Question: I want to tell someone the following:  

"I bring an e-reader with me on the bus every day so that I have something to do during my commute to work."  

Does the phrase "commute to work" clearly refer to the trip there **and** the trip back from work? Or is it more proper to say "commute to and from work" in order to ensure that it is clear that I mean both directions?

Answer: 
"Commute to work" does imply, as you suggest, your morning trip in the direction towards work. It is not obvious that it refers to both directions.

The first definition of ['to' in the OALD](http://www.oxfordadvancedlearnersdictionary.com/dictionary/to) is:

> 
> (1) in the direction of something; towards something  
> 
> *I walked to the office.*
> 
> 
> 

Many other meanings are similar: the word that follows "to" will usually be understood to be the second half of a comparison, or the item that an action is directed toward. So, you are correct that 

> 
> My commute to and from work
> 
> 
> 

would be a clearer way to state this. You might also say, "my commute," if you don't mind a little ambiguity (a listener will have to determine from context whether you mean your commute in general or a specific direction), or "my morning and evening commute."
"Commute" does have the meaning of [going and coming back:](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/commute)

> 
> to travel regularly over some distance, *as from a suburb into a city and back*: He commutes to work by train.
> 
> 
> 

However, it wouldn't be very clear. Not a lot of people know this. A better alternative is:

> 
> I bring an e-reader with me everyday so that I can have something to do when I journey to work to and fro.
> 
> 
>