My Commute – Kieran’s Story

One of my best experiences throughout university was the commuting that I got the opportunity to do. Travelling by train was an interesting experience, to say the least. Even though you would often have to battle crowded or delayed trains, as well as other factors, travelling via train was still an enjoyable experience. Now, it is worth saying that the trains can be stressful at times as I just mentioned. There will be times where you will find your train has been delayed by 20 minutes meaning you’ll almost have to run to get to your class on time. Or it could be that the train timetable gets changed meaning your train that got there 25 minutes before now gets there only 5 minutes before. Whatever the circumstances, it might start to get on your nerves ever so slightly. But my best advice is, don’t let it. Yes it’s annoying, and yes you might be late, but sometimes there’s just nothing that can be done. If you’re doing everything in your power to make sure you’re there on time then that’s all you can do. And the chances are your lecturers will understand because they probably know how challenging it can be.

I was able to meet some really interesting characters and also make some good friends who I keep in contact with until now.

But even better than that was the driving I got to do. It was my choice to drive for around 2 and a half years and it was some of the best times of my university life. This was because I was able to gain invaluable experience that I never would have got if it wasn’t for uni. If you’re like me and have newly passed your test soon before university, then I highly recommend making as much use of driving as you can. It helped massively with my confidence when it came to driving. You’ll get to learn the roads around the city you’re living/commuting to and will also get used to a variety of different roads that you may encounter later on in life.

Of course, driving has other perks. For example, it could allow you to meet up with friends who maybe don’t drive and go out somewhere. There’s also the opportunity for you to listen to your own music at your own volumes. However, make sure you’re being safe as the last thing you want to do is lose concentration whilst driving!

And don’t be afraid if you’re feeling a little nervous about it for the first week or so. It’s a new experience and it’s something you’ve likely not done very often, if at all! Just take things slowly and bit by bit your confidence will grow and it’ll feel much easier to travel to and from places.

However, as is common with me, there is always that one time where I forget something. The one I always remember is when I went to get my house keys after forgetting them… to then forget my car keys… only to then forget my house keys again when I came back to get my car keys. So one thing I have always learned from commuting is that you must make sure you know what you need before you leave and that you also should never let your mind play tricks on you!