Research from Raj Chetty at Harvard on 5 different social factors found that shorter commute times were found to be the strongest predictor of upward mobility. In fact, investments in public transportation have been shown to reduce local inequality and drive down local crime.
Long commute times don’t just make it harder for workers to make it to their jobs, it’s also bad for the economy at large. The total cost of traffic as measured by lost time and wasted fuel exceeds $100 billion per year. The environmental costs of idling cars adds pollution to the environment, and the long-term effects of exposure to car exhaust causes respiratory problems, taking years off the lives of Americans every day.