Hub's hard drive deserves a good word

17 November 2004

My favorite time of day begins at 6:45 a.m., when I get into the car to take my daughter to school.

On the way, we talk (well, I talk - she, in the time-honored way of adolescents, makes the occasional grunt). Once I've dropped her off, I return, listening to the news and sipping coffee.

I have realized over the last few months that I really like this 40-minute drive - the routine, the isolation, the freedom to think or just belt out a song with no one pointing out I'm off key. There's a certain Zen-like quality to the experience. Everyone, I think, should have the same opportunity.

Turns out, most of you do.

So much so, in fact, that Massachusetts now ranks ninth in the nation for the length of its daily commute. In 2000, the average worker spent 27 minutes traveling one way to work, an increase of 19.3 percent from 1990. More people than ever are driving alone, from 61 percent of all commuters in 1980 to 74 percent in 2000.

These are the widely reported headlines from a study put out by MassInc, the Boston-based think-tank. It worries that all of this traveling cuts into the "time available for family, friends and engagement in one's community." On top of that, long commutes are yet another burden on a work force beset with expensive housing and miserable winters - the kind of thing that pushes people to leave the state altogether.

So what should we do?

Widen the roads. Otherwise, don't worry too much about it. I know that's not politically correct. "New urbanists" love to envision dense communities where people live, shop and work in the same places, abandoning their cars and relying on public transit. That may be fine for some (including me, I might note, since I live in downtown Boston). Others, however, feel differently.

Many people want their own yard and a decently sized house - and they'll move quite a distance to get it. And why not? That's the American Dream, is it not? True, it might be great to live close to work. But, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, the average worker today changes jobs 10 times in a lifetime. People won't uproot their families and leave their neighborhoods just to be closer to their latest job; they'll just drive further.

In truth, a ranking of ninth in the nation shouldn't be worrisome. Those with longer commutes - California, New York and Washington, D.C., for example - don't seem to have difficulty attracting residents. And I'd be surprised if people moved to North Dakota or Iowa just because it's easier to get around. Moreover, Massachusetts' commute is only 90 seconds longer than the U.S. average of 25.5 minutes. Is that REALLYall that big a deal?

On top of that, driving isn't all that bad of a choice. It's dramatically faster than using public transit. The average one-way commute by bus or train takes a stunningly high 44.2 minutes (vs. 25.7 when driving alone). Driving is also convenient; solo drivers are unrestricted by train schedules or the obligations of those in carpools (which explains why carpooling dropped from 19 percent to just 9 percent of all commutes in 20 years).

But, most importantly, time in a car is hardly wasted. Drivers can productively talk on cell phones or listen to books-on-tape (often the only leisure "reading" many ever do). Or turn off the cell phone and radio and spend some time in blissful silence. Far from being a time of misery, time spent driving may well be a welcome diversion from the chaos of everyday life.