Train commute - Days 5 to 7

I used the train only from Wednesday this week, since I took my car out after a long time on Monday.

Looks like I am getting used to the train journey, because I don't have anything interesting of note any longer. Other than the stray drunken auto driver who took me on a tour around Jeevarathnam Nagar-Shanthi Colony-Damodarapuram-Besant Nagar and the 1000s of Mael Maruvathur devotees who boarded-alighted-re-boarded and re-alighted in a span of 20 seconds at one of the railway stations, life is now getting into a routine.

From my 2 week experience I can see a lot of benefits with the train. I am obviously not comparing it with a car ride and am limiting the comparison to a bus. Train is obviously proving to be more expensive, but that's mainly because I have to take an auto in the morning and evening. If I start using my bike, I can reduce that cost by nearly 70%. And in terms of travel time, it is longer in the morning mainly due to the travel involved to and from the station. Same is the case for the return trip. However, the return trip takes 2 hours which is a guaranteed constant.

And if I get a seat in the train, which I do more often than not, I find reading books to be much easier than while reading in a bus. Also, in a bus, the lighting would not be adequate in the evening, whereas in a train, there are lights everywhere in the compartment.

But MOST importantly, while travelling by train, I don't need to endure someone poking my ribs or encroaching upon my shoulder and forearm or rubbing against my waist, as it invariably happens in the bus. Even if the train is crowded, there are always few pockets of free space wherein nobody violates my personal space.

But having said all this, if my company does provide buses with only 4 seas in a row, I think it will be my choice hands down!