO) takes about 35 minutes in a Cessna 172/180, which is the 'regular' plane we fly.  It's about 150mph and traffic isn't an issue!

The downside is that it isn't totally reliable.  These guys don't take a lot of risks (good) and they only fly VFR (visual flight rules).  This means that if Palo Alto is foggy we don't fly.  This has caused issues at work, since the decision not to fly is generally made too late to make the train or driving a good alternative.

I'll post more on the economics and logistics as well as many more images in future posts.

Train Images

Trains are funny.  Since they are noisy, dangerous to cars, and primarily used for transporting goods (at least in CA, in 2013), they tend to take you through some interesting terrain.  When riding these trains you see factories, refineries, dilapidated structures, graffiti, ramshackle housing, etc.  I've got a few pictures to show what I mean:

The Train.

Part of the decision to move to Davis was a careful consideration of the commute.  From the get-go I knew that I didn't want to drive the 90 miles each way.  I figured that I could live with the Capitol Corridor Amtrak train that I knew went from Sacramento through Davis and down the East side of the bay each morning and evening.  Since my office is just south of highway 92 on the West side of the San Mateo bridge, I figured that the best station to use would be the Hayward station on the East side of the bridge.  Luckily I had an extra car to leave down there (in order to be a super-commuter it helps to have multiple cars).

The train cars are really nice.  I rode Caltrain from SF to Belmont for years, and in my opinion the Capitol Corridor trains are far superior.  The seats have tons of legroom, there are cafe cars with coffee, meals, beer etc, and there is free wi-fi.  It's unusual to have to have to sit next to someone.  The trains are also much quieter than Caltrain or BART, so you can work, relax or sleep.  The staff are also great.

The train isn't cheap.  A one-way ticket from Hayward to Davis cost about $28.  Luckily they have a monthly pass (as well as a 10 ride pass).  If you ride every day and get a monthly pass it's about $11 each way.  I'll do a future post on the cost breakdowns between the different modes of transportation I've tried.

I still have to drive from Hayward to Belmont, over the SM bridge.  It's about 15 miles each way, and I have to pay the bridge toll.  Luckily my work schedule is pretty flexible so I can arrange to hit the bridge at low traffic times.  It really hasn't been too bad.

One of the other advantages to riding the train is that I get to see all kinds of interesting things that I wouldn't see or notice in a car.  I'll post some of these pictures in future posts.

Why did I move to Davis?

Before moving to Davis in 2012, Julie and I lived in the Presidio in SF.  I must say that the Presidio tops the list of cool places I've ever lived (our apartment even had a Pacific view).

After we had kids the apartment life started wearing thin.  Housing in SF was just starting to get ridiculous and we were facing preschool costs, etc.  It was also important to us that Julie be able to stay home with the kids.  Financially, living in SF was starting to look out of reach.

Growing up in Davis I knew it was a perfect place to raise small children.  The climate is mild, the people are friendly, and the schools are excellent.  When I inherited half of a house there, we made the decision to move to Davis for a while until Julie went back to work.  The decision was primary driven by practical considerations.  The major downside was going to be the killer commute.

Planes, trains, and automobiles. and bikes.

My name is Terry and I live in Davis.  I work in Belmont, on the peninsula.  You might think that 90 miles each way through the guts of the SF bay area each day might make for a nasty commute, but I would disagree.  Well, for the most part.

I've been having a great time commuting, and I've met other 'super-commuters' who I think would say that they have a great time too.  My wife Julie suggested that I start posting some of my commuting notes and pictures here as a record of this time in our lives.  I do spend an awful lot of time on the road, after all.