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

[Psych101B]

I am starting a university course in September and am unable to move closer to the university due to various reasons. The drive from my house is 2 hours each way. I passed my test in 2023 but haven’t driven much since (only short drives to local supermarkets etc) as I’ve been saving up to buy a car.

Am I being unrealistic in thinking that if I get a car in April and do intensive driving practice between then and September, that I will be confident and able to drive for 4 hours per day 4 times a week?

I’ve been driving over 30 years, I have loads of confidence driving and really enjoy it. There is no way I would plan to do this every day. The mornings would be ok, assuming I slept well, but after a day of lectures, cooped up in a warm room, there is no way I could do the journey home safely. Especially in the winter where you are driving in dusk / dark / poor weather. I used to do a similar journey for work once a fortnight, after a long dull day of meetings the journey home wasn’t fun.

I hate trains but if that’s an option, I’d choose that.

I had a 2 hour drive each way 3 times per week to and from work for 15 years. Travelling Monday, Wednesday and Friday and working from home other 2 days. Do not underestimate how exhausting this is, particularly if you are not accustomed to driving. By Friday night I was totally knackered. My drive was also not particularly bad for traffic or difficult.

Absolutely!

You'll have the equivalent of a year's worth of driving experience in about a month. On presumably the same roads, so you'll learn them easily.

It is a LOT of driving, but no reason to think you can't do it due to lack of experience - that'll be sorted quickly.

I can definitely see how it might not be the best idea now!

I currently don’t have a car but will be getting one before September as I will need to be driving some days as I will be going to placements.

What would everyone suggest would be a good ratio of driving to train travel per week?

It's probably going to cost around £30 a day driving (180 miles, £140p/ litre, estimate that you get 100 miles from 10 litres of petrol, add a couple of pounds for the bus.) So if you go in 4 days a week it would be £500ish a month. How much would the car + insurance cost?
The difference between driving and the train could be significantly reduced.

Then it'll become a choice between time, the opportunity to do something on the train etc. I think it's minimal and I would personally prefer the train, but it will be personal preference.

I don't think the length of the drive is really an issue. Provided you're OK with the type of drive it is - eg is it motorways, are you driving through the middle of complicated city streets etc - you should be fine.

Is it educational psychology OP? If so, you'll have a lot of reading and research to do around that contact time too.
Look to stay local to the university for the days you're scheduled to have contact time. Having said that, are you sure there will something in person 4 days a week? Ypu might only need a night or 2 in a hotel or look to share airbnb with course mates. If the bursary won't cover that, many trainees have to work part time too. Hopefully just for the first year.

The train might be a good option for getting work done, however at the time I’d be travelling I’m worried that there would be no seats for me to get any work done

Well, if you're driving you definitely won't be getting any work done. Plus, at 4+ hours per day, you'll be exhausting your cognitive and physical resources, so you won't be able to work when you get home either. I'm a bit concerned about the lack of clarity in your analysis, tbh!

Could you book into a Travelodge/Premier inn for 1 or 2 nights a week! This would cut down on the travelling and the time.

It's a doctorate - I am absolutely sure that to have got to this point the OP knows there will be a lot of reading and research.

Another option, considering this is doctoral level training that might be intense, is to stay over one or two nights a week in a travel lodge maybe to break the journey up. Then you can stay at Uni later, maybe socialise or catch up with work and then drive home.

alternatively you could drive to a train station part of the way there and take the train, splitting the journey.

I went from hardly ever driving to driving 3 hours a day 5 says a week for similar reasons. It was fine.

It’s not that you wouldn’t be capable of doing it, more that it is a long way and all the reasons other pps have given. I think you would be mad.

I have worked with people who did a ridiculous commute in my eyes but they seemed to manage. I used to do just half an hour each way and that was great and seemed short. I wouldn’t want to do more than 40/45 minutes each way personally and certainly not that often. Also depends on traffic of course and if it would vary at different times of the day. I used to do across town but friends who did motorway driving found it harder with hold ups sometimes.

I think you could look into the travelodge idea.

I agree - I know someone who does a 4-hour commute to uni three days each week and they are exhausted.

Could you look at staying overnights at a premier inn or travel lodge, Air B&B or advertise to rent a room for 3 nights a week - some homeowners like to rent out a room just during weekdays. I don't doubt your driving ability, but as others have said that is a long journey to do 4 days a week on top of your coursework. I really think you should at least look at various options for staying close to the university.

Agree. 4 hours a day is bad enough but you're unlikely to be that 'lucky' with the traffic being as it is nowadays. I reckon you can add an hour onto that per day easily.

A trip from one side of our town to the other should only take us max 15 minutes (4 miles) but 7-8am and 3-5pm are mental and it often takes 45 minutes to do 4 miles at those times.

If you can, try and get an automatic with adaptive cruise control. That makes motorway driving much easier.

That’s a crazy commute.

It's easy to underestimate the demands when we really want something and there's no guarantee an offer will come our way again. I'm very familiar with this training path and my advice stands.

Your car will take a serious battering with that kind of use.

Have you factored in repairs, tyres and frequent servicing?

There WILL be delays and traffic also, so it will almost certainly take longer than two hours.

so i had to travel to a city for a few months by car. It’s about 50 minutes. Going was fine. The way back was frequently a problem especially when bad/dark weather hits and it would sometimes take 3 hours.

Do you need to be home? I would look at the costs of driving against hotels. You might be able to work in the library one evening instead and make good use of the time. If you are in the car you aren’t stuck just being in the city centre as well.
Or you could try university online notice boards and see if there is someone who wants an occasional lodger.

I don't think the fact that you are a newer driver is an issue if you get in plenty of practice to feel confident on the road, motorways etc. However that distance 4 times a week would be exhausting. My son lives 2 hours away. When we go and visit for the day its a very long day and we are shattered after the 4 hour round trip. I couldn't do it 4 times a week. You could really do with some stopovers.

Of course you should be fine but that is a lot of driving and probably lots of fuel costs. If it is a round trip of 250 miles per day four times a week that is probably going to be expensive depending on your car. Pretty tiring too. Do you have to go into Uni or can you do some online stuff?

If the train is too expensive, have you considered commuter coaches? Assuming you are travelling into a major city.