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Staten Islanders have one of country's longest average commutes
FILE PHOTO: Traffic builds along the west bound Staten Island Expressway Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015. (Staten Island Advance/ Jan Somma-Hammel) (Staff-Shot)
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on September 19, 2015 at 6:06 PM, updated September 19, 2015 at 7:00 PM
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Staten Island residents continue to suffer one of the longest commutes in the country, according to 2014 U.S. Census Bureau data released this week.
Last year, a typical Islander's trip to the office took 42.7 minutes, and more than one-third of residents faced an hour or more commute each way.
"For the past decade, the commute from Staten Island has been almost unbearable," said Assemblyman Joe Borelli (R-South Shore), who is currently running unopposed for the South Shore City Council seat. "Hopefully we can prod the mayor and the governor with these statistics that have long been known and again confirmed."
Most Staten Island residents drive to work, but for the 29 percent who use mass transit, the trip is especially brutal.
Nearly three-quarters of Islanders who commute using public transportation spend an hour or more getting to work, with an average of 69 minutes each way, according to 2014 Census data.
"The biggest problem on Staten Island is that a lot of people are forced to drive," said Greg Mihailovich, the Staten Island organizer at Transportation Alternatives. "Any mass transit to speak of relies on the same roads -- we have the bus system, which is limited by car traffic."
While Staten Islanders' commutes have historically been very long, the same can be said for pretty much every borough in the city.
Over the past four years, outer-borough residents have had among the longest commutes in the country. The only comparable commute outside the city is found in Charles County, Maryland, which took the top honor in 2014, with an average time of 44.1 minutes.
The Bronx finished second with a 43.1-minute average commute followed by Queens, at 42.8 minutes. Staten Island placed fourth and Brooklyn, with a 42.2-minute average commute, rounded out the top five, nationally.
Manhattan residents have a significantly shorter commute on average than outer borough residents, but at more than 31 minutes in 2014, it was still longer than 90 percent of the country.
On Staten Island, Borelli said government needs to pay more attention to mass transit improvements and infrastructure upgrades.
"Now that the Staten Island Expressway project is wrapping up, maybe we can start talking about a West Shore Expressway widening," he said.
Mihailovich mentioned the need to fund mass transit options like the West Shore Light Rail and North Shore Bus Rapid Transit, which, unlike the Select Bus Service, would have a dedicated route.
"We need to encourage the MTA and DOT to try and come up with creative solutions," he said. "Unfortunately, we're tied to these poorly designed roads from the farm days.
"Mass transit will have to look decidedly different than it does today to cut down those commute times."
Last year, a typical Islander's trip to the office took 42.7 minutes, and more than one-third of residents faced an hour or more commute each way.
"For the past decade, the commute from Staten Island has been almost unbearable," said Assemblyman Joe Borelli (R-South Shore), who is currently running unopposed for the South Shore City Council seat. "Hopefully we can prod the mayor and the governor with these statistics that have long been known and again confirmed."
Most Staten Island residents drive to work, but for the 29 percent who use mass transit, the trip is especially brutal.
Nearly three-quarters of Islanders who commute using public transportation spend an hour or more getting to work, with an average of 69 minutes each way, according to 2014 Census data.
"The biggest problem on Staten Island is that a lot of people are forced to drive," said Greg Mihailovich, the Staten Island organizer at Transportation Alternatives. "Any mass transit to speak of relies on the same roads -- we have the bus system, which is limited by car traffic."
While Staten Islanders' commutes have historically been very long, the same can be said for pretty much every borough in the city.
Over the past four years, outer-borough residents have had among the longest commutes in the country. The only comparable commute outside the city is found in Charles County, Maryland, which took the top honor in 2014, with an average time of 44.1 minutes.
The Bronx finished second with a 43.1-minute average commute followed by Queens, at 42.8 minutes. Staten Island placed fourth and Brooklyn, with a 42.2-minute average commute, rounded out the top five, nationally.
Manhattan residents have a significantly shorter commute on average than outer borough residents, but at more than 31 minutes in 2014, it was still longer than 90 percent of the country.
On Staten Island, Borelli said government needs to pay more attention to mass transit improvements and infrastructure upgrades.
"Now that the Staten Island Expressway project is wrapping up, maybe we can start talking about a West Shore Expressway widening," he said.
Mihailovich mentioned the need to fund mass transit options like the West Shore Light Rail and North Shore Bus Rapid Transit, which, unlike the Select Bus Service, would have a dedicated route.
"We need to encourage the MTA and DOT to try and come up with creative solutions," he said. "Unfortunately, we're tied to these poorly designed roads from the farm days.
"Mass transit will have to look decidedly different than it does today to cut down those commute times."
13 comments
I live off a main thoroughfare ... do I take the bus and wait up to 15-20 minutes for a late bus, get onto an overcrowded bus and wait another 15 minutes for my next connection, or do I drive a car (adding to traffic) and get to my destination in a quarter of the time? Most of my public transportation commuting time is waiting. Waiting for "scheduled" buses that don't run on schedule .... and it's not traffic that's holding them up. Every morning it's a different reason.
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