Uni travelling nightmare

Dylan Fitzgerald travels two hours each way to go to uni. Picture: DONNA OATES 98283

By NICOLE WILLIAMS

DYLAN Fitzgerald spends four hours a day travelling to and from university in Hawthorn.
But despite the distance, he said it was his best option for his future.The 19-year-old Garfield resident is studying an Associate Degree in Engineering at Swinburne and catches the train to the Hawthorn campus five days a week.
“It is terrible,” he said.
“It is an hour-and-a-half to two hours on the train and I live in Garfield, so I drive to Pakenham to catch the Metro trains.
”With classes Monday to Friday, some days he has to leave home at 6am to make a 8.30am class and might not arrive home until 9pm.
Mr Fitzgerald said he could catch a V/Line train, but the infrequency meant he would be halfway home on a Metro train before a V/Line pulled into the station.
“I could catch a V/Line train, but they only leave every hour and I can watch three Metro trains leave in that time.”
The cost of fuel and train fares do add up, but it far outweighs the options of driving or moving closer to campus, since he still lives at home.
“There is no parking at Richmond, and it is all paid parking if you do manage to get one,” he said.
“And the fuel cost – I am at uni five days a week, so I don’t get much chance to generate an income.”
There is always the chance that trains could get delayed, as they were last week, or peak hour trains means he can sometimes stand by as three full trains go past.
But the sacrifice is worth it for having a Swinburne engineering degree.
“Swinburne is the best uni in state for engineering, they have industry-based learning and are well known with major companies, so it is great to help get jobs,” he said.
“For that, I am willing to sacrifice four hours a day.”