Files
Abstract
Over the last several decades commuting distances have increased in both miles and
travel time. Our analysis focuses on the 2000 county-to-county commuting data from
Census Transportation Planning Package that show intercounty commuting has
increased substantially. In the Chicago six-county region these data indicate that three
of the six counties are now net importers of commuters. In the past only Cook County
(Chicago) had more commuters into than from the county.
There are, however, demographic changes that contribute to lower increases in growth
in commuters. Namely, the 1990s signaled the first increase in household size in over a
hundred years. This was partially responsible for a decline in the portion of the
population that is employed, a statistic that had been steadily increasing. In fact, in
previous decades there was a larger growth in the number of commuters than in people
thereby disproportionately adding to peak-period traffic.
At the same time the exceptionally high increases in homeownership added to the size
of the urbanized area. These data suggest that commuters are making housing choices
that contribute to commuting travel distances. The ability and willingness to increase
commuting distance makes it possible for employers to find their employees from an
extended geographic region. As the economy is becoming more specialized, we may
achieve the desired match between the jobs sought by commuters and the skill needs of
employers.