Decided to test return-to-work (R2W) conditions this week.
The typical commute is about 32-35 mi highway, 4-5 mi city (one way).
Pre-pandemic, this commute was 60-135 minutes.
Test outcomes
Used to encounter the Hi-Tech buses (buses that transport Google, Meta, Apple, Microsoft employees) probably within the first 5-6 mi of highway commute. On Mon, it was probably 4-5 mi from my highway exit before the first Hi-Tech bus passed me in the car-pool lane
Shortly after, traffic slowed down considerably. Turned out there was a motorcycle accident ahead. Then the fun started. Hi-Tech buses switching three packed lanes to exit highway two - four exits earlier than planned.
Did the same traffic bet myself. Used my knowledge of the local roads to get to work via alternate routes. Drove by an Apple office location - very quiet. Drove by some HP buildings, also quiet. Some story with a whole slew of Google locations.
Back roads allowed me to manage a stop at a 7-11 location to grab some coffee. Significant as our on-site cafeteria is closed and other options for coffee would likely be fast food locations further away.
Very light employee occupancy at work. Given the inbound commute, I opted to delay my return trip via some shopping and visiting a local library branch.
Day two. Worked online the first few hours, headed to work mid-morning and avoided the commute challenges of the previous day.
Day three. Another morning commute, but a different highway route. This route traffic flows more freely, but it does have more choke-points. More employees onsite. More discovery - a favorite local eatery has closed, LinkedIn campus very quiet, lighter traffic than I recall on some expressways. Another library stop to avoid the return commute.
Previous work commute had sometimes involved using public transportation (bus and/or light rail (VTA)). Checked the VTA website - Oh no! Routes have been changed, modified or eliminated. Will have to explore what options might still work.
Tests complete this week. Thursday & Friday - worked from home (WFH)
4. Back roads allowed me to manage a stop at a 7-11 location to grab some coffee. Significant as our on-site cafeteria is closed and other options for coffee would likely be fast food locations further away.
This alone should be a deal-breaker! If you have to drive somewhere, for more than 2 minutes, to get coffee in the morning and afternoon, then the office is not ready for RTW. We don’t have a cafeteria, but we do have a coffee machine that produces adequate coffee.
I did the return to office test a few weeks ago. In my second face-to-face meeting in a conference room I contracted COVID (after avoiding it entirely for 2+ years!). I have since recovered, and I will go back to office for a day or two a week again beginning this week. Luckily my commute is short, usually 8-14 minutes depending on traffic/lights.
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This alone should be a deal-breaker! If you have to drive somewhere, for more than 2 minutes, to get coffee in the morning and afternoon, then the office is not ready for RTW. We don’t have a cafeteria, but we do have a coffee machine that produces adequate coffee.
… I have since recovered, and I will go back to office for a day or two a week again beginning this week. Luckily my commute is short, usually 8-14 minutes depending on traffic/lights.
Mine is ~ 15-20 meters from the master bedroom to my den but I stop at the kitchen on the way to put water, filter and coffee in the one cup machine and frozen blueberries in a bowl to go with the cereal and milk I put on top. When I get to the den I tell Alexa to “turn Tim’s den on” and only need to push the buttons on the TV remote and the one on the front of my micro desktop to light up the TV and my dual monitors***. }};-D
*** One for the Microsoft stuff the other for Google and/or watching Netflix.
No traffic lights to worry about but the cat insists I feed and brush her before going to work. }};-D
No concerns about gas prices either.
Tim
OT - USA lost to CZECHIA in IIHF hockey. Not a pretty game.
Tim, you are retired. You have no commute (the W in R2W stands for work).
DB2
Well … !!! I’ll have you know that I mostly do the laundry, clean the litter box, keep the excess number of computers, laptops, tablets and cellphones running while paying the bills and my share of the dusting and cleaning as well as preparing meals … not to mention most of our grocery shopping and all of the garbage runs. Just because it is unpaid doesn’t mean it isn’t work? }};-D
Of course after almost three years of dodging COVID-19 I’ve been living in shabby clothes so long (easy on the fifth floor), I can’t imagine dressing up to go out … well at least until one of my granddaughters did her confirmation last week and the other had three small parts is a very large play (Madagascar) with ~ 160 actors two days later. }};-@
Tim, you are retired. You have no commute (the W in R2W stands for work). — Well … !!! I’ll have you know that I mostly do the laundry, clean the litter box, keep the excess number of computers, laptops, tablets and cellphones running while paying the bills and my share of the dusting and cleaning as well as preparing meals … not to mention most of our grocery shopping and all of the garbage runs. Just because it is unpaid doesn’t mean it isn’t work…
Years ago when my wife had a brush with breast cancer one of my rich daughters called up and asked if I thought it would be a good idea to give her gift certificates for Molly Maid.
Of course it was a great idea … unfortunately my wife insisted on cleaning before they arrived, couldn’t have them come to a dirty house now could we? }};-@
Another great idea falls into the trash bin … the poor girls were just told to do whatever occurred to them with the remaining balance on the certificate. They felt bad about it but not their fault.
So yes I am retired … My soul task for the morning was to install security software on our two identical mini-desktop computers … took all of 10 minutes.
Well … !!! I’ll have you know that I mostly do the laundry, clean the litter box, keep the excess number of computers, laptops, tablets and cellphones running while paying the bills and my share of the dusting and cleaning as well as preparing meals … not to mention most of our grocery shopping and all of the garbage runs. Just because it is unpaid doesn’t mean it isn’t work? }};-D
This alone should be a deal-breaker! If you have to drive somewhere, for more than 2 minutes, to get coffee in the morning and afternoon, then the office is not ready for RTW. We don’t have a cafeteria, but we do have a coffee machine that produces adequate coffee.
I always had my own 4 cup coffee maker in my office so I could make my own coffee. The coffee provided by work in the break room was swill.
I said that to my wife once about what she does all day while I’m at work. I couldn’t see her for a week afterward. Then the swelling went down and I could see a little bit.
And being a good guy let me add "Please be very very careful making jokes like that.=
E.G. I even know a few men who work from home while partner works “at work” who worry about baby formula for Johnny while chasing down Tommy who has figured out how to open the difficult to open high cabinet that used to safely hold out of reach money, condoms, and, ahem, more. In that household your comment would have had you in a (ahem) “deeper level” of acute pain.