Is it permissible to start Shemoneh Esrei before the tzibur?

A person who is davening with a tzibur in shul may not begin Shemoneh Esrei before the tzibur. Passing ahead of the tzibur is considered disrespectful. If a person is in a rush, he must leave the shul before he begins Shemoneh Esrei. Likewise, if one is concerned that the tzibur will miss zman tefilah, he should leave the shul and daven at home. If he will not make it outside in time, he may daven inside the shul. If one davens Shemoneh Esrei for a long time but wants to say Kedusha with the tzibur, the poskim disagree about whether he may begin Shemoneh Esrei early.

סימן צ' ס"י ס"ק ל"ד ול"ו ביאורים ומוספים דרשו 36

Is there a benefit in driving to a more distant shul?

Chazal are highly critical of a person who can attend minyan but does not. They describe him as a bad neighbor who brings exile upon himself and his offspring. On the other hand, one who arrives early and stays late in shul merits long life. A person who has a choice between walking to a closer shul and one that is further away should go the longer distance. The additional steps he takes will bring him additional reward. There is no extra reward in driving to a further shul. Exceptions to this halacha include cases where the closer shul has more participants, where it is his family’s shul or where it is the shul he usually attends.

סי"א ס"ק ל"ו ול"ט ביאורים ומוספים דרשו 39, 40

When is one permitted to rush out of shul?

When one gets close to a beis hakneses, he should run up to its entrance. Upon reaching the doorway, he should pause and enter slowly with a sense of awe. It is forbidden to depart from shul in a rush, as this gives the impression that attending shul is a burden. If one is leaving shul temporarily, he may rush out to hasten his return. Likewise, if he is going to learn Torah he may hurry out of shul. In these cases, a person should run even though onlookers may not realize why he is rushing out of shul.

סי"ב ס"ק מ' מ"א ומ"ג ביאורים ומוספים דרשו 43

• The primary component of tefila b’tzibur is davening Shemoneh Esrei together with ten men. One must begin Shemoneh Esrei with the tzibur. Some poskim say that as long as one starts while a member of the tzibur is davening, it counts as tefila b’tzibur. The poskim also disagree about whether there must be at least ten men who are davening or whether it is sufficient to have six daveners and four people who are not davening to complete a minyan.

• If there are several mourners in the shul and each one wishes to serve as chazon, the poskim discuss whether it is appropriate to divide the tzibur into smaller minyanim. Some say not to, since there is a benefit to a larger minyan. Others say that the chesed for the mourner and the deceased outweighs the benefit of davening with a larger minyan.

• A weak person--even if he is not classified as a choleh--may also miss a minyan. For the sake of health or parnasah, one may travel to a location that does not have a minyan. 

• What is the reward for those who come first to shul?

• How far does a person have to drive to daven with a minyan?

• May one miss minyan to avoid bitul Torah?