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How Many Days Americans Waste Commuting In The Course Of A Lifetime, Mapped By City (digg.com)

Posted by msmash on from the tussle-continues dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Have you ever stopped to think that over the course of your lifetime, you will likely spend hundreds of days commuting back and forth from home and work? If not, we've got a great map that's sure to make you question what you're doing with your life. The good folks over at Educated Driver used Census Bureau data on average daily roundtrip commute times in hundreds of cities nationwide to calculate how much time Americans spend traveling to and from work over the course of their lives. (They assumed a 45-year career working 250 days a year.) The results, mapped by city, are pretty horrifying.

90 of 165 comments (clear)

  1. Cities sure are great! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    But the price you pay to live or work in one is not.

    1. Re:Cities sure are great! by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 1

      Many cities restrict downtown development, so you end up living in the endless suburban sprawl even if you would prefer a downtown condo.

    2. Re:Cities sure are great! by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 1, Offtopic

      Those aren't cities -- those are sprawled suburbs of themselves that think they can call themselves "cities."

    3. Re:Cities sure are great! by XXongo · · Score: 1
      I'm somewhat surprised-- I would have thought that the people who actually live IN the cities would have short commute times, and the people who live in the 'burbs long commutes, but the map doesn't show that (I assume that the commute time listed is for where people live, not where they work, since it's based on census data.)

      Most of the data is simply red for big city, brown for medium city, yellow through blue for smaller towns, but there are a few puzzling exceptions. 61 minute commute for Winnemucca, NV, population 7,000? 64 minute commute if you live in DeRidder, Louisiana?

    4. Re:Cities sure are great! by Oswald+McWeany · · Score: 1

      Commutes in cities themselves are often short. The problem is commuting in from the sub-BURPS, if you want a 4 bedroom McHouse on a quarter-acre lot like all the people you hated from high school now have.

      Homes within most cities usually fall under one of two realms:
      1) Ridiculously Expensive
      2) Not Ridiculously Expensive but high crime.

      If you're happy living in a city, you're either in an unusual city, or you're wealthy and can afford to live in a good spot. Not everyone is wealthy or live in such a city.

      Sure, I'd love to be able to live close to where I work- but are there any affordable places within 20 mins of work. Absolutely not. The only areas that might work are the type of areas you lock your door and hope you don't get stopped at a traffic light passing through.

      Not all cities are "livable"- some cities you have to live in the suburbs.

      --
      "That's the way to do it" - Punch
    5. Re:Cities sure are great! by PopeRatzo · · Score: 1

      Homes within most cities usually fall under one of two realms:
      1) Ridiculously Expensive
      2) Not Ridiculously Expensive but high crime.

      You've lived in the wrong cities. I don't know what you'd call "expensive", but I lived for many years near the downtown of one of America's most beautiful and vibrant cities and I could walk to my office. There were huge parks all around me and it was completely quiet and peaceful at night when I'd walk my dog. I could see the iconic skyline from my back porch amid the well-kept Victorian town houses and 1890s-vintage three-flats.

      There was a police academy near by, but there wasn't really much presence at night, except for some older cops coming to the range or to work out at the facilities.

      You just have to pick your places carefully. Sometimes, you have to choose your job based on where you want to live instead of the other way around.

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    6. Re:Cities sure are great! by edi_guy · · Score: 1

      That's another reason that decent houses, in decent locations within cities, are so expensive. People are willing to trade $$$ for all that accumulated commute time. Your SOMA condo is pricey, but you get to/from work in downtown SF in 10 mins.

    7. Re:Cities sure are great! by alvinrod · · Score: 2

      Unfortunately, the number of people who can live in such an arrangement is small relative to the overall population. You would likely think a person sounded utterly ridiculous if they used your line of reasoning to pretend that poverty didn't exist because it didn't affect them personally and that anyone could escape it simply by making more careful decisions.

      I also wouldn't be surprised to find out that you lived in a rent controlled property, which tends to be pretty common in a lot of cities. It's a great deal for whoever gets to live there because their rates are artificially low, but it also keeps people from developing new properties which contributes to the problem of a lack of housing in the places that people want to live. I also suspect that no one would be able to tear down that town house or those three-flats in order to build an apartment complex that would let more people live closer to their work.

      You can't have both historical districts (or rent controls) and short commutes. Cities often seem to push for the former, even though it makes the latter worse and everyone complains about long commutes quite a bit. Maybe it won't be so bad when we get self-driving cars, but looking at it from a value proposition, people spend a lot of their lives stuck in traffic. You're lucky to have escaped that fate, but you should realize that you're the exception to the rule and that it is not possible for most people to have that experience. When the number of jobs in an area greatly outstrips that number of places to live, it's impossible to avoid commutes.

    8. Re:Cities sure are great! by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 2, Insightful

      1) New York is a city. Has a high-density downtown core which most people live in.

      Nope. NYC metro area has a population of over 20M. Only 8.6M live in the city itself, and only 1.6M of those are in Manhattan.

      NYC has a strong NIMBY movement, and it is very difficult to get building permits for new downtown housing.

      Chicago is a city. Has a high-density downtown core which most people live in.

      Nope. Chicago is even more skewed than NYC toward suburban sprawl into "Chicagoland", extending into Indiana and Wisconsin.

    9. Re:Cities sure are great! by hey! · · Score: 1

      It's people who live outside the city who work in the city who make the average commuting time so long. If you work in the city and live in the city, getting around can be easy.

      Supposed you lived in The Dakota, a toney apartment building overlooking Central Park, and worked at Chase Bank in the financial district seven miles away. Your commute, including walking to and from the subway, would be half an hour on the dot *at the height of rush hour*.

      But the thing is, people who can afford to live a quick subway ride away from a major employment center aren't poor, or even working class these days. The janitor who empties our lucky banker's wastebasket probably lives someplace like the Bronx, and even though he also has a single subway ride to get to work, the train has to cover sixteen miles and it takes him at least an hour.

      So the source of the long average commute problem isn't just *transportation*. Affordable housing is also an issue. Also housing preferences. Wanting that house in the suburbs drives up commute times even in places with reasonable real estate prices.

      --
      Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
    10. Re:Cities sure are great! by omnichad · · Score: 1

      61 minute commute for Winnemucca, NV, population 7,000? 64 minute commute if you live in DeRidder, Louisiana?

      These exceptions probably have to do with no jobs anywhere nearby for most of the people living there and commuting a long distance rather than in heavy traffic. DeRidder appears to be surrounded on 3 sides by nature preserves / parks. Nearest major employers are probably about an hour's drive straight south.

    11. Re:Cities sure are great! by fafalone · · Score: 1

      Supposed you lived in The Dakota, a toney apartment building overlooking Central Park, and worked at Chase Bank in the financial district seven miles away. Your commute, including walking to and from the subway, would be half an hour on the dot *at the height of rush hour*.

      Except for all the days where it takes 90 minutes because of signal problems, a sick passenger, someone pulling the brake, a train overrunning the platform, police activity, broken rail... and of course the major delays where you just have to walk to another line or take an Uber because it will be hours after someone was hit by a train, or there was a track fire. Then there's all the less common things we all nonetheless run into... stuck between stations for hours for various reasons.

    12. Re:Cities sure are great! by hey! · · Score: 1

      And of course people driving over the GWB from Jersey never have *any* events to mess up their commute. Anyhow our banker living in The Dakota is just another example of trading commute time for housing preferences. For the same price he could live next door to work.

      There's really no way to beat density when it comes to travel efficiency. If people don't have to move far, then you don't have travel problems. And by in large traffic in Manhattan is surprisingly light most of the time. It's the arteries that move people on and off the island that are nightmares -- FDR Drive and the Henry Hudson.

      --
      Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
    13. Re:Cities sure are great! by fafalone · · Score: 1

      Surprisingly light? You're either joking or have never driven or been in a taxi/rideshare below 59th during daylight hours.

    14. Re:Cities sure are great! by dcw3 · · Score: 1

      I live in the northern VA suburbs, and in '96 bought a $185k townhouse about 15 miles from my office because that's what I could afford. Several years and a promotion later, I had a real-estate agent look for something closer to work. I gave them the parameters of within 5 miles of the office, and up to $250k, and similar size to my existing place. Couldn't do it....looked for a couple months and gave up, because the homes close to work were just that much more expensive.

      I don't know why people continue to hate on those of us stuck in the burbs. I tried.

      --
      Just another day in Paradise
    15. Re:Cities sure are great! by Oswald+McWeany · · Score: 1

      Yeah, same here in mid-sized Southern city. A house in the city costs about 40-50% more than one in the suburbs. I think this is the case in most places, because most people would probably rather be where all the facilities are, where work is, where the shops are, where the better schools are.

      --
      "That's the way to do it" - Punch
    16. Re:Cities sure are great! by hey! · · Score: 1

      I've driven quite a bit around Manhattan. Sure things are a mess down in the financial district, with its tangles of old Dutch cowpaths, but north of Houston the grid keeps everything moving very well. Is rush hour north of Houston like driving around Omaha Nebraska at 6am on a Sunday morning? Obviously not. But having learned to drive in Boston, traffic on Manhattan city streets always strikes me as surprisingly orderly and manageable.

      Now throw a bridge, tunnel or expressway into the mix, and the picture changes dramatically. New York City as a region has horrible traffic. But if driving around within the borough of Manhattan isn't manageable for you, then you probably shouldn't drive around *any* city.

      Chicago follows this pattern as well. It's got terrible regional traffic, but as long as you stay away from expressways driving around *within* a neighborhood is surprisingly easy.

      --
      Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
  2. Method also matters. by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Method of travel also matters -- you can read a book on a train or bus. You can't in a (not self-driving) car stuck in traffic.

    1. Re:Method also matters. by XXongo · · Score: 2

      Method of travel also matters -- you can read a book on a train or bus. You can't in a (not self-driving) car stuck in traffic.

      yeah, before they invented audiobooks, commuting was a drag.

    2. Re:Method also matters. by hawguy · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Method of travel also matters -- you can read a book on a train or bus. You can't in a (not self-driving) car stuck in traffic.

      I bike to work most days and don't consider any of that time "wasted" -- I spend less time in the gym and more time on my bike, and I look forward to the bike ride home, sitting in traffic in my car is no fun.

    3. Re:Method also matters. by PolygamousRanchKid+ · · Score: 1

      Method of travel also matters -- you can read a book on a train or bus.

      A lot of folks I see commuting are not wasting time commuting . . . they appear to be commuting wasted, instead.

      Of course, some folks might consider time spent being wasted, wasted time . . . but I guess that's a personal lifestyle choice.

      --
      Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
    4. Re:Method also matters. by Anubis+IV · · Score: 1

      Exactly. I lack public transit along my route, so (aside from podcasts or audiobooks, which will never have my full attention while I drive) my commute is nothing but unproductive, wasted time that I will never get back. As a result, I specifically chose to purchase a home that's an 8-minute drive from where I work, that way I could minimize that lost time.

      In a few years, if self-driving cars are a thing we can reasonably afford, I wouldn't mind moving out into the country and commuting to work, since our dollar would get us more land and more home without the loss of productive time we'd suffer now. I'd simply rearrange my morning and evening routines so that the things I do by myself (e.g. checking news feeds, catching up on reading/TV/film/games, etc.) happen during my drive, thus allowing me to spend even more time with my family.

      But until self-driving cars are here, there's no getting around the fact that those hours really add up, so I haven't regretted having a shorter commute in order to have those extra minutes each day to spend on things that matter.

    5. Re:Method also matters. by PopeRatzo · · Score: 2

      yeah, before they invented audiobooks, commuting was a drag.

      That's why god invented beer in cans. You can pop a top with one hand and still keep one on the wheel. Keep a stack of good 8-tracks and your commute passes in a flash.

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    6. Re:Method also matters. by edi_guy · · Score: 5, Insightful
      Ditto this. Started riding my bike to work many years ago, after frustration with public transit and cost of driving/parking. Bike commuting is fantastic, and the random times I am forced to take the bus/train or drive it's so depressing. My $600 bike from 2006-ish requires occasional maintenance I do myself, but works great. I'm in decent shape in large part due to biking, but it's . As you do it more, things you were concerned about go away. "What about the rain" it's totally fine to ride in the rain with the right gear. Too hot, too cold. Rarely an issue.

      Keys to biking in my mind is

      1.) it's not a race, there's no reason run red lights & stop signs, get sweaty, etc. going at a normal pace is perfectly quick
      2.) don't ride like you are entitled. Whether legally you can or not, don't hog the lanes, give buses and cars the right of way, pedestrians obviously. Be chill.

      Unfortunately a lot of my cycling cohorts on the road are indeed jerks. I keep promising to strap a GoPro on the handlebars to create a clip of bad bicyclists..but all in all I recommend giving it a try. First 2 weeks might be an adjustment, but I promise that week 3 things will click and you might never go back.

    7. Re:Method also matters. by Cro+Magnon · · Score: 1

      True, but even with that, I'd rather drive for 30 minutes each way than take the bus for a minimum of 90 minutes each way.

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    8. Re:Method also matters. by ranton · · Score: 2

      I bike to work most days and don't consider any of that time "wasted" -- I spend less time in the gym and more time on my bike, and I look forward to the bike ride home, sitting in traffic in my car is no fun.

      Then again if you bike to work, you are among the few who have very short commutes. I have a 40 minute commute, but it would be an 175 minute commute by bike.

      --
      -- All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke
    9. Re:Method also matters. by hawguy · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I bike to work most days and don't consider any of that time "wasted" -- I spend less time in the gym and more time on my bike, and I look forward to the bike ride home, sitting in traffic in my car is no fun.

      Then again if you bike to work, you are among the few who have very short commutes. I have a 40 minute commute, but it would be an 175 minute commute by bike.

      In this country, a bike friendly commute doesn't usually happen by accident. My wife and I chose where to live based on our commutes -- we live a 10 minute walk from a train station for her, and a 10 mile ride to work for me. Hopefully to become a 5 mile ride early next year when my employer moves to a new office.

      My bike commute is a consistent 45 minutes (mostly on little used neighborhood streets and dedicated trails), my car commute is 30 - 60 minutes.

    10. Re: Method also matters. by Anubis+IV · · Score: 1

      About a minute by car or five on foot. The school is on the edge of our neighborhood, so it's easy to access, and because our neighborhood has no cut-throughs the traffic just hits the school and turns around without ever entering the neighborhood itself. We get all the benefits of close proximity (i.e. fast commute, letting the kids walk themselves, etc.) without all of the drawbacks that close proximity typically entails (e.g. lots of traffic in the neighborhood).

    11. Re:Method also matters. by westlake · · Score: 1

      I bike to work most days and don't consider any of that time "wasted" -- I spend less time in the gym and more time on my bike, and I look forward to the bike ride home.

      The bike commute here is seasonal at best. With extreme conditions taking even the most youthful and vigorous cyclists off the road in both summer and winter. There are some fine trails available for recreational cyclists, for the daily commute, not so much.

    12. Re: Method also matters. by khb · · Score: 1

      About 4 years ago I started biking to work on an ebike. My commute was a hilly 7miles (1 way). What had been a 15 to 30 minute commute became a 20 minute workout). Now my commute is closer to 13, and I do it in under an hour. My schedule can accommodate an hour long commute...especially since it doubles as a workout.

      Electricity used averages .0271 kWh/mi

    13. Re:Method also matters. by serviscope_minor · · Score: 1

      2.) don't ride like you are entitled. Whether legally you can or not, don't hog the lanes,

      Blocks to that. I feel entirely entitled to not get run over.

      If you use the middle of the lane you sometimes get to exchange pleasantries with the angry driver behind, but it's vanishingly rare that they'll actually try to murder you. But hogging the edge makes it much more likely you'll get knocked over by some entitled asshat of a driver trying to get past when there's insufficient room. If seen that happen far too many times.

      --
      SJW n. One who posts facts.
    14. Re:Method also matters. by sad_ · · Score: 1

      Unfortunately a lot of my cycling cohorts on the road are indeed jerks. I keep promising to strap a GoPro on the handlebars to create a clip of bad bicyclists.

      please don't do this, yes there are bad apples, but us cyclists already get looked at in a bad way enough as it is, we don't need video's showing them few bad actors.

      --
      On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero.
    15. Re:Method also matters. by dcw3 · · Score: 1

      Seriously? You think the proportion of bad apples is different between the two? I'd defy you to show any statistical evidence.

      --
      Just another day in Paradise
  3. Multiplaction makes numbers big. by jellomizer · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I actually rather like my commute. I only have a few spots of traffic, but for the most part it is nice time for me to drive down with only myself and my thoughts.
    Being scared that I may have wasted 2 years of my life driving to work, isn't that big of a deal. What is more scary is the 10 years of my life actually working.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    1. Re:Multiplaction makes numbers big. by jezwel · · Score: 1

      Paid to poo at work. Commuting time and pooing time are probably about equal TBH (not that much either way though).

  4. It's worth it by rsilvergun · · Score: 2, Funny

    to most Americans. They couldn't afford nice houses in nice neighborhoods with nice schools and clean air if they didn't spend 2 hours a day commuting to work. Public transit isn't an option because nobody wants to pay for it, because people love cars (you get a lot of happy memories associated with them from when you were a teenager and your parents paid for it) and because you feel like a poor person riding the bus.

    This might change, but only because wages are plummeting and pretty soon most Americans won't be able to afford their own cars.

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    1. Re:It's worth it by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 1

      I have happier memories from trains than on cars. I remember that having a car in high school still didn't get me many girls :D And my definition of "nice" is "walkable area with trains", not "huge house and not walkable."

  5. Re:Suckers by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 1

    Try setting up a basic sciences lab with multi-million dollar equipment in your home. Try doing other people's plumbing or electrical work from home.

  6. Re:Suckers by jellomizer · · Score: 1

    However for a lot of companies that have Work from home, the employee is often not seen, and will not be considered for promotion.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  7. Re:I'll tell you what is NOT the solution by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 1

    Many jobs still involve working with physical objects on site, or meeting with actual people, not just pushing bits or shuffling papers around.

  8. No time off? by Albanach · · Score: 5, Insightful

    They assumed a 45-year career working 250 days a year

    So, 365 days in a year, less 104 weekend days leaves just 261 days.

    We then have holidays - most folk get off (either on the day or in lieu) New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

    That puts as to 255 days available to work. In other words, the analysis reckons the average person will take five workdays total for vacation and sick time in an entire year.

    And they think it's the commute time to be concerned about!

    1. Re:No time off? by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yep, America sucks in this respect. Keep pointing it out -- US workers need it drummed into their heads that they're being exploited.

    2. Re:No time off? by will_die · · Score: 1

      No they are taking high pay for the extra work. I am at a US job and get around 50 days off a year however I am taking lower pay compared to if I was at a job where I only got 15 days off a year.

    3. Re:No time off? by sdinfoserv · · Score: 2

      and be sure to keep telling them "unions are evil"....

    4. Re:No time off? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      That puts as to 255 days available to work. In other words, the analysis reckons the average person will take five workdays total for vacation and sick time in an entire year.

      And they think it's the commute time to be concerned about!

      Americans are sick to be expected to work 250+ days a year. That would put them as the least productive workforce among civilised countries.

      When I do project estimation, I always used 1 year = 200 working days for estimates.

      Saner countries usually have 10-15 days of national holidays, and 15-25 days of normal leave days, plus a number of sick leave days if given by doctor. 200 working days is what you usually get a year.

  9. Assumptions... by gosand · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The assumptions are that you have the same commute during your entire career.
    I have had anywhere from zero (worked from home for 8 years) to 1.5 hours. For that 1.5 hour commute, I drove or walked to a train station, rode the train into the city (Chicago) and then had a 20 minute *brisk* walk to the office. During that commute I was able to relax, and I read lots of books that year. I also got 40 minutes of exercise every day walking to/from the office. My schedule was also very predictable. So there are trade-offs. I wouldn't want to do it today, but it wasn't bad at all at the time.

    --

    My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.

  10. Re:Suckers by Narcocide · · Score: 1

    Nobody who has reached this point in their career is still naive enough to believe they'd be considered for promotion in the first place.

  11. Shocking! by sootman · · Score: 4, Informative

    Digg still exists?

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    1. Re:Shocking! by alvinrod · · Score: 1

      Maybe it's actually good now. Social media and social networks that grow too large seem to end up attracting too many idiots and the signal-to-noise ratio suffers horribly. Eventually you just get a lowest common denominator deluge of cat memes and moronic whinging. Maybe September finally ended for them.

      Nope, I checked and it's still mostly crap. Wonderful articles such as "Jaden Smith Wants You To Dress Like A Superhero", "Holy Crap, Here's Why You Always Lock Your Car Door When Lions Are Around", "This Is, Hands Down, The Worst Pool Delivery In History", and "Neopets Let Me Be A Gay Kid Online" make up the bulk of the front page. Stories like this one we're discussing here seem to be more of an accident.

      Most stories only have single or low double digit diggs though, so I'm guessing that the user base is incredibly small, or that it's mainly lurkers that don't participate.

  12. Commuting drains the soul by XxtraLarGe · · Score: 1

    At my last job, I used to have an hour commute each way. There were two ways I could get there. One was mostly divided highway @ 70 MPH, but was several miles longer than the back road way, which was mostly 55 MPH, but also cut through several towns with 45 & 35 MPH zones, along with stop signs and traffic lights. I usually took the back road way because I got better gas mileage. Besides, I'd rather worry about hitting a deer than getting crushed by a semi.

    When I took my new job, it cut my commute by about 25 miles & 35 minutes each way. I figured it saved me about 280 hours a year and nearly 12,500 miles of driving, and over $1500 in gas. Given all that, I figured I could probably take a $1500 cut and still be even with my old job. Thankfully, I got a 20% increase over my old salary. The pay increase was a nice benefit, but the shorter commute has been a life-changing experience!

    --
    Taking guns away from the 99% gives the 1% 100% of the power.
  13. I live in Seattle by WillAffleckUW · · Score: 1

    Minutes.

    It's even faster if you bike or skateboard, by the way.

    --
    -- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
    1. Re:I live in Seattle by WillAffleckUW · · Score: 1

      Because in Seattle traffic laws don't apply to bikes.

      Sure they do. I think you meant cars, which blow thru stop signs and red lights here.

      --
      -- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
  14. I was so much time commuting by OrangeTide · · Score: 1

    And by waste I mean I'm getting paid to show up, as in I have a fucking job and being here is part of it.

    --
    “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
  15. Ya Ever Notice How Things Are NEVER Slash dotted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    any more?

  16. Re:Suckers by fluffernutter · · Score: 1

    Where I work, at home employees are just as entitled to apply for new positions as in office employees are.

    --
    Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
  17. Zoom out to see Hawaii and Alaska by Aristos+Mazer · · Score: 1

    The article starts out zoomed in on the connected 48 states. Zoom out to see Hawaii and Alaska. Hawaii has a giant red dot -- you may not be going far on a small island, but getting there is apparently slow.

    1. Re:Zoom out to see Hawaii and Alaska by laie_techie · · Score: 1

      The article starts out zoomed in on the connected 48 states. Zoom out to see Hawaii and Alaska. Hawaii has a giant red dot -- you may not be going far on a small island, but getting there is apparently slow.

      I grew up on Oahu. Oahu has the Koolau Mountains in the middle of the island and Kamehameha Highway slows to 25 mph in most villages. It can take an hour driving from Laie to Honolulu; The Bus (the actual name of the bus company!) takes longer. Thankfully, my job was a 10 minute WALK from my home those days.

  18. Do they actually get those holidays by rsilvergun · · Score: 1

    anymore? My bro doesn't, and he's in a fairly well paid job (just shy of $50k/yr, good money where he is). When I was a dumb kid working fast food nobody got those holidays except the other dumb kids (are parents wouldn't let us work). I'd be willing to bet less than half the population gets holiday time/pay anymore. I know retail employees don't.

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  19. Re:Suckers by hawguy · · Score: 4, Funny

    Try setting up a basic sciences lab with multi-million dollar equipment in your home. Try doing other people's plumbing or electrical work from home.

    Meth-heads seem to be able to set up home labs, why can't you?

  20. We get the exact opposite by rsilvergun · · Score: 2

    I have it drummed into my head that this is the greatest country on earth. It was big news when a dumb show about corrupt politicians had a phony TV politician asked about American Exceptionalism and go on a rant about how we're not in the top 5 for anything except prisons. And I've never heard a real politician make that point. Even Bernie has to shy away from it.

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  21. Yep, Land of the Free by idji · · Score: 1

    You 're free to drive in any lane you like until the next traffic light in 300 yards.

  22. Thanks for reminding me, Slashdot by 93+Escort+Wagon · · Score: 3, Funny

    While you're at it, why don't you give me a nice paper cut and pour lemon juice on it?

    --
    #DeleteChrome
  23. Numbers seem odd... by aaarrrgggh · · Score: 1

    For average daily commute (round trip), the daily time seems off. Some areas of LA or SF for example should be well over 77 average-- minimum of 100, but I could see 120. A few other cities raise flags as well. Only explanation I can see is they are counting unemployed people.

    Not complaining about my daily 35-minute round trip commute on the bike though.

    1. Re:Numbers seem odd... by Nkwe · · Score: 1

      For average daily commute (round trip), the daily time seems off.

      Agreed. The numbers indicate that the average commute time in Longview, WA is 48 minutes. You can drive from one side of Longview to the other in 10-15 mins. If you are commuting to Vancouver, WA (Northern edge of the Portland, OR metro area), it would be around 45 mins. So the numbers may be for commutes to the nearest large metropolitan area? They certainly are not for local commutes.

    2. Re:Numbers seem odd... by aaarrrgggh · · Score: 1

      Presumably they are from census data, but... I think the census breaks it out per worker. Looking at a number of extra-urban communities, either my perception of how many people commute to work is way off, or the numbers are. There is something providing a favorable bias in rural areas in general.

      For Longview, WA, the metro area population is 3x the city population, and it looks like there is major employment in Kalma which is about in-line with the average commute time, so I might be able to see it.

  24. Re:Suckers by jellomizer · · Score: 1

    You can Apply for the Position, however being considered against others who are in office, may be taken into consideration.
    There is you who is faceless email, vs bill who the boss talks to every day.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  25. Wasted? by Larry+Lightbulb · · Score: 1

    Is the time we spend travelling always to be classed as "wasted"? If I'm going to an event and it takes me two hours to get their are those two hours wasted?

    1. Re:Wasted? by The-Ixian · · Score: 1

      Even if the time can certifiably be classified as "wasted" just think how much time our ancestors "wasted" traveling.....

      --
      My eyes reflect the stars and a smile lights up my face.
  26. My commute hours by Jeremi · · Score: 5, Interesting

    My commute to my job is about 30 minutes each way, and I've been doing it 5 days a week, for almost 20 years now, so that's ~250 hours of commuting time a year, or ~5000 hours of commuting time total.

    So that's ~208 24-hour days of my life wasted, right?

    Well, the kicker (and I know this is going to sound obnoxious/pretentious, but it's true so I'll post it anyway) is that I've been commuting by bike, and enjoying all of that commuting time as exercise and a recreational activity. I wouldn't count it as wasted at all.

    If your situation allows you to commute by bike, I highly recommend it -- it transforms a tedious daily chore into something you can look forward to both before and after work. It also cuts down on the time you need to spend at the gym, since part of your exercise quota you now get "for free" as part of your commute.

    --


    I don't care if it's 90,000 hectares. That lake was not my doing.
    1. Re:My commute hours by The-Ixian · · Score: 1

      I take the train part way and walk part way. I get 12,000+ steps every day. It takes me about between 30 and 60 minutes depending on where I decide to get off the train.

      Living close to work is the way to go for sure.

      --
      My eyes reflect the stars and a smile lights up my face.
    2. Re:My commute hours by krray · · Score: 1

      LOL -- my commute is double yours (60 minutes). Each way. And there is NO WAY I could bike it -- I'm usually doing ~80mph for the most part... Bike. I wish!

    3. Re:My commute hours by barc0001 · · Score: 1

      It's doable, you just have to be insane like this guy:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnYp4srEooI

      So time to step up your game!

  27. What is the definition of "wasted time" here? by TomR+teh+Pirate · · Score: 1

    I have colleagues who sometimes work from home but also is a dependency for others in the office, and those non-commuters are less effective at their jobs when issues arise that require them to interact with somebody else. The office chat programs are often ignored, set to offline / do not disturb, etc. If that person with the issue had commuted in, the rest of us wouldn't be idled by their situation. The work-from-home employee didn't "waste" his time by staying home, but he is wasting other people's time by not being present.

  28. Podcasts by jcdenhartog · · Score: 1

    Echoing what others have said about the questionable use of the word "wasted", I use my commute time to listen to podcasts. The content is educational (history, news, etc.), so it's hard to consider the time 'wasted'.

    --
    "The majority is always wrong; the minority is rarely right." - Henrik Ibsen
    1. Re:Podcasts by Quirkz · · Score: 1

      Yeah, I've been making good use of podcasts and audio lectures for years, and it really make the commute time a lot more pleasant. Among other things I haven't been able to read as much since the kids were born, so it serves a double function as both reading time and making boring time not boring.

      I'd still prefer to have a shorter commute, but it's not nearly as much of a waste as when I was getting by on news and talk radio.

      --
      The Quirkz Handbook of Self-Improvement for People Who Are Already Pretty Okay
  29. FollowTheMoney by sdinfoserv · · Score: 1

    If you superimpose that map over an income map, it would look the same. There's a reason no one want's to live in the Midwaste with 100 degree summers, 50 below winters, bottom of the barrel pay and virtually nothing to do. Sure, you can buy a McMansion for $300K, but then you have to live there.
    Or better yet. Make $50K in the Midwaste putting 10% away for retirement or live in a "red zone" making $120K and see who has the best choices after 45 years of working and saving. Chances are better of ending up a Walmart greater if you in the blue zone.

    1. Re:FollowTheMoney by kaatochacha · · Score: 2

      I used to think that, as a kid, in California- the midwest sucked and we were the chosen few. Then I grew up. I realized that the friends I knew who moved there were HAPPIER. Not from McMansions, or from the weather, but from the lack of traffic/annoyance/your attitude prevalent in California. They could afford trips, visiting nature, doing things that made them happy.
      In other words: Not having to deal with you.

  30. Re:45 years??? by DontBeAMoran · · Score: 1

    Anyone below 30, that's who.

    --
    #DeleteFacebook
  31. Actually, it's a pretty small number by TheFakeTimCook · · Score: 1

    I happen to be pretty close to the average that TFA (yes, I even skimmed it!) cites. And that adds up to just 408 days over the course of the average working lifetime.

    Now, it you want some REAL shocking numbers:

    Assuming their number of 45 years working, and 40 hours work a week (yes, coders and IT need to adjust...). And also assuming 50 working-weeks per year.

    That's an eye-popping 4.79 years spent working.

    And as far as SLEEP...

    Assuming the recommended 8 hours per day, and an average lifespan of 80 years, that's 26.6 (!!!) Years spent unconscious!!!!

    So, add those up, and you have an average of 1 + 4.79 + 26.6 = 32.46 YEARS of just... Nothing.

  32. Re:Suckers by BeaverCleaver · · Score: 1

    Depends on the boss. Maybe the boss can see that Bill is a time-wasting sycophant.

    --
    sustainable living
  33. Re:Californians, ride! by kaatochacha · · Score: 1

    I would, except for this:
    https://www.psychologicalscien...

  34. The commute times don't seem accurate by Kalendraf · · Score: 1

    They based this on the commute times from the census bureau, but I'm not sure how they arrived at the values. Two of the cities (pop 100K to 150K) where I've lived in are listed at 39+ minutes for commutes (roundtrip), but you'd have to take some really bad routes to need more than 15 minutes to go point-to-point in those cities. 8-12 minutes each way for a round trip of 16-24 (avg 20) minutes would be a more realistic average for most residents in those communities.

    On the other hand, the commutes for some of the larger cities actually seem too low. Could the census bureau method be biased and incorrectly scaling up commute times in smaller cities for some reason?

  35. Re:Suckers by fluffernutter · · Score: 1

    Doesn't seem to matter where I work, since hardly anyone works in the office.

    --
    Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
  36. Who says it is a waste? by mschuyler · · Score: 1

    Commuting can be the only quiet time you have in the entire day. I used to commute 25 miles each way (not outlandish compared to some) and enjoyed it. Maybe listen to the radio. Maye just enjoy the peace and quiet. Nobody around to bitch. I never considered it a waste.

    --
    How about a moderation of -1 pedantic.
  37. ROI by BlazeMiskulin · · Score: 1

    The premise assumes that "travel time = waste". That's a false assumption. Let's assume a 2-hour commute (round-trip) for every work day. What is 2 hours worth to you?

    The nearest city to me is about a 45-minute commute one-way. Were I to live there, the difference in cost of living between "in the city" and where I live (1.5 hours/day) would double my mortgage payment and double my property taxes. That would be about $20k per year.

    It's not "wasted time". It's an investment with a higher ROI than living in the city. Add on quality of life and all those other things that can't be quantified in dollar amounts, and.... The author of the article has no clue.

  38. LOL, suckers by p51d007 · · Score: 1

    I guess most of these so called "liberal paradise" spots, such as Seattle, San Fran, LA, NYC have the LONGEST commute times. What's wrong? Don't like living in your utopia? So you flee the high taxes, high housing costs, high crime to the suburbs, but then have to spend an HOUR or more to get to work? Out here in flyover country, we have peace and quiet IN the city, takes 10-20 minutes to get to work, low crime, low housing cost, and low crime. Oh, by the way, stop moving here! You are bringing your stupid ideas, that screwed up your own part of the country with you and we don't like it. Don't like God/Church, guns, country music, pickup trucks, etc? Stay out!

  39. Re:I'll just remodel your home from my living room by mnemotronic · · Score: 1

    Well, if THAT'S how you're going to be. We'll just have to outsource that work to SE Asia. So there. Woo-Hoo! Great idea! Bonuses for all VPs!

    --
    The Russians have won. They have made the world a cesspool of distrust, greed, fear and hate.
  40. Ooo, Ooo by dohzer · · Score: 1

    Ooo, Ooo, now do a map for how much time we lose to sleeping. Or how about one for time we lose to eating.
    Time not spent working or with friends and family is time wasted!

  41. define "waste" by Tom · · Score: 1

    I used to do my commute by train, and it was not wasted time at all. I had a book with me and read it, and aside from the good of reading books, it was also a really good frame for the working day, helping me to change my mind into and out of private/work mode.

    Currently, I'm forced to commute by car (no acceptable public transport connection). I've switched to audio books and while not the same thing, it does help. However, I notice how much more exhausted I arrive home, because driving in traffic does take constant concentration.

    If you are only driving, it's a waste. Using the time reduces the waste, and that part is in your hands.

    --
    Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
  42. It depends on HOW you commute by Shirley+Marquez · · Score: 1

    What percentage of the time you spend commuting is wasted depends on what mode of travel you use. Commuting time driving a car is nearly a total waste for most people, though some mitigate that a bit by listening to audiobooks, and you can sometimes combine the trip to work with needed errands. (For example, if you stop to buy groceries on the way home from the office, you eliminate time that you otherwise might spend taking a trip from home to get them.) Commuting by public transit varies depending on how crowded the train or bus is; it may be possible to read, or even get work done on a laptop on a long trip. Walking or bicycling to work is time spent on exercise, and not wasted at all for most people with desk jobs.