10 Cities Where Remote Workers Save Time on Commutes Javascript must be enabled to use this site. Please enable Javascript in your browser and try again. × Search search POPULAR SEARCHES SUGGESTED LINKS Join AARP for just $9 per year when you sign up for a 5-year term. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. Leaving AARP.org Website You are now leaving AARP.org and going to a website that is not operated by AARP. A different privacy policy and terms of service will apply.

10 Cities Where Remote Workers Save the Most Time by Not Commuting

Americans forced to telecommute due to the pandemic are saving nearly 50 minutes a day

Getty Images/Bob Riha Jr. , Americans have saved more than 32.9 million hours of commuting by car, according to new research. For the average person who previously was driving to work daily, that adds up to more than four full days that could be used for other activities, especially in 10 metro areas across the country. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. For older adults, that freedom from traffic is one of the biggest benefits of working from home. To measure how much of an impact the nationwide switch to telework has had, Upwork — a jobs website that specializes in remote work positions — surveyed 1,000 people who currently are working from home to see how much commuting time they are saving. Among the respondents, 31.4 percent were working from home due to the coronavirus. Upwork found that people saved an average of 49.6 minutes a day, which means that since the abrupt shift to telework in mid-March, people have saved more than 4 days. And they're not only saving time, but also money. "To put this into perspective, commuters who were commuting by car prior to the pandemic have saved over $2,000 each since mid-March,” says Adam Ozimek, Upwork's chief economist. Ozimek estimates that, nationwide, former commuters could be saving as much as $183 million per day in direct commuting costs such as fuel, maintenance and repairs. Flowers & Gifts 25% off sitewide and 30% off select items See more Flowers & Gifts offers > To find out where former commuters saw the biggest benefits, Upwork compared the results of its survey with data from the U.S. Census Bureau to identify which metro areas have the most jobs that could be done remotely. Of the 261 regions analyzed, the top 10 places where remote workers save the most time on commutes are: East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania: 83.6 minutes per dayNew York-Newark-Jersey City, New York and New Jersey: 76.2 minutes per dayWashington-Arlington-Alexandria, District of Columbia and Virginia: 71.9 minutes per dayVallejo-Fairfield, California: 70.4 minutes per daySan Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, California: 70.2 minutes per dayBridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut: 69.2 minutes per dayChicago-Naperville-Elgin, Illinois: 67.5 minutes per dayBremerton-Silverdale, Washington: 67.3 minutes per dayBoston-Cambridge-Newton, Massachusetts and New Hampshire: 66.8 minutes per dayRiverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California: 66.6 minutes per day AARP Membership — $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. More on work AARP Membership — $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. AARP VALUE & MEMBER BENEFITS See more Health & Wellness offers > See more Flights & Vacation Packages offers > See more Finances offers > See more Health & Wellness offers > SAVE MONEY WITH THESE LIMITED-TIME OFFERS