We are all road warriors now - or are we?

I write this week's blog post from the 7:34 train from Market East to Wilmington, where I have a job interview at 10 a.m. To get to this interview, I arose at 6 a.m., hopped on a bus for the seven-minute ride to the Market-Frankford Line, spent 20 minutes riding the El to 11^th Street, then caught this train, which will deposit me in Wilmington 55 minutes after I boarded it. From the train station, it's another 15 minutes on a DART bus to the interview site.

So that makes a total of 97 minutes riding the buses and trains, almost the length of a typical Hollywood feature film. And I haven't even added in the waiting time, which adds at least 30 minutes to the total.

Hmmm. Two hours spent commuting to an interview for a job that I've been told I have a 50-50 chance of getting, and which will last six months if I get it. And if I get it, I will have to rise a half hour earlier to make it to the office by 9 a.m.

Would you say this is worth the effort? I think it's pretty clear how I answered that question.

In the real estate business, brokers and lenders speak of something called "drive to qualify." What this refers to is the distance a homebuyer must travel from the city in order to be able to afford a home. In expensive cities like New York or San Francisco, this distance can be considerable: some New York City workers now drive from as far away as the Lehigh Valley to get to their Manhattan jobs, for instance. What I am engaging in as I write this blog post is the job market equivalent. Lets call it "commute to hire."

In a strong economy, chances are good that a given job seeker in a large city will be able to choose from an ample number of jobs within a reasonable commuting time or distance of one's residence. When jobs become scarcer, on the other hand, job seekers may be forced to look beyond their commuting comfort zone to find suitable employment. Thus, just as a worker in San Francisco may have to consider moving to Altamont in order to afford the mortgage payments, so a person living and looking for work in Philadelphia may have to consider openings in New Brunswick, or even New York as an architect friend of mine did, in order to secure a suitable job. (Then he shortened his commute by moving there.)

Its good that this region has multiple employment centers with good transit service, for it allows carless folks like me to cast a wider net when job hunting just as the drivers do. For now, I am willing to become a road warrior - or, in my case, a transit marathoner – in order to get the job I want.

How about you? Are you looking further afield for work? Have you reconsidered how far you are willing to commute to work? Share your thoughts in the comments.

By Sandy Smith

Sandy Smith is a veteran freelance writer, editor and public relations professional who lives in Philadelphia. Besides blogging for PhillyJobs.com, he has written for numerous publications and websites, would be happy to do your resume, and is himself actively seeking career opportunities on Beyond.com. Check out his LinkedIn profile and read his other posts on PhillyJobsBlog.com.

Philly Steps up Safety for Commuters who Bike to Work

Gas prices are expected to climb to nearly $5 a gallon by summer. The surge in price per barrel oil and the fair spring weather after such an extreme winter have some commuters considering changing their rides. Instead of hitting gridlock in gas guzzlers, cash in on the environmental and economical option of biking to work.

If you live and work in the Center City section of town, then you may be swayed to switch. The addition of the safe routes in the north-south corridors are going to be created by establishing bike lanes linking Spring Garden and South Streets. The six-foot wide lanes will make it easier and safer for cycling commuters to access the subway and travel around town.

Two critical gaps in the city's impressive network of bike paths are currently under construction. The extension of the Schuylkill River bike trail will link Falls Bridge with Ridge Avenue. Mayor Nutter hopes that by making the streets safe for cycling it will help make them safer for foot and vehicle traffic as well.

Biking to work carries its fair share of responsibilities. Operating a bike is considered operating a vehicle and there are laws attached to them that everyone is expected to follow. People who don’t follow the rules will be fined $10 unless their actions are unsafe and result in a steeper fine. Some of the city’s rules seem like common sense; others you may not realize are applicable. They include but are not limited to:

• Follow signs and lights like an automobile


• Ride on the right, as close to the curb as possible


• Use a permanent seat


• No extra riders


• If there’s a bike line available you have to use it


• Lamps and reflectors are required for sunset to sunup cycling


• Brakes are required on all bikes


• Parking on the sidewalks in a way that allows people to pass is ok, riding on the sidewalk is not


• Find the full list here

Biking is a great way to get where you’re going and it doesn’t take long for you to notice the changes in your physique and fuel tank. Check back next week for tips everybody biking to work needs to know unless you don’t mind showing up to work with a skunk streak up the back of your work shirt.


By Heather Fairchild - Heather is a multimedia developer with experience in web, film, photography and animation as well as traditional fine arts like painting and sculpting. In addition to writing for PhillyJobsBlog.com, she is co-founder of design and promotion company, BlackChip Solutions with fellow Beyond.com blogger, Staci Dennis. Heather’s spare time consists of making puppets, teaching Sunday School, building Legos and doing science experiments with her children.