How to spend your time on long bus journeys productively
Sometimes public transport can be a real nightmare. Thankfully, many other times, you’re actually getting new services. It was a relief to find out that a new bus has been launched between Exeter and Bristol which will operate 19 journeys a day around the clock. It’s the South West Falcon – the first coach service connecting major South West locations.
Tickets will start from £1. After the introductory rate, prices will increase but they will still be affordable. With a regular commuter pass costing as little as £20 a week, it's not hard to find reasons to take the journey.
According to the Department of Transport, car travel is on the decrease. The 2014 Census showed that 2 million of us travel to work by bus. That's a lot of spare time to keep yourself occupied. In fact, we spend two or more hours a day on that commute according to this article from Guardian.
So what’s there to do while commuting? How can you ensure you make the most of those extra hours, relax properly and – why not? – maximise your productivity?
Keep Active
Regardless of what you are traveling for, whether you are commuting or heading to an event in the area, you could be sitting there doing nothing for hours upon end. Long bus rides can potentially hold risks of conditions like deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Try not to worry too much, though, as only 1 in 1000 people are affected by DVT in the UK per year, according to the NHS. Why not move your feet around or stretch your legs? According to WebMD, you can try pointing your toes up and down in succession as well as other exercises to keep blood flow healthy. Whilst you can't run around the bus, you can do things right from your seat. In fact, the NHS strongly recommends it along with compression socks and lots of hydration. You would be surprised just how many steps you can do on the spot. Latest wearable technology tools can help you keep count of your steps and activity. The average person walks 3000 to 4000 steps per day, but it's recommended that we each actually aim for 10000.
Image Source: healtheo360.com
Mobile Gaming
Numerous studies have cited the health benefits of gaming. It not only helps to reduce stress but it can also improve your cognitive ability. A study by the University of Rochester found that gaming can improve your decision-making skills in the real world. This proves that enjoying a few games on your bus journey isn't just passive procrastination. Games such as blackjack and poker require a high level of concentration, giving your brain a mental boost while helping you pass the time. Blackjack in particular requires the use of your short-term memory, helping to protect it from senility and other degenerative conditions. Mobile casino apps nowadays are full-featured and intuitive, offering popular games like blackjack, slots and roulette on your mobile device. That’s pretty great considering that over half of smartphone users regularly use their phones on public transport.
To reduce stress before a busy day in the office or relaxing on your way home from work, try simple, rewarding puzzle and physics games like Candy Crush Saga, Glow Hockey or Paper Toss. Games which have a relatively simple premise and require little concentration help promote a meditative effect and give your brain some rest. It's no wonder these games are so popular. Indeed, as far back as 2014, Candy Crush had an average of 93 million daily active users and more than 1 billion games were played per day.
Of course it helps that many bus services are catering for the mobile gaming trend. There is free WiFi on buses across nine major UK cities, which the Digital Economy Minister has highlighted as a success. Gaming on the go is a welcome routine, especially if you’re commuting.
Read A Book
Reading has many benefits. But UK Government research has found it is in decline. It's a sad state of affairs, because it can be so good for us and can also be lots of fun. Luckily, reading on the go is now even easier, because you can even just download books to a device. Most people think of a Kindle or other brand of e-book reader in this respect. But you can even get apps for your phone or tablet which enable the device to read e-books. Digital reading is booming, with the Bookseller reporting 15% growth in the number of people choosing this method in 2015.
Why not re-read the Harry Potter books while on your bus journey in time for the play which is debuting in London this summer? Or you could perhaps see what all the fuss is about with the Game of Thrones series? It doesn't have to be boring: books are just a medium, there is fiction and non-fiction to appeal to each person’s individual interests and tastes. Yet the PEW research centre say that almost one quarter of adults have not read a book in the last year.
Image Source: independent.co.uk
Get Up To Date On Your Work
While you can't have loud phone conversations on the bus, you can get a lot of your emails and other little bits and pieces out of the way. According to a UK study in 2015, people spend more time checking emails in the morning than they do eating breakfast. People also now spend 20 minutes more time on media devices per day than they do sleeping. Nobody likes to take their work home with them, but sometimes those last-minute arrangements are unavoidable.
81% of smartphone users have their devices switched on at all times and that means it is imperative to keep tabs on your work agenda in case something new pops up. You can even download more advanced apps, like planning and project management apps Slack or Trello or even WordPress – for when you want to get the new company blog post out of the way before you reach home.
Catch Up With Friends
Thankfully, it's not all work and no play when doing the commute by bus. Your phone has one feature that's better than all of the others - connectivity! Whether you're sitting on Facebook (like its 1.59 billion monthly active users) or you're one of the billion users worldwide who's chatting on WhatsApp, a long bus journey doesn't need to keep you out of the loop. That's welcome news indeed for you, because you can just sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.
