I have to admit, I'm pretty lucky. Jess's commute is 2 hours at the quickest; for me to get to Brooklyn College it takes about 15 minutes—45 minutes to the Graduate Center.
Another advantage of public transit is that you don't have to deal with other discourteous drivers. No one cuts you off, you don't have to worry about someone running a red light, and no traffic tickets! (Though, you are at the mercy of your fellow commuters remembering to shower!)
Also, subway riders are surprisingly quiet. Without the ability to use a cell phone, most commuters ride in silence. The subway itself is loud, but in a strangely soothing way—like "white noise" or a thunderstorm.
The quiet of the subway is in stark contrast to the "booty" music that often rocks your car while driving through downtown Cincinnati. I'm convinced that many of the problems I had with my car while in Cincinnati resulted from it being "shaken" by the other people's music!
The relative quiet of the subway used to be a boon to my productivity! Recently, however, I've noticed a disturbing trend. In increasing numbers, young subway rider's headphones are turned up nearly beyond control. These inconsiderate commuter's iPods are so loud that you can hear them all the way across train. Its nearly impossible to analyze the intricacies of a Mahler symphony or read the latest New Yorker article while your commuter neighbor's iPod is blaring in your ear!
In my opinion this is worse than the "booty" music that shook my car in Over-the-Rhine. At least I could rock out to that music. On the subway, I'm stuck listening to the musical equivalent of an annoying fly; unable to participate along with it but forced to listen to it, I get almost nothing done. Without cars of their own, I've come to the conclusion that:
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