BOSTON–Boston commuters are spending more time on the road again as remote work continues to decline, according to new data released by Yardi Kube, whose latest 2024 U.S. Commute Study reveals that national travel times are nearly back to pre-pandemic levels.
The report shows the average American one-way commute reached 27.2 minutes in 2024, up from 25.6 minutes in 2021 and approaching the 2019 average of 27.6 minutes. (Source: Yardi.com)
Boston stands out as one of the cities seeing the sharpest return to longer commutes. The study finds that the city now has the fifth-longest commute in the nation, with the average one-way travel time rising from 30.2 minutes to 31.7 minutes year-over-year.
Boston Commutes Are Longer — and Adding Up
That additional 1.5 minutes each way may seem small, but over the course of a year, Boston workers now spend about four more hours traveling than they did before the pandemic. The city’s 2024 average commute is also:
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4.5 minutes longer than the U.S. average
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0.5 minutes longer than Boston’s 2019 level
Boston’s increase contrasts with several major Northeast cities that have seen commute times shrink since 2019.
How Boston Compares to Other Major Cities
According to Yardi Kube’s report:
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New York City still records the nation’s longest commute at 40.6 minutes
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Philadelphia follows at 33.2 minutes
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Chicago (33.5 minutes) and San Francisco (32.2 minutes) also exceed Boston’s 31.7-minute average
Both New York and Philadelphia have reduced commute times by 1.1 minutes since 2019—equivalent to nine hours saved annually for typical commuters.
Remote Work Decline Driving Longer Travel Times
Yardi Kube’s analysis links rising commute times partly to a decline in remote and hybrid work participation. In Boston, the share of workers primarily working from home dropped from 17.7% in 2023 to 15.5% in 2024, a 2.2 percentage-point decrease. That shift alone contributed to the city’s 1.5-minute year-over-year rise in travel time.
Regionally, all major Northeast cities have seen remote work nearly triple since 2019. Boston led that increase with an 11.4 percentage-point jump, followed by Philadelphia (9.3 points) and New York City (7.9 points). Despite its gains in remote work, Boston is one of the few cities where commute times are still trending upward.
A Region Returning to Routine—Slowly
While remote work remains a defining factor in reshaping regional commuting habits, Yardi Kube notes that many city travel patterns are beginning to normalize. For Boston, that means more workers returning to the office—and more hours spent getting there.
Yardi Kube’s full analysis of 2024 commuting patterns, including regional trends and workforce distribution data, is available at Yardi.com.
