To think I can drive 4 hours per day, 4 times a week as a newly qualified driver?

Is there another train option if you were to drive somewhere first?

So if there is no direct train can you driver to one of the later stations and get a later connection?

The benefit of being on the train and not driving is time to rest or study. Driving is full on concentration and then tired when you are home.

Look at railcars options too to save a third.

I don't think anyone could claim to be an expert on motorway driving after 2 years - or 22 years, let alone 2 days! In fact, thinking you're an expert is a dangerous assumption - there's nearly always something new to learn or something to improve on. And that applies to most areas of life.

Will you never be able to move closer or is it temporary. Doing that much driving will certainly improve your confidence but it is a lot of driving. If it were a fraction shorter eg 1.5hours it might be easier.

I think this is a lot to do OP.

Yes but that is true of a driver of any experience, not just new drivers.

It’s the cost of the fuel l’d be more concerned about.

Off course you can , when I passed my driving licence quite a few years ago I had to do the same as I had a child already and when back to uni . After 2 days I was an expert on motorway driving despite never being in one . Also gave me the confidence to never being scared so I drive anywhere, uk , abroad , city , country roads etc .
if it’s something you really want go for it .

Take the train. It's safer and less exhausting / boring / unpredictable.

You’ve said that it might be difficult to stay over in accommodation due to circumstances at home but could you manage this just once a week. Drive to uni on the 1st day, stay overnight 2nd day in uni drive home. To and from uni
on the 3rd and 4 th day and recover from driving til it starts again the following week

I don't know what the family circumstances are where you can't move, but given that on any Uni day you won't be home until late, presumably you can be spared at home a few evenings a week? If so, I would find an arrangement where you can lodge Monday to Wednesday night's- someone earlier mentioned looking on spare room.

Drive there Monday, stay 3 nights, drive home Thursday. 90 miles is too much for any driver each way every day.

A PhD is meant to be demanding (maybe 1st year less so), and driving is exhausting

I think you should trial the train (possibly using uber for part if needed) and driving to see which you prefer - I prefer driving myself having also done a long train commute with changes

Tbh I think you should stay overnight and drive /train 1 or twice a week

I do a long commute and find 2x a week bearable and 3 exhausting to drive … took me a couple of months to get used to it to

really look into the Airbnb option. I am an Airbnb host & have various ‘regulars’ who work in my area so travel - usually staying tue/wed nights

you might find an Airbnb host who gives you a deal for a regular stay on a quiet night, likewise an old fashioned ‘lodging’ - so many people would love to get some ££ for a spare room & have the house back on the weekends

for that I would start to look through friends & family to see if they know anyone in the area as a regular lodger for a night or 2 would be attractive to lots of people who wouldn’t eg airbnb a spare room

Could you stay over in inexpensive accommodation for 1 or 2 nights near the university ? The fuel cost for a journey of 4 hours could well be more expensive than 1 night in an air bnb. You would not be so tired and you could also work in the uni library to get your course work done. The actual course work might be very demanding and after a long drive home you might be too exhausted to do much

It’s how tiring that is, rather than about you skills as a driver. As others have said, it’s also dead time. I’d be looking for a room in an Airbnb or cheap travelodge maybe 2 nights a week (or whatever is affordable) to keep the number of journeys down. If you’re a student, would a railcard help with train cost?

could you not just drive to the train station and leave the car there (or somewhere around there)?

Also, maybe you could ask around about accommodation when you meet people there, there may be local people or people staying in accommodation that would sublet a room for the overnights?

It will be exhausting. It isn't necessarily whether you can but whether it is too tiring. Concentrating for two hours in busy traffic is draining. It really isn't a great idea even for an experienced driver.

That's a good point.

In that case, it has to be somewhere like Brunel, somewhere which is almost London, but not quite.

I can't think of any constituent colleges of the UoL in Central London where park and ride would be possible.

Actually, now that I have read the earlier posts, it's starting to sound like Surrey.

I think that there is Park and Ride at the Uni in Guildford.

The car journey being described sounds like a nightmare.

Is there somewhere you can drive to and get a direct bus or train? If your parking at the park and ride anyway you might find a nice train station an hour away (even in the wrong direction. Which might feel less painful than the entire journey by car.

I would imagine you’d be able to. Sounds rubbish though!

I’ve been driving 20+ years and genuinely enjoy driving. But 4 hours a day is get fed up of pretty quickly!

That’s lot of driving, but put some Podcast or Audiobooks etc and it will be fine.

she said there is a park and ride close to the uni.

@Psych101B

Something else which would worry me would be the question of where you would actually be parking the car.

You've mentioned the alternative to the car being a journey which includes the tube, so suggesting that you will be travelling into London each day.

It's very unlikely that there will be parking for students at the University itself.

why can't you live closer ?

If you add up the cost of buying a car, insurance, fuel etc, you may be spending far more in a year than some kind of cheap lodgings.

Your insurance could easily be £2K pa or more as a new driver. Plus the car, plus fuel.

Have you got any quotes for insurance based on a possible car- ie age, size, etc?

You might be shocked at the cost.

It's doable, but it will be expensive and tiring.
90 miles is highly unlikely to be a 2 hour journey IME.
Google maps can be deceptive.

It's not the driving itself that's an issue but how will 4 hours a day travelling eat into the rest of your life?

It's not the same as a train journey where you can read and work at the same time.

I wonder if a cheap B&B /Premier Inn would be better for a couple of days and cheaper than all that fuel?