The Bay Area is home to four of the nation’s 10 most costly commutes, according to a recent report from LendingTree, an online lending company.
The report, dubbed “Where Commutes Cost the Most,” looks at 100 large U.S. cities and how they compare in terms of median full-time earnings, average working hours and average commute times.
Fremont tops the list, with workers there forking out a daily commute cost of $49, which translates into an annual cost of $12,801.
The data, based on 2017 numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau, shows that Fremont workers’ median earnings were $82,106, they worked an average of nearly 39 hours per week and endured an average one-way commute of nearly 35 minutes.
“Everyone knows time equals money and this is especially true in high-earning areas with lengthy commutes,” LendingTree spokeswoman Megan Greuling said in an email.
Coming in second with a $45 daily commute cost is San Francisco, where workers earned a median wage of $80,812, worked an average of just over 40 hours per week and slogged through an average one-way commute of almost 34
minutes, according to the report.
That translates to a yearly commute cost $11,719.
San Jose holds the ninth spot on the list with an estimated commute cost of $32 — based on median earnings of $61,999, an average work week of 38.3 hours and a average one-way commute of 31.3 minutes, the report says.
Oakland workers, with a daily commute cost of $33, median earnings of $56,307, an average work week of 38.7 hours and a average one-way commute of nearly 34 minutes, hold the 10th spot in the report.
New York came in fifth with a daily commute cost of $37, Washington, D.C., was sixth with a daily commute cost of $36 and Irvine in Southern California took the 4th spot with a $38 daily cost, according to the report.
The report did not take into effect the cost of gas, parking or vehicle maintenance or the cost of public transportation.
12 comments
Best thing about being retired, not waking up in the morning and hitting the road. Second, not dealing with the traffic to get home.
I’d love to have a 35 minute commute. The shortest commute I’ve ever had was about an hour each way. My commute was “only” 1:20 going yesterday (but I left at 5:55AM), but was 1:55 for the commute home (which is typical). I love my job though, as well as the previous ones I’ve had. Part of the commute is the price of living in Clayton.
I always used to agree to live in Clayton was worth a little extra commute, but things have now gotten ridiculous. It was taking me 35 minutes just to get down Clayton Road. Which added to a daily commute time of 4 hours round trip to my job in San Rafael was crazy. Had to move. Ready to move out of California now too.
Businesses and corporations don’t need to locate in the Bay Area. It’s overbuilt as it is. This explains the high housing and commute costs. It continues to get worse. Like trying to put 10 lbs. in a 5 lb. bag.
What is this based on? Driving into SF?
When does “summer blend” gasoline end? I see that it was supposed to end September 15th but that was an old article.
Tech work could all be done telecommuting maybe with only an occasional meeting at headquarters. But people need to learn how to telecommute first. I had to bring in-house workers that weren’t able to do it. I was a success at it because I realized I could work whatever hours I wanted and would often get daily errands out of the way first before tackling the work at hand.
Winter blend of gas should have started on 01 November.
note, when gas prices spiked under moonbeam he ordered winter blend to star about a month early . . . . . says something about how much newsom cares about us.
https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/08/us/jerry-brown-moves-to-reduce-gas-prices-in-california.html
As for commute, my trip to work is on surface streets always in non commute direction and takes about 17 minutes each way. Spending roughly $25 a week on gas for a full size mid 1990s vehicle with a Large V8 engine. An that’s from Clayton.
Having a specialized skill set in demand makes all the difference.
Employer provides mechanical and electrical engineers and bosses for our entertainment. Thinking about joining Fred in ranks off the retired after first o the year, but I have never found same level of entertainment I get at work on daytime TV.
Forget the TV, once retired you’ll wonder how you ever found time to work.
My BART costs were about $8 a day when I finally threw in the towel a few years back. I walked to the station or rode my bike. I walked to the office in the City. People have not adequately planned their working lives if they’re spending $40+ a day to commute!
So why aren’t commuting costs deductible?
Let’s suppose I earn $100 a day, but my commute cost is $10. I’ve netted $90, not $100, so why am I taxed on $100? It’s just like a (deductible) business expense.
I don’t believe it to be a stupid idea, and you don’t explain why you claim it to be stupid. I believe I explained it well enough for people to understand, but let me restate it … just for you:
If it costs me $10 to commute to San Francisco and back, lets say, I’m not going there for dinner, nor for entertainment, nor to socialize, nor for any other personal reason. I’m going there with the express purpose of working to earn money. If it costs me some money to make money, then that has already been subtracted from the amount I make for the day. At the end of the day I have a profit of $90, not $100. Therefore the tax should be applied to $90, not $100.
So explain to me how my reasoning is incorrect or “stupid”.
I commute 2-2.5 hours in the afternoon. I would love a one hour commute. But I love living in Clayton for my kids, so that’s the sacrifice I choose to make.
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