Living Far Away From Work/School

I live just over an hour from the Kassel University. I've never lived more than ten minutes away from any school I have attended. A bad day in high school was when I had to drive ten minutes to school. Work after school took me exactly seven minutes to get to almost everyday.

I have to switch from a bus to a tram to get to the unviersity in just around an hour. If I take the bus the whole way it takes over an hour. If I miss the switch my trip is extended at least 15 minutes waiting for the next tram.

How do people live like this?