‘I work in London – my commute is over four hours and costs £150’ | UK | News
A woman won’t leave Devon despite massive four hour commute (stock) (Image: Images By Tang Ming Tung via Getty Images)
The cost of living has soared dramatically across the UK in recent years, driven by significant global events including the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and the recent conflict in Iran.
Among the numerous expenses facing Britons is rail travel, with some of the steepest fares anywhere in Europe. This poses a particular challenge for those undertaking lengthy journeys that fall outside Transport for London’s price cap.
Yet for some commuters, the hefty ticket prices are considered worthwhile, both for the location they call home and for the positive impact those train journeys have on their mental health and productivity.
One person championing the advantages of their costly commute is 37-year-old Olivia Norton, who has lived in south Devon with her husband Will since 2019, while travelling to central London by rail for work.
The journey from South Hams to Southwark takes four-and-a-half hours and costs £150 at the off-peak fare. Despite the three-figure price tag and gruelling travel time, Olivia insists she has no intention of relocating closer to her workplace, reports the Mirror.
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Olivia praised her home town of Dawlish (Image: Getty)
She told The Times: “I once dreaded ‘the commute’ and that was from Shepherds Bush to my office in Shoreditch, but it’s become an integral and valuable part of my life in its own right.
“I get time to have a good think and finish off the deck I’ve been putting off, attempt to get to the end of my book club book and occasionally just zone out and watch the waves splash at the tracks as we pass through Dawlish.”
Olivia added that she would not consider returning to London owing to the “strong sense of community” she experiences where she now lives.
Her husband also runs a supper club centred on British food and farming, something she says would not have been possible had they remained in the capital.
Olivia said she wouldn’t move back to London (Image: Getty)
Olivia is far from alone in feeling this way. Ellisha Clapham, who quit the capital for the North of England after spending nearly a decade in London, has also declared she would not return, citing a significantly improved quality of life.
Taking to Instagram, where Ellisha boasts over 11,000 followers, she shared a slideshow making the case that relocating had been anything but a step backwards, despite London’s reputation as an economic powerhouse.
She explained: “But moving back isn’t a downgrade, it just looks different. Different pace, different priorities, different opportunities.”
One of the principal factors behind Ellisha’s decision not to return was the eye-watering cost of living in the city. She said: “ILY (I love you) London, but the sheer cost of purely existing is a bit dramatic. A night out with the girls would have me counting pennies for the rest of the month.”
By contrast, she argued that life in the North means actually having money left over to enjoy life a little more. Additional reasons Ellisha cited for her reluctance to return included the absence of a strong sense of community and greater employment prospects in the North, alongside people being less hurried, and the considerable time required to travel across London.
