Consistent travel times allow commuters less heartache than cities where it’s constantly fluctuating, says Joseph L. Schofer, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northwestern University.
“That comes from well-managed road networks, limited congestion, quick incident-clearance times, and [bus and rail] transit [options],” Schofer told
realtor.com®.
The
realtor.com® research team identified the best and worst metros for commuting by looking at the 150 largest metros and ranking them on criteria of average commute times for drivers and public transportation riders; average number of hours spent in traffic congestion; percentage of roads in “good” or “fair” condition; and percentage of bridges that are “structurally deficient.”
The following five metro ranked tops for commutes:
1. Eugene, Ore.
- Average commute time: 19.9 minutes
- Average time spent in congestion per year: 7.6 hours
2. Corpus Christi, Texas
- Average commute time: 20.4 minutes
- Average time spent in congestion per year: 6.4 hours
3. Wichita, Kan.
- Average commute time: 19.4 minutes
- Average time spent in congestion per year: 5.8 hours
4. Reno, Nev.
- Average commute time: 21.4 minutes
- Roads in “good” or “fair” condition: 69%
5. Brownsville, Texas
- Average commute time: 20.1 minutes
- Roads in “good” or “fair” condition: 56%
Meanwhile, the metros with the longest commutes are:
1. New York
- Average commute time: 35.9 minutes
- Average time spent in congestion per year: 89.4 hours
2. Los Angeles
- Average commute time: 29.6 minutes
- Average time spent in congestion per year: 104.1 hours
3. Washington, D.C.
- Average commute time: 34.4 minutes
- Roads in “good” or “fair” condition: 1%
View more
at realtor.com®.
Source: “The U.S. Metros With the Best—and Most Miserable—Commutes,” realtor.com® (Jan. 8, 2018)
