Feb 16, 2023
The beginning and end of the work day bring congestion to our cities.
Private and company cars take over the streets as employees make their way to and from work. And in an attempt to solve the problem of congestion and reduce average commute times, cities build more roads.
But the significant investment made to widen roads and add more lanes doesn’t do anything to solve the problem. If it did, the problem of congestion would have ended years ago.
Instead, investing in new roads only worsens congestion problems and makes commutes more stressful — this article explains why.
Hundreds of millions are invested in building new roads every year — an investment that’s thought to relieve traffic and give commuters a smoother drive to the office.
But it doesn’t work that way.
In the short term, commuters may see the benefit of more lanes with their average commute time getting shorter. But take a longer-term view, and congestion levels will remain the same or even worsen.
This is known as the fundamental law of road congestion.
Researchers have found a one-to-one relationship between more roads and the level of traffic.
For example, if a city increases road capacity by 10%, then the number of miles driven in that city will increase by 10% too. And more roads allow those who live a short walk or cycle from their place of work to move further afield — but in doing so, they then rely on a car to get to work.
By investing in new roads, cities make driving easier for more people, and that’s why we now live in a car-dependent society. And as commuters cover more miles in their private and company cars, the average commute time remains stagnant (or even increases). So we end up back where we started.
America boasts the most extensive road network of any country in the world (6.58 million kilometres). Despite these roads and superhighways, average commute times continue to break new records.
Between 2010 and 2018, the number of workers with a 60-minute commute (one way) rose from 8% to 10%. And those commuting for more than 90 minutes rose from 3.3 million to 4.3 million.
But when alternative travel options don’t get the same level of investment, they become unsafe, unreliable, and unused. This leaves commuters in some areas with little option but to drive their cars to work.
Building more roads isn’t solving the problem of congestion, but it’s making it harder for commuters to travel to work more sustainably.
Now cities are at a point where they need to work backwards from their car-first thinking to support alternative modes of transport.
Structuring cities around roads has left little to no room for alternatives such as cycling and even walking. And buses, which transport many more commuters than private or company cars (which often only carry a single occupant), need help to run on time due to the traffic.
This imbalance puts commuters who choose to walk or cycle at risk. But supporting a car-free commute offers many positives for commuters:
As an employer, not doing anything to support your team travel by an alternative to private or company cars could prove costly.
Working from home during the pandemic put the spotlight on the commute, and many workers continue to resist the trip to work — favouring the hybrid approach.
As an employer, offering travel perks that give your team a safe, reliable, and sustainable way to travel to the office will:
Being an employer who covers commuting costs will also stand out to potential recruits.
Despite these benefits, 60% of employers don’t support commuting costs. But more companies are realising that supporting employees with their commute is an attractive perk.
After finding out that many of their employees wanted to leave because they had to make an uncomfortable commute, Gelateria La Romana has seen its employee retention rates soar by supporting its team’s commuting costs with Bolt Business.
You can see the same results for your business by giving your team a reliable, safe, and sustainable way to travel with Bolt Business.
Find out more about how travel perks can help with employee retention.
