More Americans are leaving for work earlier, staying on the road longer and commuting from suburb to suburb instead of from suburb to city.
Those were among the key findings from “Commuting in America III,” a report released Monday that found the average one-way travel time for the nation’s 128.3 million commuters was 25.5 minutes in 2000, up from 22.4 minutes in 1990 and 21.7 minutes in 1980.
The study relied on data from the 2000 U.S. Census.
The number of solo drivers grew, the study found, while the number of people walking to work declined. Those working from home increased to about 4 million, with a growing number of those over age 55.
Regarding the metro area, the study found that between 1990 and 2000:
Denver was one of five cities with gains of less than 1 percent in the number of solo drivers. The others were Tampa, Fla.; Salt Lake City; West Palm Beach, Fla.; and New York.
Denver ranked seventh in the total gain in number of workers who shifted to mass transit. Seattle ranked first.
Denver ranked fourth in gaining new bus riders, attracting 16,248 new riders. Seattle ranked first with 25,239.
Six percent of commuters in the Denver-Boulder-Greeley area have a commute of more than one hour to get to work. New York ranked highest with 18.4 percent.
“Generally, the trends are the same locally as they are nationally,” said Simon Montagu of the Denver Regional Council of Governments. “We’re seeing the same growth.”
Yet several factors could soon change the American commute, including immigration and the 76 million baby boomers beginning to retire.
“Unlike most native-born Americans or immigrants who have been in the U.S. for more than five years, many new immigrants either carpool, bike, walk or use public transportation for their daily commute,” study author said Alan Pisarski in a statement.
The study was published by the Transportation Research Board, a division of the National Research Council, an independent adviser to the federal government.
Staff writer Will Shanley can be reached at 303-954-1260 or wshanley@denverpost.com.
