Learning while commuting

While writing the rant yesterday about free help and Karma I was also thinking about the people in New York who need to commute 2 hours each way which eats up their time.

Could that time be used for something that helps them?

Of course it is not restricted to people in New York. There are plenty of places in the world where people commute and hour or more each way to work. Some of them do that in their own private cars, other in public transportation.

While driving a car needs much higher level of attention than riding a train or a bus, even that allows for some learning.

I have been listening to tons of podcasts while driving to and from work. I don't always have the energy or the mood for it, but I know I've learned a ton from these.

There are tons of podcasts about every topic, though I don't know how much material is available for learning other things. How much can you learn by listening and without practicing?

Of course if you are riding a train or a bus you can pull out your mobile phone and there are plenty of applications that will help you learn new skills. Many of those are free of charge.

The question what are the skills a person can learn in a short period of time that has visible impact?

For example people working in a low-paying job. What skill can they learn in a few months that will improve their employment situation? Or asking the other way around: How much investment (money and time) is needed to move forward? Can people stick to it that long? Can they believe the investment is worth it?

What about people higher up in the job-market? What do they need in order improve their skills?

Will they make progress in their employment or is it needed to keep their current job?

Who should pay for the training of high-skilled people? The people themselves? Their employers? Maybe the society (through the governments)?