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Fact #180: August 27, 2001
Comparison of Commute Times: 1990 and 2000 Census Data

The 2000 Census data indicate that commute times for U.S. workers have changed since 1990. More than half of workers had 15- to 29-minute commutes in 1990, but that dropped to 35% by 2000. The share of workers commuting less than 15 minutes increased the most in the 10-year period (14 percentage points), but the share of workers commuting 30 minutes or more also saw small increases.

Graph showing share of workers by commute time

Supporting Information

Share of Workers by Commute Time
(1990 and 2000 Census Data)
Commute Time 1990 2000
<15 minutes 15.9% 30.1%
15-29 minutes 14.7% 15.7%
30-39 minutes 14.7% 15.7%
40-59 minutes 9.0% 10.7%
60 minutes 5.9% 7.3%

Sources: 2000 data: U.S. Bureau of the Census, American Fact Finder, Table P048, August 2001.
1990 data: U.S. Department of Transportation, Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Journey-to-Work Trends in the United States and its Major Metropolitan Areas, 1960-1990, FHWA-PL-94-012, Cambridge, MA, 1994, pp. 2-6.

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