National Household Travel Survey
"Stretch Commute" Quick Facts

"Stretch Commute" trips are at least 50 miles one way.

Commuting in America

• In a year, 3.3 million Americans "stretch-commute"
• More than one out of 10 (13 percent) long-distance trips are for commuting
• Just over one out of five (22 percent) long distance trips between 50 and 99 miles are for commuting

How Far We Travel When Stretch Commuting

• About three out of five (62 percent) stretch commutes are 50-74 miles
• One out of five (19 percent) stretch commutes are 75-99 miles
• Less than one in 10 (7 percent) stretch commutes are 100-124 miles
• More than one out of 20 (6 percent) stretch commutes are 125-199 miles
• More than one out of 20 (6 percent) of stretch commutes are 200+ miles

How Often We Stretch Commute in a Four-Week Period

• Commuters who travel 50 to 99 miles one-way
  • More than six out of 10 (65 percent) commute 16 or more days
  • More than two out of 10 (25 percent) commute five to 15 days
  • Just over one out of 10 (11 percent) commute one to four days
• Commuters who travel 100 to 199 miles one-way
  • More than three out of 10 (33 percent) commute 16 or more days
  • Almost three out of 10 (27 percent) commute five to 15 days
  • Four out of 10 (40 percent) commute one to four days
• Commuters who travel 200 miles or more miles one-way
  • More than one out of 10 (12 percent) commute 16 or more days
  • More than two out of 10 (23 percent) commute five to 15 days
  • More than six out of 10 (65 percent) commute one to four days

How We Stretch Commute

• 24 out of 25 (96 percent) stretch commutes are done by personal vehicle
• One out of 100 (1 percent) stretch commutes are done by air travel
• Air travel increases to almost one out of four (24 percent) when the stretch commute is 200+ miles

Who Stretch Commutes

• By Gender
  • Fewer than one out of five (16 percent) stretch commuting trips are made by females
  • 274 million stretch commuting trips are made by males
• By Income
  • Almost three out five (58 percent) stretch commuting trips are made by individuals living in households with total incomes of $50,000 or more (43 percent of population)
  • Almost one out of three (29 percent) stretch commuting trips are made by individuals living in households with total incomes of $25,000-49,000 (28 percent of population)
  • More than one out of 10 (13 percent) stretch commuting trips are made by individuals living in households with total incomes of less than $25,000 (29 percent of population)
• By Occupation
  • Almost half of (44 percent) stretch commuting trips are made by those in manufacturing/construction jobs (21 percent of population)
  • Two out of every five (40 percent) stretch commuting trips are made by those in professional/managerial/technical jobs (39 percent of population)
  • More than one out of 10 (13 percent) stretch commuting trips are made by those in sales/service jobs (28 percent of population)
  • Less than one out of every 20 (3 percent) stretch commuting trips are made by those in clerical/administrative jobs (12 percent of population)

SOURCE: National Household Travel Survey, 2001-2002. For further details, see our Frequently Asked Questions.