3 ms·

I think you're on the right track, but I'd argue it's even more abstract than this. Assuming a transfer represents uncertainty in arrival time, do you want it

I think you're on the right track, but I'd argue it's even more abstract than this. Assuming a transfer represents uncertainty in arrival time, do you want it early or later in your trip? If the transfer is near the end of your journey, it means the uncertainty is ahead of you for most of the trip. Even if the early part of your trip is going smoothly, you still don't know if you'll arrive on time. On the other hand, if you get your transfer over with early in your trip, you can experience the rest of your journey with more confidence you'll arrive as expected. It's not so much that you have more options closer to home, it's that less of your trip is in the uncertainty zone.

ReptileMan 3y ago
I think that there is something else at play - something like arrival anticipation paradox - the final descent and taxi to the terminal feel a lot more tense than the 8 hours in flight before.
SubiculumCode 3y ago
I think its anxiety. A transfer near home is safe maybe even familiar. A transfer far away feels risky, even dangerous, where mishaps could be more likely.
- labster 3y ago
  On international flights, it’s not just familiarity, but the fact that I’ll be sleep-deprived and jet lagged at the end of a long flight. Making decisions about how to fix problems in unfamiliar circumstances with my brain half-functional is not fun. At least near home I’ve thought about alternative transit beforehand.
- cgriswald 3y ago
  I live my life by front-loading the work. I work hard early in the day so that in the evening I can relax. I tackle the complicated part of projects first. Traveling isn’t any different. Is it anxiety? Maybe. But I don’t think it’s about distance from home. I’ve got nearly as many options in Cincinnati as I do in Denver.
chrisweekly 3y ago
You both make good points, and they're not mutually exclusive. You're both right!
nerdponx 3y ago
For me it's more about emotional fatigue broadly. Transfers are annoying for any number of reasons, risk of lateness being only one of many. I would much rather front-load the annoyance and then get to relax, than to have to deal with annoyance after already traveling a long time.
_madmax_ 3y ago
I can relate to what you describe from personal experience. I definitely want to mitigate earlier than later on my trip, even for a train ride from the suburbs where i live and downtown where I work, which is about 2 hours now (the train schedule is messed up with a new train line that is late on delivery and way over budget (public budget)). That's why I really enjoy remote work, I don't have to think about that stuff anymore.
Khoth 3y ago
For me it's that I want the most inflexible leg of the trip first. I'll often get a local bus to a railway station then get a long distance train. The trains are infrequent and it's cheaper to book a specific train in advance, so if a journey is bus then train I have to get an early bus to ensure that bus delays won't make me miss my train. Whereas going the other way I can step off the train and get whichever bus happens to be next, so train then bus is a shorter journey time.
- em-bee 3y ago
  exactly this. it is easier to sort out alternatives if i am already close to the destination. when i have transfers near the start i have to be very careful to ensure that i don't miss the main part of the trip. where as i often don't even bother to look up transfers at the destination until i arrive. i'll just take whatever is available. on a recent long flight where i was in a different city than the airport i actually spent a night in the airport city to avoid troubles on the way to the city. but the problem in the article seems to be just about this: very inflexible transfer options at the destination.
glun 3y ago
Its also that the longer journey increases the variation in arrival time thus increasing the risk of not making the transfer.

ReptileMan 3y ago

I think that there is something else at play - something like arrival anticipation paradox - the final descent and taxi to the terminal feel a lot more tense than the 8 hours in flight before.

SubiculumCode 3y ago

I think its anxiety. A transfer near home is safe maybe even familiar. A transfer far away feels risky, even dangerous, where mishaps could be more likely.

labster 3y ago
On international flights, it’s not just familiarity, but the fact that I’ll be sleep-deprived and jet lagged at the end of a long flight. Making decisions about how to fix problems in unfamiliar circumstances with my brain half-functional is not fun. At least near home I’ve thought about alternative transit beforehand.
cgriswald 3y ago
I live my life by front-loading the work. I work hard early in the day so that in the evening I can relax. I tackle the complicated part of projects first. Traveling isn’t any different. Is it anxiety? Maybe. But I don’t think it’s about distance from home. I’ve got nearly as many options in Cincinnati as I do in Denver.

chrisweekly 3y ago

You both make good points, and they're not mutually exclusive. You're both right!

nerdponx 3y ago

For me it's more about emotional fatigue broadly. Transfers are annoying for any number of reasons, risk of lateness being only one of many. I would much rather front-load the annoyance and then get to relax, than to have to deal with annoyance after already traveling a long time.

_madmax_ 3y ago

I can relate to what you describe from personal experience. I definitely want to mitigate earlier than later on my trip, even for a train ride from the suburbs where i live and downtown where I work, which is about 2 hours now (the train schedule is messed up with a new train line that is late on delivery and way over budget (public budget)). That's why I really enjoy remote work, I don't have to think about that stuff anymore.

Khoth 3y ago

For me it's that I want the most inflexible leg of the trip first. I'll often get a local bus to a railway station then get a long distance train. The trains are infrequent and it's cheaper to book a specific train in advance, so if a journey is bus then train I have to get an early bus to ensure that bus delays won't make me miss my train. Whereas going the other way I can step off the train and get whichever bus happens to be next, so train then bus is a shorter journey time.

em-bee 3y ago
exactly this. it is easier to sort out alternatives if i am already close to the destination. when i have transfers near the start i have to be very careful to ensure that i don't miss the main part of the trip. where as i often don't even bother to look up transfers at the destination until i arrive. i'll just take whatever is available. on a recent long flight where i was in a different city than the airport i actually spent a night in the airport city to avoid troubles on the way to the city. but the problem in the article seems to be just about this: very inflexible transfer options at the destination.

glun 3y ago

Its also that the longer journey increases the variation in arrival time thus increasing the risk of not making the transfer.