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The U.S. Cities With the Best Commute
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Commuting to work can be a huge headache for many Americans, from getting stuck in rush hour traffic to paying inordinate amounts on parking.
In some metropolises like New York, drivers on average lose over 100 hours annually to traffic congestion during rush hour.
However, some American cities stand out for having relatively affordable and efficient commutes, supported by strong public transit, active transportation options, and vibrant downtown areas that attract commuters back to the office.
In this map, we visualize the 10 best U.S. cities for commuters, as ranked by Lyft.
Methodology of the Best U.S. Cities for Commuters
In Lyft’s analysis, cities were ranked on speed, cost, greenness, and downtown vibrancy, using Lyft ride data, a Lyft survey of over 1,400 commuters, and various public data sources.
- Speed: Average commute time (from 2022 American Community survey), average speed for rides to and from the office during commuting hours (from Lyft data), and congestion during commuting hours (from Lyft data)
- Cost: Monthly parking cost (from Spot Hero), monthly fuel cost (from EIA), monthly public transit cost (from American Public Transportation Association)
- Greenness: Share of commuters who bike to work, share of commuters who carpool, share of commuters who walk, and share of commuters who use public transit (all from 2022 American Census survey)
- Vibrant downtowns: Busiest downtowns measured by the ratio of average monthly rides to a city’s downtown in 2024 compared to 2019 (based on Lyft data), likelihood of happy hours (from Lyft data), likelihood of shopping after work (from Lyft data), office vacancy rate (from Colliers), and green space (from Trust for Public Land)
Columbus is the Best City For Commuters
Below, we show the top 10 cities for commuters in the U.S. based on the above metrics of commute speed, cost, greenness, and the vibrancy of the city’s downtown area.
| Rank | City | State | Overall score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Columbus | OH | 84.5 |
| 2 | El Paso | TX | 82.4 |
| 3 | Las Vegas | NV | 80.3 |
| 4 | Memphis | TN | 67.2 |
| 5 | Albuquerque | NM | 66.5 |
| 6 | Baltimore | MD | 59.9 |
| 7 | Phoenix | AZ | 58.5 |
| 8 | Tucson | AZ | 55 |
| 9 | Detroit | MI | 52.2 |
| 10 | Dallas | TX | 49.1 |
Columbus, Ohio was ranked as the best city for commuters due to its speedy and cost-effective commutes, along with its active downtown core.
The city ranks 127 out of the 170 most-populated cities in the U.S. in terms of average commute time, according to LLC analysis of Census Bureau data.
The average commuter in Columbus spent on average 43 minutes per day round trip (21.5 minutes in each direction) commuting, compared to worst-ranked Palmdale, California where commuters spent 91 minutes of their day commuting.
According to the Lyft survey respondents, 25% said time was the most important factor in terms of commuting, 19% cited consistency and 13% said cost was the most important.
Learn More on the Voronoi App
To learn more about commuting in different countries, check out this graphic that shows the worst cities in the world for rush hour traffic.
The post Ranked: The Best U.S. Cities For Commuters appeared first on Visual Capitalist.