In this edition we bring you excerpts of commute-related research findings:
3.3 Million Americans are "Stretch Commuters" Traveling at Least 50 Miles One-Way to Work
from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics

About 3.3 million Americans travel 50 miles or more one way to get to work - and they commute these distances 329 million times a year, according to National Household Travel Survey (NHTS) findings released today by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).

Of the 61.6 billion commutes to and/or from work each year, just under one out of every 200 trips is a "stretch commute."

Who is a "stretch commuter?"
"Stretch commuters" are mostly male. Women - 52 percent of the population - only make 16 percent of "stretch commuting" trips.

Nearly three out of five "stretch commuting" trips are made by someone from a household with an annual income of at least $50,000. Slightly more than two out of five U.S. households earn that much. Five out of six "stretch commutes" are made by workers in manufacturing, construction, professional, managerial or technical jobs. By comparison, those in the sales and administrative workforce make considerably fewer "stretch commute" trips.

"Stretch commutes" are disproportionately rural - two out of every five "stretch commutes" start in rural areas. Eight out of 10 (81 percent) "stretch commutes" are 50 to 99 miles in length one way. For these commuters, "stretch commuting" is nearly an everyday occurrence - about two-thirds of the 50- to 99-mile one-way commutes are made at least four days each week.

While one out of five (19 percent) "stretch commutes" is at least 100 miles, more than one in 20 (six percent) can be called "super-stretch commutes," trips to work of 200 miles or more, one-way.

"Stretch commuters" make 19 of every 20 trips in a personal vehicle like a car, truck or SUV, but when the "stretch commute" distance goes beyond 200 miles one out of four such commutes changes to air travel. At distances of 200 miles or more, the "stretch commute" is most likely to be taken only one to four times (round trip) in a four-week period. http://www.bts.gov/press_releases/2004/bts010_04/html/bts010_04.html