More Bay Area workers seeing quicker commute times
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The share of San Francisco Bay Area residents with relatively speedy commutes has increased compared to pre-pandemic times, per a new Axios analysis of census data.
Why it matters: Despite a shift to remote work across many industries, about 1.7 million of the Bay Area's 2.4 million workers commuted by car, public transit or another mode of transportation as part of their jobs last year, per census data.
- While some don't have the luxury of working from home, shorter commute times can be good for mental health and greater job satisfaction.
By the numbers: Nearly 33% of San Francisco Bay Area workers had a commute of 15-29 minutes in 2022, up from 28.9% in 2019.
- Another 19.6% had a commute of less than 15 minutes, up from 16%.
Driving the news: There are a handful of potential factors at play here.
- The "Great Reshuffling" led many Americans to move and/or find new jobs, and some of those who enjoyed the benefits of pandemic-era remote work decided to prioritize shorter commutes in favor of more personal or family time.
- Meanwhile, some degree of remote and hybrid work is persisting post-pandemic, potentially leading to fewer cars on the road and thus less traffic and faster commutes.
The big picture: Nationally, commutes under 30 minutes became more commonplace between 2019 and 2022, per the U.S. Census Bureau's latest American Community Survey, while those 30 minutes and longer became more rare.
Of note: These findings don't include employees who work from home, and thus have a commute time of zero — or maybe a minute or two, if you stop to pour a cup of coffee on your way to your home office setup.