The trains can be fast and effective over those sort of distances. The trouble is, they terminate at only a few points which tend not to be right in the center

The trains can be fast and effective over those sort of distances. The trouble is, they terminate at only a few points which tend not to be right in the center, meaning that then getting to where you need to be when you get off of the train takes longer. E.g. between Stevenage (town North of London) and Kings Cross in the UK, its about 30 miles. Trains do that in 24 minutes. But to then go the final 1-to-3 miles to your central London Office might take another 25-30 minutes - the tube is good, but only if your destination is near a station, buses are slower than walking due to them stopping every 100m, and driving/taxis are obviously not an option due to gridlock. You can walk it of course, but it will be slower than expected due to waiting to cross streets etc, plus of course it might be raining one day, or 90% humidity @ 25c the next (neither are great for getting to work in a comfortable state!). For me, the solution appears to be get a job near the station, or perhaps buy one of those electric unicycles.