The Best and Worst Metros for Commuters

With all of the commotion in Wisconsin around gasoline taxes, registration fees, and general road maintenance…it might be good to look at how Milwaukee compares to the other major cities in the US for commuting (I wish this covered more transportation options).

  • The five best metros for commuting include New Orleans, Buffalo, Milwaukee, Oklahoma City, and Miami.
  • The five worst metros for commuting were Washington, D.C., San Francisco, New York City, Seattle, and San Jose, CA.
  • The average commute costs nearly $6,500 annually, but location makes a difference: Some states’ commuters spend less than $3,000 on average and others more than $9,000 on their commutes.
  • West Coast commuters spend more on fuel, but they also earn more than the other regions of the U.S.
  • Southern commuters spend the largest proportion of their income on fuel and maintenance.
  • Studies show longer commutes are linked to more sick days, stress, and less productivity. Our study found regional trends, with southern states feeling unhealthy more often and enduring longer commutes.

Click the link above to see the full chart of ##s and see what we are really comparing. But Milwaukee (and I assume Wisconsin) fares pretty well.

We ranked the 50 most-populous MSAs by the cost of commuting. The best cities were those with the lowest costs: Buffalo and Milwaukee residents were able to travel to work for less than $10 on average; while those in Seattle and Washington, D.C. spent nearly $25.

For each metro, we included fuel, maintenance, and time to calculate our opportunity cost of commuting.

and just a quick mention from the article: the further west you travel the more expensive gasoline is. And the further south, transportation is a larger part of your income and health results are lower.

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