A new report from the U.S. Energy Department reveals that New Jersey has the third longest commute times in the nation. On average, New Jersey commuters spend 31.1 minutes traveling to work each way.
The report shows that New York has the longest commute times, with an average of 33.2 minutes. Maryland is not far behind, with commuters spending an average of 32 minutes on the road. Washington DC also sees its drivers spending more than half an hour commuting each way.
The report also lists Massachusetts, California, Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Florida as states with long commute times, rounding out the top ten. On the other end of the spectrum, South and North Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana have the shortest commute times, with workers spending just 17 to 18 minutes on the road each way.
The U.S. Energy Department used 2022 data on the average one-way travel time to work to compile this list. The report attributes the long commute times in densely populated states to factors such as traffic and urban sprawl. The average one-way commute time across the U.S. is approximately 27 minutes.
While some may see long commute times as a hassle, others shared with the NY Post that they don't seem to mind. For instance, Susan Miller, a New York City "super commuter," travels by plane every week to work as a full-time professor at the University of Michigan. Similarly, hairdresser Kaitlin Jay spends nearly six hours commuting from her home in Charlotte, North Carolina to work at an Upper West Side salon in New York on a biweekly basis.