Air-quality improvement likely with a changing commute

In America, commuting commuters are responsible for a large part of travel. In fact, nearly three out of every 10 trips made is a work commute according to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (or AASHTO).

In its “AASHTO Completes Series of Reports Tracking Commuter Trends and Behavior” news release of Jan. 28, 2015, the Association wrote: “America is a nation on the move – rarely more so than during its daily commute to work, which comprises approximately 28 percent of all daily trips on U.S. roadways and transit systems, according to a new research paper. Understanding how individual commuters get to work is critically important for transportation decision makers tasked with operating and maintaining the nation’s transportation infrastructure.”

360px-CBX_Parkchester_6_jeh[1]True. But, important as well are commuting characteristics and patterns, such as: Are commuting patterns and/or commute demographics changing and, if so, how? What is the mode split between road-based and transit-based modes? What is the percentage of road-based commuters commuting alone? Are a greater number of commutes covering longer travel distances? And so on and so forth.

There are 16 briefs in all, according to AASHTO, this latest one being the last.

“The briefs include topics such as worker trends, vehicle and transit availability, vehicle ownership and licensure levels. It tracks population trends and the use of transit services, biking, walking and carpool commuting options,” AASHTO in the release offered.

“The final brief points to slowing growth in commuting due to the aging of the American worker and declines in the number of younger people entering the workforce,” AASHTO notes. “U.S. Census Bureau projections suggest the population in the working age group 18–64 will see a sharp decline over the next 20 years—approximately 6 million new potential workers from 2015 to 2030, in sharp contrast to 26 million during the period 2000 to 2012.”

If this turns out to be the way conditions pan out, then this is likely to have a positive impact on quality of air.

The series with 16 installments is called: “Commuting in America.”

Published by Alan Kandel