Thais are most loyal commuters

[TotallyOz]

Having spoken to boys who live in Bangkok and often travel 2 hours to go to University and live with their family to save on expenses, the study below does not surprise me in the least.

 

From Bangkok Post:

Nearly a third of Thais are willing to put up with a two-hour commute to and from work, making Thais the world's most committed commuters, according to a survey by the recruitment consultancy Robert Walters. The survey asked respondents how long they were willing to spend travelling to work, offering options of under 30 minutes, 30 minutes to an hour, an hour to two hours and more than two hours.

 

Some 31% of Thais said they would be willing to endure a one- to two-hour commute and 15% were prepared to spend even longer travelling. By contrast, only 18% of Chinese and a similar number of Americans were prepared to travel up to two hours.

 

Singaporeans have it easier. Given their country's relatively small area and highly efficient transport network, 57% of the respondents were only willing to spend between 30 minutes and an hour commuting.

 

Interestingly, only 10% of Malaysians are willing to spend more than an hour travelling to work, despite their country's larger size.

 

James Vessey, country manager at Robert Walters Thailand, commented that people in Thailand are clearly willing to do more in securing the right job, but in most countries the time people are willing to spend commuting is limited.

 

When locating headquarters, companies should consider travel, because it will clearly be a factor in their ability to secure the best staff, he added.

 

http://bangkokpost.com/311008_Business/31Oct2008_biz34.php

[Guest Oogleman]

Wonder how much the cost of the journey dictates the willingness to put up with it?

I know many Thais who will suffer the traffic jams and cattle truck conditions and use buses as they regard the metro as expensive. I guess over the course of a month they save 200-300 baht but lose many hours in time.

[Guest fountainhall]

I am surprised the Report finds the Thais are the "most committed commuters" rather than the Japanese. Having lived and worked in Tokyo, I know that many of my office colleagues regularly had 90 - 120 minute commutes - with the senior accountant requiring 3 different trains and a total of 2 1/2 hours twice each day! Perhaps, though, the Thais are less complaining about it than the Japanese!

[KhorTose]

I am surprised also. I grew up in California and a 2 hour commute is not at all that uncommon. I suspect the survey for America was done in the mid-west , and not either the west or the east coast.

[Guest lvdkeyes]

I am surprised also. I grew up in California and a 2 hour commute is not at all that uncommon. I suspect the survey for America was done in the mid-west , and not either the west or the east coast.

 

 

And not Chicago either.

[Guest shockdevil]

And not Chicago either.

 

Same holds true for the "Philadelphia, PA-New York City" commute that many of my colleagues make each business day. The salaries are higher in NYC but the cost of living is much better in Philadelphia. The financial benefit outweighs sacrificing a few hours to commute each day.

[Guest Steve1903]

Big City workers must all suffer the same problems. Anything over a couple of mile journey in London rush hour usually means lengthy and time consuming traffic queues. I'm happy to live outside the major metropolis areas and travel in now and then at my leisure. I'll leave rush hour to the dedicated.