If you’ve ever studied transportation planning, you probably know about trip chains: the series of small trips one takes that add up to your total commute.

My trip chain in the morning involves two stops before getting to work. First, I drop my daughter off at pre-school, swing by the coffeeshop, and then to my office. The total elapsed time for my commute (depending on how busy the coffeeshop is) runs around twenty minutes. On foot.

The first link of the chain is a little over four blocks. Next, a half block to the coffeeshop. Finally, five blocks to work. At the end of the day, I go straight home, six blocks.

No traffic jams. No stress (well, maybe a little if it’s pouring rain). No pollution.