Make the morning commute a little easier

Whether you commute by car, train, bus or bike, the morning commute is a boring but inevitable part of our daily routine.

According to Transport New Zealand, people in New Zealand spend an average of 1 hour travelling every day, and only 37 per cent of people use public transport. The average commuter spends a lot of time stuck in peak hour traffic!

If you’re struggling with your daily commute, check out our tips to make it faster, more efficient and fun!

Be open to discussing options with your boss

Bosses understand how stressful a long commute can be, so they might be open to rearranging your hours to help you to work better and smarter. You could propose a different schedule that would help you maintain a work/life balance and get all your work done.

Carpool when you can

If you live close to another co-worker, you might be able to save money and time by carpooling. You’ll help to eliminate congestion from your commute as well as producing less carbon and pollution, and if you’re feeling confident, you could always try a little Carpool Karaoke!

Commute your way to a better you

Move over music, because podcasts and audiobooks are the newest way to listen! Apps like Audiobooks NZ, Spotify and Podcasts.NZ have thousands of podcasts and books from cooking to mindfulness and everything in between, so you can always discover something new.

Mix it up

If you’re getting tired of the mundane bus or car ride to work, you could pop on a pair of walking shoes or jump on a bike and get some fresh air.

Walking or cycling to work is suggested to make commuters happier and more productive, and finding a different route to work can help exercise your brain. Most importantly, walking or cycling helps keep you healthy!

Be productive

For those who catch public transport, it can be boring watching the world go by. If you’re super busy or don’t have time to learn something new, you can always use this time to plan your tasks for the day, reply to emails or brainstorm ideas. These little annoying tasks can often take up a large portion of your morning, so it helps if you’re already ready to go when you arrive at work!

Make life easier with myQ scheduling

Have you ever been halfway to work and realised that you’re not sure if you closed the garage door? Having to turn back around and check if you closed the door adds extra time to your already long and stressful commute.

With myQ scheduling, you can schedule your garage door to close (or stay closed if it is already closed) during your regular commute time. So if you leave the house at 8:00am, you can schedule your door to close at 8:10am (or any time you like!) and have peace of mind that your door will close on time if you forget to do so.

For more information on Merlin’s myQ scheduling feature, visit our website or call us on
0800 653 667.