What does this measure?
The average time, in minutes, it takes a commuter to travel to his or her workplace.
Why is this important?
Travel time to work can indicate the availability of desirable and available housing near work areas, as well as transportation options available to workers in a region. In addition, travel time is a general bellwether for traffic congestion, as well as air pollution and related health problems.
How is our region doing?
In 2014-18, the average travel time for MetroWest commuters was 31 minutes. This was an increase of 3 minutes since 2000. The region's average travel time was slightly higher than Massachusetts as a whole (30 minutes) and higher than the national average (27 minutes).
Among the region's counties, Norfolk had the longest commute time (34 minutes), followed by Middlesex (31) and Worcester (29). The longest commute times were in Sherborn (40 minutes), Boxborough (39 minutes), and Medfield, Holliston and Hopkinton (all 38 minutes), while the shortest was in Waltham (26 minutes). Natick had a slightly longer commute than MetroWest as a whole (33 minutes), while Framingham was slightly less (30).
Notes about the data
The multiyear figures are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. The bureau combined five years of responses to the survey to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census. Data for this indicator are expected to be released annually in December.
2000 | 2009-13 | 2014-18 | |
---|---|---|---|
United States | 26 | 26 | 27 |
Massachusetts | 27 | 28 | 30 |
Region | 28 | 29 | 31 |
Middlesex | 27 | 28 | 31 |
Norfolk | 30 | 32 | 34 |
Worcester | 26 | 28 | 29 |
Acton town, Middlesex County | 31 | 35 | 36 |
Ashland town, Middlesex County | 33 | 33 | 35 |
Bedford town, Middlesex County | 24 | 25 | 27 |
Bellingham town, Norfolk County | 31 | 33 | 35 |
Boxborough town, Middlesex County | 32 | 31 | 39 |
Carlisle town, Middlesex County | 33 | 33 | 36 |
Concord town, Middlesex County | 29 | 33 | 34 |
Dedham town, Norfolk County | 26 | 29 | 30 |
Dover town, Norfolk County | 32 | 34 | 36 |
Framingham city, Middlesex County | 27 | 27 | 30 |
Franklin town, Norfolk County | 34 | 36 | |
Groton town, Middlesex County | 34 | 33 | 35 |
Harvard town, Worcester County | 32 | 32 | 35 |
Holliston town, Middlesex County | 32 | 32 | 38 |
Hopkinton town, Middlesex County | 34 | 35 | 38 |
Hudson town, Middlesex County | 25 | 27 | 29 |
Lexington town, Middlesex County | 27 | 30 | 32 |
Lincoln town, Middlesex County | 26 | 25 | 31 |
Littleton town, Middlesex County | 30 | 30 | 33 |
Marlborough city, Middlesex County | 26 | 28 | 31 |
Maynard town, Middlesex County | 29 | 30 | 30 |
Medfield town, Norfolk County | 35 | 34 | 38 |
Medway town, Norfolk County | 32 | 36 | 37 |
Milford town, Worcester County | 27 | 29 | 30 |
Millis town, Norfolk County | 33 | 33 | 36 |
Natick town, Middlesex County | 29 | 31 | 33 |
Needham town, Norfolk County | 27 | 29 | 31 |
Sherborn town, Middlesex County | 35 | 34 | 40 |
Southborough town, Worcester County | 28 | 32 | 32 |
Stow town, Middlesex County | 31 | 30 | 32 |
Sudbury town, Middlesex County | 33 | 32 | 35 |
Walpole town, Norfolk County | 30 | 31 | 35 |
Waltham city, Middlesex County | 23 | 24 | 26 |
Wayland town, Middlesex County | 31 | 30 | 35 |
Wellesley town, Norfolk County | 24 | 27 | 30 |
Westborough town, Worcester County | 27 | 31 | 31 |
Westford town, Middlesex County | 30 | 29 | 33 |
Weston town, Middlesex County | 27 | 30 | 29 |
Westwood town, Norfolk County | 29 | 32 | 35 |
Notes: Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%.
INDICATORS | TREND |
---|---|
Arts, Entertainment and Recreation Establishments | Increasing |
Households Without Vehicles | Maintaining |
Means of Transportation to Work | Not Applicable |
Average Travel Time to Work | Increasing |
Households With Internet Access | Not Applicable |
Voter Participation Rate | Decreasing |
Average Charitable Contribution | Maintaining |
Protected Land | Not Applicable |
Drug Poisoning Mortality Rate | Increasing |
Crimes Against People | Decreasing |
Incarceration Rates, by Race/Ethnicity | Not Applicable |