Pain at the Pump: Americans Want to Cap Commutes
SnagAJob.com poll finds 37 percent say 10 miles is farthest they will travel to a jobRICHMOND, Va., Feb. 28, 2008 - A gallon of regular gasoline costs $3.13, according to the Energy Department’s latest weekly survey of service stations. The rising gas prices – up 17 cents in the past two weeks and 75 cents from a year ago – not only are draining Americans’ wallets but also weighing on the mind sets of commuters, according to a SnagAJob.com poll.
Nearly four in 10 Americans (37%) said that 10 miles is the farthest they will travel to a job, according to a recent poll of more than 21,000 adults at SnagAJob.com, the No. 1 source for hourly employment. Another 31 percent said they would max out their trip to work at 20 miles. In contrast, just 15 percent said they would commute more than 20 miles to reach their job. (Distances are for one-way commutes.)
“As talk of a recession swirls and we’re seeing home prices dropping and foreclosures rising, prices at the gas pump are yet another area where consumers are feeling the pinch,” said Cathy McCarthy, senior vice president of marketing for SnagAJob.com. “Aside from the fact that workers don’t want to sacrifice valued personal time traveling to and from work each day, the cost of just getting to a job is hurting their paychecks, too. With their own bottom line at stake, it’s understandable that workers prefer to stay close to home and are seeking alternative options, too.”
The SnagAJob.com poll found that an equal number of respondents preferred nontraditional commutes. Nearly one in 10 respondents (9%) said that “within walking distance” is the farthest they are willing to travel to work. Another 9 percent said they are willing to travel “as far as public transportation takes me.”
The SnagAJob poll was conducted on its Web site between Feb 1 and Feb. 26, 2008. Data on weekly gasoline prices can be found at the U.S. Department of Energy, http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_gnd_dcus_nus_w.htm.