Americans traveled nearly 37 billion fewer miles in June due to COVID-19


Road trips in America generally peak in summer when people go on vacation but his year it was different due to COVID-19 and lockdowns. According to the Federal Highway Administration, Americans traveled nearly 37 billion fewer miles in June than in the same month last year.

Reduced travel and road-trips translates to a cumulative $90 billion in cost savings, according to research from freelancing platform Upwork:

“To estimate time savings, we asked how long their commute was at the last job that they commuted to. Using this data, we found that on average, those who are working remotely due to COVID save an average of 49.6 minutes a day. This means that since the onset of COVID in mid-March, people have saved more than 4 days (4.13) from commuting.4 And for those who were already working remotely before COVID, they save on average 51 minutes a day by working remotely.”

Using the data, Adam Ozimek, chief economist at Upwork states “This saving in commute time implies 890 million fewer miles traveled each day. Using an average operating cost for fuel, maintenance, and repairs of 20.54 cents per mile, this translates to $183 million per day in direct commuting costs.”

In the report, Ozimek also indicated that Americans spent an average of 54.2 minutes commuting daily in 2018.  The savings comprise gas, car maintenance and repairs, as well as the costs that driving imposes on society, such as congestion and polluting.

The Upwork report also highlights 25 American cities where workers would benefit most from going remote.

Longer term trend: fewer cars on roads?

This decline in commute started right after the coronavirus outbreak. During the height of the pandemic in April, Americans sheltering at home drove 64% fewer miles, an unprecedented decline in travel. It is not just work-from-home but daily commute includes shopping trips that have been declining as Americans continue to move online shopping.

Some analysts expect Americans to drive less even after the pandemic. KPMG is predicting that the decline in commute will remove 14 million cars from U.S. roads. “People buy a car to get to and from work and because shopping is a very important part of their lives,” Gary Silberg, head of KPMG’s global automotive practice, said in an interview.

Americans have been skipping on a lot of shopping trips during lockdowns, that may result in permanent changes to consumer spending habits. Researchers think it could keep a lot of cars off the road permanently, while adding a few more commercial trucks.

With fewer miles driven and fewer cars on the road, that also means dealers and mechanics will have less money coming in from repairs and other after-market services aimed at keeping cars running.


Other references

  • Where Remote Work Saves Commuters Most – Upwork
  • Automotive’s new reality: Fewer trips, fewer miles, fewer cars? KPMG Study
  • Americans are saving more than just money by not commuting – CNN
  • Work-From-Home Culture Will Cut Billions of Miles of Driving – Bloomberg
  • COVID May Take 14 Million Cars Off the Road Forever – streetsblog.org
  • Americans are saving more than just money by not commuting – CNN

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