Cities with the Worst Commutes in America

[Henry]

Chances are, you live in one of these 50 cities.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/realestate/cities-with-the-worst-commutes-in-america/ss-AAtKHVl?ocid=spartandhp

[hotdogPi]

Why do I have to go through 51 slides?

[MNHighwayMan]

Because it's a shitty MSN article.

Also, chances are that I've never lived in any of those places.

[1995hoo]

Why do I have to go through 51 slides?

Thanks for posting that comment because it saved me from wasting time on that style of article.

[MNHighwayMan]

Thanks for posting that comment because it saved me from wasting time on that style of article.

It's the true definition of clickbait.

[Max Rockatansky]

I really disagree with some of the cities like Orlando and Miami being so low.  Yeah if you live IN Miami and commute to the another location in the city your commute might be somewhat short.  Commuting to Miami from another city in the Metro area is another story though.

[Takumi]

Thanks for posting that comment because it saved me from wasting time on that style of article.

It's the true definition of clickbait.

What happens next will shock you!

[vdeane]

I really disagree with some of the cities like Orlando and Miami being so low.  Yeah if you live IN Miami and commute to the another location in the city your commute might be somewhat short.  Commuting to Miami from another city in the Metro area is another story though.

Definitely a problem with the way they did this one.  They focused on actual municipalities and not metro areas, so it's no surprise that the top "worst commutes" are all exurbs of major metro areas.

[Bruce]

Thanks to the amazing deslide tool, I've been able to transcribe the list.

Percentage indicates commuters with 60 minutes or more of one-way travel time. Bolded items are for metro areas with over 1 million people.

50. Lancaster-Palmdale, California (20 to 24 minutes; 29%)
49. Lee's Summit, Missouri (25 to 29 minutes; 4%)
48. Orlando, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 7%)
47. Denton-Lewisville, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
46. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
45. Cape Coral, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
44. San Jose, California (25 to 29 minutes; 9%)
43. Texas City, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
42. Miami, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
41. McKinney, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
40. Houston, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
39. Baltimore, Maryland (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
38. Avondale-Goodyear, Arizona (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
37. Aberdeen-Bel Air, Maryland (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
36. Honolulu, Hawaii (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
35. Simi Valley, California (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
34. Seattle, Washington (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
33. Pottstown, Pennsylvania (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
32. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
31. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California (25 to 29 minutes; 13%)
30. Marysville, Washington (25 to 29 minutes; 14%)
29. Riverside-San Bernardino, California (25 to 29 minutes; 17%)
28. Petaluma, California (25 to 29 minutes; 17%)
27. Poughkeepsie-Newburg, New York/New Jersey (25 to 29 minutes; 18%)
26. Victorville-Hesperia, California (25 to 29 minutes; 23%)
25. Fredericksburg, Virginia (25 to 29 minutes; 26%)
24. Kailua-Kaneohe, Hawaii (30 to 34 minutes; 6%)
23. Kissimmee, Florida (30 to 34 minutes; 8%)
22. South Lyon-Howell, Michigan (30 to 34 minutes; 11%)
21. Deltona, Florida (30 to 34 minutes; 12%)
20. Round Lake Beach-McHenry-Grayslake, Illinois/Wisconsin (30 to 34 minutes; 13%)
19. Slidell, Louisiana (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
18. San Juan, Puerto Rico (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
17. Chicago, Illinois (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
16. Boston, Massachusetts (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
15. Atlanta, Georgia (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
14. San Francisco-Oakland, California (30 to 34 minutes; 15%)
13. Washington, D.C. (30 to 34 minutes; 16%)
12. Westminster-Eldersburg, Maryland (30 to 34 minutes; 19%)
11. Santa Clarita, California (30 to 34 minutes; 21%)
10. Gilroy-Morgan Hill, California (30 to 34 minutes; 21%)
9. Vallejo, California (30 to 34 minutes; 22%)
8. New York City-Newark, New York/New Jersey (30 to 34 minutes; 22%)
7. Hemet, California (30 to 34 minutes; 23%)
6. Concord, California (30 to 34 minutes; 23%)
5. Twin Rivers-Hightstown, New Jersey (30 to 34 minutes; 24%0
4. Murrieta-Temecula-Menifee, California (30 to 34 minutes; 27%)
3. Antioch, California (35 to 39 minutes; 30%)
2. Waldorf, Maryland (40 to 44 minutes; 31%)
1. Tracy, California (45 to 49 minutes; 39%)

Seeing as some very large metro areas with known traffic issues are ranked pretty low, I don't think this list is a good one. Using ACS data alone is quite troublesome, as well. Many of the smaller metro areas are simply bedroom exurbs that have longer commutes because of distance.

Also, they managed to pick up my image for Marysville, my hometown. Bizarre. Marysville isn't even its own metro area, and the 157K figure likely includes the entirety of northern Snohomish County, which is centered around Everett, not Marysville alone.

[Roadgeekteen]

Thanks to the amazing deslide tool, I've been able to transcribe the list.

Percentage indicates commuters with 60 minutes or more of one-way travel time. Bolded items are for metro areas with over 1 million people.

50. Lancaster-Palmdale, California (20 to 24 minutes; 29%)
49. Lee's Summit, Missouri (25 to 29 minutes; 4%)
48. Orlando, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 7%)
47. Denton-Lewisville, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
46. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
45. Cape Coral, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
44. San Jose, California (25 to 29 minutes; 9%)
43. Texas City, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
42. Miami, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
41. McKinney, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
40. Houston, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
39. Baltimore, Maryland (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
38. Avondale-Goodyear, Arizona (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
37. Aberdeen-Bel Air, Maryland (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
36. Honolulu, Hawaii (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
35. Simi Valley, California (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
34. Seattle, Washington (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
33. Pottstown, Pennsylvania (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
32. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
31. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California (25 to 29 minutes; 13%)
30. Marysville, Washington (25 to 29 minutes; 14%)
29. Riverside-San Bernardino, California (25 to 29 minutes; 17%)
28. Petaluma, California (25 to 29 minutes; 17%)
27. Poughkeepsie-Newburg, New York/New Jersey (25 to 29 minutes; 18%)
26. Victorville-Hesperia, California (25 to 29 minutes; 23%)
25. Fredericksburg, Virginia (25 to 29 minutes; 26%)
24. Kailua-Kaneohe, Hawaii (30 to 34 minutes; 6%)
23. Kissimmee, Florida (30 to 34 minutes; 8%)
22. South Lyon-Howell, Michigan (30 to 34 minutes; 11%)
21. Deltona, Florida (30 to 34 minutes; 12%)
20. Round Lake Beach-McHenry-Grayslake, Illinois/Wisconsin (30 to 34 minutes; 13%)
19. Slidell, Louisiana (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
18. San Juan, Puerto Rico (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
17. Chicago, Illinois (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
16. Boston, Massachusetts (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
15. Atlanta, Georgia (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
14. San Francisco-Oakland, California (30 to 34 minutes; 15%)
13. Washington, D.C. (30 to 34 minutes; 16%)
12. Westminster-Eldersburg, Maryland (30 to 34 minutes; 19%)
11. Santa Clarita, California (30 to 34 minutes; 21%)
10. Gilroy-Morgan Hill, California (30 to 34 minutes; 21%)
9. Vallejo, California (30 to 34 minutes; 22%)
8. New York City-Newark, New York/New Jersey (30 to 34 minutes; 22%)
7. Hemet, California (30 to 34 minutes; 23%)
6. Concord, California (30 to 34 minutes; 23%)
5. Twin Rivers-Hightstown, New Jersey (30 to 34 minutes; 24%0
4. Murrieta-Temecula-Menifee, California (30 to 34 minutes; 27%)
3. Antioch, California (35 to 39 minutes; 30%)
2. Waldorf, Maryland (40 to 44 minutes; 31%)
1. Tracy, California (45 to 49 minutes; 39%)

Seeing as some very large metro areas with known traffic issues are ranked pretty low, I don't think this list is a good one. Using ACS data alone is quite troublesome, as well. Many of the smaller metro areas are simply bedroom exurbs that have longer commutes because of distance.

Also, they managed to pick up my image for Marysville, my hometown. Bizarre. Marysville isn't even its own metro area, and the 157K figure likely includes the entirety of northern Snohomish County, which is centered around Everett, not Marysville alone.

Wow! Thanks for the site link! I fucking hate clickbait.

[kkt]

Why do I have to go through 51 slides?

You don't have to.

[bing101]

Thanks to the amazing deslide tool, I've been able to transcribe the list.

Percentage indicates commuters with 60 minutes or more of one-way travel time. Bolded items are for metro areas with over 1 million people.

50. Lancaster-Palmdale, California (20 to 24 minutes; 29%)
49. Lee's Summit, Missouri (25 to 29 minutes; 4%)
48. Orlando, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 7%)
47. Denton-Lewisville, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
46. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
45. Cape Coral, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
44. San Jose, California (25 to 29 minutes; 9%)
43. Texas City, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
42. Miami, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
41. McKinney, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
40. Houston, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
39. Baltimore, Maryland (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
38. Avondale-Goodyear, Arizona (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
37. Aberdeen-Bel Air, Maryland (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
36. Honolulu, Hawaii (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
35. Simi Valley, California (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
34. Seattle, Washington (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
33. Pottstown, Pennsylvania (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
32. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
31. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California (25 to 29 minutes; 13%)
30. Marysville, Washington (25 to 29 minutes; 14%)
29. Riverside-San Bernardino, California (25 to 29 minutes; 17%)
28. Petaluma, California (25 to 29 minutes; 17%)
27. Poughkeepsie-Newburg, New York/New Jersey (25 to 29 minutes; 18%)
26. Victorville-Hesperia, California (25 to 29 minutes; 23%)
25. Fredericksburg, Virginia (25 to 29 minutes; 26%)
24. Kailua-Kaneohe, Hawaii (30 to 34 minutes; 6%)
23. Kissimmee, Florida (30 to 34 minutes; 8%)
22. South Lyon-Howell, Michigan (30 to 34 minutes; 11%)
21. Deltona, Florida (30 to 34 minutes; 12%)
20. Round Lake Beach-McHenry-Grayslake, Illinois/Wisconsin (30 to 34 minutes; 13%)
19. Slidell, Louisiana (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
18. San Juan, Puerto Rico (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
17. Chicago, Illinois (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
16. Boston, Massachusetts (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
15. Atlanta, Georgia (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
14. San Francisco-Oakland, California (30 to 34 minutes; 15%)
13. Washington, D.C. (30 to 34 minutes; 16%)
12. Westminster-Eldersburg, Maryland (30 to 34 minutes; 19%)
11. Santa Clarita, California (30 to 34 minutes; 21%)
10. Gilroy-Morgan Hill, California (30 to 34 minutes; 21%)
9. Vallejo, California (30 to 34 minutes; 22%)
8. New York City-Newark, New York/New Jersey (30 to 34 minutes; 22%)
7. Hemet, California (30 to 34 minutes; 23%)
6. Concord, California (30 to 34 minutes; 23%)
5. Twin Rivers-Hightstown, New Jersey (30 to 34 minutes; 24%0
4. Murrieta-Temecula-Menifee, California (30 to 34 minutes; 27%)
3. Antioch, California (35 to 39 minutes; 30%)
2. Waldorf, Maryland (40 to 44 minutes; 31%)
1. Tracy, California (45 to 49 minutes; 39%)

Seeing as some very large metro areas with known traffic issues are ranked pretty low, I don't think this list is a good one. Using ACS data alone is quite troublesome, as well. Many of the smaller metro areas are simply bedroom exurbs that have longer commutes because of distance.

Also, they managed to pick up my image for Marysville, my hometown. Bizarre. Marysville isn't even its own metro area, and the 157K figure likely includes the entirety of northern Snohomish County, which is centered around Everett, not Marysville alone.

That's interesting Vallejo,CA has the same ranking as New York city for commutes.

[SectorZ]

Thanks to the amazing deslide tool, I've been able to transcribe the list.

Percentage indicates commuters with 60 minutes or more of one-way travel time. Bolded items are for metro areas with over 1 million people.

50. Lancaster-Palmdale, California (20 to 24 minutes; 29%)
49. Lee's Summit, Missouri (25 to 29 minutes; 4%)
48. Orlando, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 7%)
47. Denton-Lewisville, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
46. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
45. Cape Coral, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 8%)
44. San Jose, California (25 to 29 minutes; 9%)
43. Texas City, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
42. Miami, Florida (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
41. McKinney, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
40. Houston, Texas (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
39. Baltimore, Maryland (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
38. Avondale-Goodyear, Arizona (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
37. Aberdeen-Bel Air, Maryland (25 to 29 minutes; 11%)
36. Honolulu, Hawaii (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
35. Simi Valley, California (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
34. Seattle, Washington (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
33. Pottstown, Pennsylvania (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
32. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (25 to 29 minutes; 12%)
31. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California (25 to 29 minutes; 13%)
30. Marysville, Washington (25 to 29 minutes; 14%)
29. Riverside-San Bernardino, California (25 to 29 minutes; 17%)
28. Petaluma, California (25 to 29 minutes; 17%)
27. Poughkeepsie-Newburg, New York/New Jersey (25 to 29 minutes; 18%)
26. Victorville-Hesperia, California (25 to 29 minutes; 23%)
25. Fredericksburg, Virginia (25 to 29 minutes; 26%)
24. Kailua-Kaneohe, Hawaii (30 to 34 minutes; 6%)
23. Kissimmee, Florida (30 to 34 minutes; 8%)
22. South Lyon-Howell, Michigan (30 to 34 minutes; 11%)
21. Deltona, Florida (30 to 34 minutes; 12%)
20. Round Lake Beach-McHenry-Grayslake, Illinois/Wisconsin (30 to 34 minutes; 13%)
19. Slidell, Louisiana (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
18. San Juan, Puerto Rico (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
17. Chicago, Illinois (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
16. Boston, Massachusetts (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
15. Atlanta, Georgia (30 to 34 minutes; 14%)
14. San Francisco-Oakland, California (30 to 34 minutes; 15%)
13. Washington, D.C. (30 to 34 minutes; 16%)
12. Westminster-Eldersburg, Maryland (30 to 34 minutes; 19%)
11. Santa Clarita, California (30 to 34 minutes; 21%)
10. Gilroy-Morgan Hill, California (30 to 34 minutes; 21%)
9. Vallejo, California (30 to 34 minutes; 22%)
8. New York City-Newark, New York/New Jersey (30 to 34 minutes; 22%)
7. Hemet, California (30 to 34 minutes; 23%)
6. Concord, California (30 to 34 minutes; 23%)
5. Twin Rivers-Hightstown, New Jersey (30 to 34 minutes; 24%0
4. Murrieta-Temecula-Menifee, California (30 to 34 minutes; 27%)
3. Antioch, California (35 to 39 minutes; 30%)
2. Waldorf, Maryland (40 to 44 minutes; 31%)
1. Tracy, California (45 to 49 minutes; 39%)

Seeing as some very large metro areas with known traffic issues are ranked pretty low, I don't think this list is a good one. Using ACS data alone is quite troublesome, as well. Many of the smaller metro areas are simply bedroom exurbs that have longer commutes because of distance.

Also, they managed to pick up my image for Marysville, my hometown. Bizarre. Marysville isn't even its own metro area, and the 157K figure likely includes the entirety of northern Snohomish County, which is centered around Everett, not Marysville alone.

Thank you for this link. An immediate bookmark for this one.

[Beltway]

Why do I have to go through 51 slides?

I can't stand slide shows ... takes forever to scroll thru them.

[jakeroot]

Seeing as some very large metro areas with known traffic issues are ranked pretty low, I don't think this list is a good one. Using ACS data alone is quite troublesome, as well. Many of the smaller metro areas are simply bedroom exurbs that have longer commutes because of distance.

Also, they managed to pick up my image for Marysville, my hometown. Bizarre. Marysville isn't even its own metro area, and the 157K figure likely includes the entirety of northern Snohomish County, which is centered around Everett, not Marysville alone.

Thanks for the list. That said, it is indeed a rather stupid list. "Cities", as far as MSN is concerned, is any large town. When most people think of "cities with the worst commutes", they think of metro areas (Chicago, Dallas, New York, Seattle), not small towns on the fringe of metro areas. Of course those towns have crappy commutes...they're miles from where people work!

[20160805]

Why do I have to go through 51 slides?

I can't stand slide shows ... takes forever to scroll thru them.

I can't stand them either - not only that, but if your browser is slow or outdated, it might just poop out on you  and lock up or not load it to begin with.  Plus, it's just 50 more opportunities for annoying ads to pop up.  The sad part is that I've seen some sites that make you have a paid account just to be able to view them as one page 

[ET21]

Not really a good list in terms of data. 1-7 beat out the usual city commute suspects?

[Max Rockatansky]

Not really a good list in terms of data. 1-7 beat out the usual city commute suspects?

You have a lot of Los Angeles and Bay Area commutes on that list which really shouldn't be a huge surprise.  Tracy is infamous for basically being a bedroom community for commuters to Oakland and San Francisco.  In that context it doesn't surprise me to see any of those cities so high up but it certainly doesn't paint the correct picture as to why those commutes are so long.

[ET21]

Not really a good list in terms of data. 1-7 beat out the usual city commute suspects?

You have a lot of Los Angeles and Bay Area commutes on that list which really shouldn't be a huge surprise.  Tracy is infamous for basically being a bedroom community for commuters to Oakland and San Francisco.  In that context it doesn't surprise me to see any of those cities so high up but it certainly doesn't paint the correct picture as to why those commutes are so long.

I think it would be best to describe the commute route on average time based on where the community goes to work most. So Tracy CA to San Jose/San Fran for example.

[hotdogPi]

Not really a good list in terms of data. 1-7 beat out the usual city commute suspects?

You have a lot of Los Angeles and Bay Area commutes on that list which really shouldn't be a huge surprise.  Tracy is infamous for basically being a bedroom community for commuters to Oakland and San Francisco.  In that context it doesn't surprise me to see any of those cities so high up but it certainly doesn't paint the correct picture as to why those commutes are so long.

I think it would be best to describe the commute route on average time based on where the community goes to work most. So Tracy CA to San Jose/San Fran for example.

If a suburb is 40 miles away from the main city, that means 40 minutes even without congestion. There are many of these in this list (although not quite at that distance).

[AlexandriaVA]

Given its high density of public transit and employers, I would imagine that commuting in the city of San Francisco is actually quite reasonable. At least during my time staying there, it was very easy to get around using the bus and MUNI.

Now, for someone to commute from a far suburb or exurb into the city could be much more difficult. However you can't have it both ways.

Much like my home area of DC. Those who live and work in the city generally have very simple commutes (often walking in some cases). It is those who choose to live in distant areas who generally grumble about the manner and length of their commutes.

[Desert Man]

Not really a good list in terms of data. 1-7 beat out the usual city commute suspects?

You have a lot of Los Angeles and Bay Area commutes on that list which really shouldn't be a huge surprise.  Tracy is infamous for basically being a bedroom community for commuters to Oakland and San Francisco.  In that context it doesn't surprise me to see any of those cities so high up but it certainly doesn't paint the correct picture as to why those commutes are so long.

"Middle of nowhere" suburbs which are extensions of Greater Los Angeles - Lancaster, Victorville, San Bernardino, Riverside, Hemet and Temecula. There's also Simi Valley not far from the LA city limits (San Fernando Valley). And if anyone lives in Avalon - 26 miles from across the sea (only a thousand residents). There are commuters who live in Palm Springs and Yucca Valley drive like 60 minutes to their jobs in Riverside/San Bernardino.

[kkt]

I suspect Fresno residents mostly commute to the east bay or south bay, not to S.F.  It's still a heck of a life, though, long time in traffic, very limited public transit options so no reading or relaxing during the trip, not a whole lot to recommend life in Tracy once you're home either.

[NWI_Irish96]

Not really a good list in terms of data. 1-7 beat out the usual city commute suspects?

You have a lot of Los Angeles and Bay Area commutes on that list which really shouldn't be a huge surprise.  Tracy is infamous for basically being a bedroom community for commuters to Oakland and San Francisco.  In that context it doesn't surprise me to see any of those cities so high up but it certainly doesn't paint the correct picture as to why those commutes are so long.

A better measure would be minutes/mile.  I chose to live 37 miles from where I work.  My average commute is 55 minutes, so 1.49 minutes/mile.  I would not consider my commute worse than someone whose commute is only 39 minutes but is only commuting 13 miles, even if mine takes 16 minutes longer.

[ET21]

Not really a good list in terms of data. 1-7 beat out the usual city commute suspects?

You have a lot of Los Angeles and Bay Area commutes on that list which really shouldn't be a huge surprise.  Tracy is infamous for basically being a bedroom community for commuters to Oakland and San Francisco.  In that context it doesn't surprise me to see any of those cities so high up but it certainly doesn't paint the correct picture as to why those commutes are so long.

A better measure would be minutes/mile.

This would be a decent data measurement