Working from home changing how, when we get around cities
A recent report from co-working service CoworkingCafe has found remote work has resulted in reduced congestion and hanging traffic patterns in several U.S. cities. Photo: Adobe Stock
The number of people working from home has grown in recent years. Many of those sent home during the COVID-19 pandemic remained remote workers as teleworking technology has made going into the office unnecessary.
That trend has produced several byproducts. Parents who are able to spend more time with their kids. Increased property prices in smaller communities as workers who no longer need to be in the city look for a home to buy. And the emptying of many downtown cores as office space becomes redundant.
Traffic Congestion Reduction
One trend that has received relatively less attention is the impact on congestion in cities. If you’ve found yourself stuck in a mid-morning or afternoon traffic jam, and wondered where everyone is going at that time, you’ve likely noticed that trend in action.
A recent report from co-working service CoworkingCafe has found remote work has resulted in reduced congestion and hanging traffic patterns in several U.S. cities.
“Since the shift to remote work, traffic in cities across America has taken some surprising turns,” said Andreea Neculae, the report’s author. “As employees traded their daily commutes for work-from-home, traffic levels saw a dramatic shift, but not always in the ways you’d expect.”
According to the TomTom Traffic Index, some of North America’s biggest cities are among the world’s most congested.
The Traffic Index features 387 cities across 55 countries. It evaluates cities around the world by their average travel time, fuel costs, and CO2 emissions. The index ranks cities based on how long it takes on average to travel 10 kilometres across the city centre, among other factors.
Across North America, the largest urban areas are unsurprisingly where it takes the slowest average travel times. Mexico City’s metro area is the urban area with the slowest traffic, taking about 20 minutes to travel 10 kilometres. Metro Vancouver is the second slowest at around 16 minutes, followed by Halifax, the Greater Toronto Area, and London, Ont.
Oklahoma City has the world’s fastest time, taking commuters just under nine minutes to drive 10 kilometers in the city centre. Meanwhile, the British capital has the world’s slowest commute. It takes drivers in London almost 40 minutes to travel the same distance. Toronto has the third slowest time at 29 minutes, just behind Dublin.
Changing Patterns in the U.S.
To compile their report, CoworkingCafe used traffic congestion data from TomTom, remote work data from the U.S. Census Bureau, and traffic volume data from the Federal Highway Administration. They analyzed more than 83 cities across the U.S., selected based on the availability of data and their economic and geographic diversity.
Neculae cited Raleigh, N.C., as a prime example of a city that experienced a major drop in traffic. Between 2019 and 2023, the share of people working from home more than doubled, from 10.5 per cent to 23.6 per cent. That led to a 17 per cent reduction in traffic congestion.
“Residents and local commuters have found it easier to navigate the city, and the stress of morning commutes has all but evaporated,” she said.
Tulsa, Okla., has seen a similar trend, with traffic congestion down by eight per cent thanks to an uptick in remote work. In San Diego, congestion levels decreased by 12 per cent between 2019 and 2023. California’s state traffic volume also saw a 10 per cent decrease during the same period, and the number of residents working from home rose significantly by 120 per cent. Fresno saw a similar reduction in congestion at 10 per cent as the number of people working from home there increased.
Albany, N.Y., for example, experienced an impressive 25 per cent reduction in congestion, according to the CoworkingCafe report. The city saw a 31 per cent remote working growth. That, along with a nine per cent drop in traffic levels, was enough to significantly improve congestion.
“For these cities, remote work acted like a pressure release valve on their roadways, allowing the streets to function more efficiently even as work culture shifted to a more remote model,” Neculae said.
Persistent Gridlock
However, Neculae also added that not all cities saw a drop in congestion.
“While some areas breathed a sigh of relief with lighter rush-hour traffic, others faced unexpected congestion, and new traffic trends emerged that no one quite saw coming,” said Neculae.
That raises the question: why are some cities seeing traffic reductions while others are still gridlocked? The report found that in Phoenix, Ariz., where remote work rates also soared, traffic didn’t just fail to improve; it actually worsened. Congestion in the city increased by 28 per cent. Neculae says this is likely down to the city’s rapid growth in recent years, which existing infrastructure can’t keep up with.
“Essentially, Phoenix’s rapid expansion and economic growth outpaced the positive effects of remote work, making the city’s traffic patterns as challenging as ever,” Neculae said.
One of the biggest surprises in the report is that while cities have cut down on commuter traffic, remote working has given birth to a whole new category of traffic.
“The roads may not be as packed with daily commuters, but now they’re filled with delivery trucks, rideshare cars, and midday errand-runners,” Neculae said.
The demand for services like Amazon, DoorDash, and Uber has increased exponentially, creating what some are calling “WFH rush hour.” While morning and evening commuter traffic might look lighter in some cities, midday traffic is seeing higher levels of activity. That means that the morning rush hour is being replaced by non-commuting traffic in residential and suburban areas.
“What seemed like a clear win for less congestion has evolved into a complex, fascinating reshuffle that’s still playing out,” Neculae said. MW
✯ Municipal World Executive and Essentials Plus Members: You might also be interested in Ibrahim Daair’s article: Municipal workers skeptical of returning to the office.
Ibrahim Daair is staff writer at Municipal World.
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