longest commute (Los Angeles, Long Beach, Bakersfield: home, luxury, school)

[CBaillo]

a friend of mine lives in hesperia, ca (high desert) and works in glendale 4 days of the week...i think he trumps all the californians here LOL =p...

but the avg. commute here is pretty long .... add to that crappy traffic, and its not a good mix.

[jlrobe]

Originally Posted by scorpisan

I heard on radio the other day that 400,000 people moved to LA in 2005. WHY? Other than the sun there is nothing here except long, long commute in traffic. Unfortunately I will have to join the class of long commuters very soon - Palmdale happens to be the only place we can afford a home and give our children stability.
Moving from Winsconsin will certainly give you rude awakenings, Maybe you only visited Los Angeles a few times, but those few days visit do not give you any idea of what you will be facing. On internet maps, the estimate are usually for moving traffic. You will have to experience it to understand it. As many people have responded TO is a very safe neighborhood with extremly upper middle class people and people speak English. There are lush rolling hills and pratically no smog. Had I belong in that group, it will definately be one of the location to seriously consider. By the eay, if you prefer larger percentage of English speakers, stay somewhere in the mid west. I am a foreigner but been here long and I hate it that other languages are becoming the norm here in LA area.
I just started a new job that I happned to like exactly one year ago. Before that, I was considering moving family to mid west or lower east coast because I/we've had with LA and CAlif. Did I say I love my job? Starting in September when the house is finished, I'll be commuting from Palmdale to Torrance - 55 miles each way and I know that will take 2 hours each way. Right now I commute from Long Beach to LAX, roughest days takes 1 hour at end of day. Today, it took me 25 minutes to drive 23 mileas leaving at 6.10am. I normally leave one hour later. Oh, my work will move to Torrance area in September - you just can't win. The funny thing is that driving down on 405 (south and north) only has about 10 or less miles of bottle neck. If going south it is always start about the Getty museum to Hughes center or LAX area. Same for trip north on 405. Another crazy thing is that there is a massive infrastructure bond recently passed by the Calif lawmakers. I don't think much thought is being given to how to ease the traffic headaches. But hey, we are caught in this rat race.
What I have done is to acquire audio books and load them on mp3 player (not ipod) TTC Phillosophy, Literature, Da Vinci Code (everybody read it) and some fiction.
Good luck to you on your move to TO.

Why dont you live in torrance? Some of the best schools in LA county, reasonably low crime, good weather, no commute, close to the beach and long beach?

Or why not move to south redondo?

It's probably the cost of living?

[rdukes412]

I live in Victorville and my husband commuted from here to Valencia for a long time. Then he transferred to downtown LA, down the street from the tar pits. He had to be in the office by 6:30 or 7 am so he missed most of the traffic but his drive was anywhere between 2.5-3 hrs. Longer if he was late. Evenings were a different story - could be 4 hrs some holiday weekend Fridays. At one point we were living in Wrightwood, a small mountain town near here, and he commuted to South Orange County. Basically you do what you have to do when you live in Cali - the work is near LA and the affordable houses are far away! Luckily now hubby works in Covina so its not nearly as far. Hopefully we'll be moving out of state soon though . . . .

My dad commuted to LA from Rancho Cucamonga when I was a kid. He drove 2 hrs in and 2-3 hrs out every day for 15 years. How he stayed sane, I have no idea - well then again he's not the sanest person I know .

[margo]

I live in Bakersfield and there are plenty of people who commute to the southland for work. Housing was cheap and they moved up here.

[BobbyB]

I work in Carson, and we have a lot of folks that live in Moreno Valley. I know one guy that comes in from Palmdale (I'm sure there is more). I heard of a guy that comes in from Hesperia.........gotta be Urban Myth
The catch is we only work 14 days a month (shift work).

[bigdaddy5]

I live in San Diego but I work in Santa Monica. I commute 2 days a week from San Diego (mondays, fridays) and I stay up with a friend in Downey and commute from there (tuesdays, wednesdays, thursdays). I leave my wife and 2 kids alone at home those 3 days while I'm away. I drive a Hybrid with carpool stickers and the Fastrak transponder. The carpool lanes and toll roads are godsends. It shaves about an hour from my drive if I should drive a regular car. Each way, I can make a 130 mile drive in 2 hrs, 10 minutes on a typical day. Even in traffic, the carpool lane can be congested and motionless.

I'm used to the routine. Since I bought my Hybrid, I've put about 30K miles in 10 months. We are planning to relocate northward (I'm not that crazy) and Irvine seems to be the best choice for us. We have friends in Aliso Viejo, Ladera Ranch and other parts of OC to mentor us when we make the transition.

My commute and sacrifices to work remind me of life growing up in a military family. My dad would sail overseas for months at a time, leaving me, my mom and my sister alone at home. It was tough but it had to be done (ask any present day Iraqi War veteran's wife for reference).

The mornings I drive from SD to LA, I kiss my young sons goodbye while they're still sleeping in bed. I pray nothing happens to me during my commute.

I grew up in SD but went to college in LA, that helped me prepare for LA traffic (and crime) at an earlier age. If a job as good as this appears in SD, I'm going to jump at it. I give myself another year before I have to change, my kids are growing up too fast and I'm missing out. Regret is a tough thing to live with, especially when it comes to your family.

[jay20]

I know a few people that commute from Bakersfield to Los Angeles 4-5 days a week.

[black_magic]

I have a friend who commuted from Bakersfield to Long Beach. He did it for a year and couldn't take it anymore. I don't know how he did it for that long. I used to commute from Orange County to LA and I couldn't stand it.

[UB50]

I met a man riding on Metrolink who commuted from near San Diego to Chatsworth everyday. He took the train 95% of the way though.

I also know someone who commuted from Victorville to Burbank for years.

[the one]

that sucks. my commute has always been no more than half an hour. i might be transfering to the wilshire area and what i dread there is the congestion. short distances that take longer. the story of the west side. wilshire i think is the worst.