Hipster Duck
Senior Member
From the Toronto Star:
The Star's foreign correspondents – from Washington to Beijing – describe a world of commuting horror stories beyond Toronto's urban sprawl.
1. Washington DC
2. London
3. Beijing
So far in the series, a pretty obvious pattern has emerged: fairly affluent professionals choosing to live in far flung exurbs to enjoy a more bucolic existence get dragged into 4+ hour commutes to their downtown jobs.
This raises an important question for me. Why are so many people - particularly relatively wealthy people - so agoraphobic? Why do they severely compromise their lifestyle to have access to nature; and just how pastoral is outer Beijing or the home counties around London, anyway? I always found the promise of "nature" or "living space" to be one big shill and I'm amazed that people the world over continue to get roped into this.
I agree that not everyone out there might share my sentiments about living in an urban environment. I also understand that living in a smaller, affordable space may not appeal to many people (even if it forces people out of their homes to experience the urban realm), but how could a 200 km round-trip commute that affects your family life be possibly better?
The Star's foreign correspondents – from Washington to Beijing – describe a world of commuting horror stories beyond Toronto's urban sprawl.
1. Washington DC
2. London
3. Beijing
So far in the series, a pretty obvious pattern has emerged: fairly affluent professionals choosing to live in far flung exurbs to enjoy a more bucolic existence get dragged into 4+ hour commutes to their downtown jobs.
This raises an important question for me. Why are so many people - particularly relatively wealthy people - so agoraphobic? Why do they severely compromise their lifestyle to have access to nature; and just how pastoral is outer Beijing or the home counties around London, anyway? I always found the promise of "nature" or "living space" to be one big shill and I'm amazed that people the world over continue to get roped into this.
I agree that not everyone out there might share my sentiments about living in an urban environment. I also understand that living in a smaller, affordable space may not appeal to many people (even if it forces people out of their homes to experience the urban realm), but how could a 200 km round-trip commute that affects your family life be possibly better?
