Regardless of where you live or how you travel to work, the length of your commute can have a huge impact on how you feel about your job.
With 24% of Brits hybrid working and 14% working from home exclusively, a large part of the workforce still travels to and from work daily. Research by the University of Bristol linked longer commute times with unhappiness at work, revealing that just extra 10 minutes of travel time each way can drastically reduce job satisfaction.
Who has the longest commute?
When it comes to the length of time spent commuting, it’s no surprise that Londoners have it the worst, with research showing the average Londoner spends 80 minutes travelling to and from work by car, train or bus daily, racking up around 27 hours a month of travel time.
Outside of the Capital, residents in the Surrey town of Guildford face the second longest commute in the country, at 58 minutes a day and 19 hours a month.
The research, conducted by the ONS, looked at the median commuting time across the country and all transport types to determine who spends the most time travelling to work.
Of the top 10 regions with the most extended travels, East London has it the worst, with commutes in places like Chelmsford, Luton, Cambridge and Huntingdon taking up to 19 hours a month. On the opposite end of the scale, residents in North West London have it the best, with those in Carlisle and Burnley travelling for just 28 minutes a day or up to 11 hours a month.
The future of flexibility
The average person spends around 23 days a year commuting, but rising costs and a difference in how we work is changing everything.
Half of Brits (46%) would like to work from home more often to avoid mounting fuel costs, and 30% would prefer their companies to offer a flexible hybrid approach, which enables people to choose which days to work remotely vs in the office.
With that in mind, more companies can help their teams combat increased costs and improve workplace satisfaction by offering more flexibility, not just in how they work but where they work too.
Read: Benefits of a Day Office
With an extensive portfolio of coworking space, serviced and managed offices globally and in the UK, Easy Offices can help you find an office that’s flexible, affordable and ideally located to shorten, or cut out, the commute.
| Location | *Minutes spent commuting per day | Hours spent commuting per month |
|---|---|---|
| London | 80 | 27 |
| Guildford & Aldershot | 58 | 19 |
| Chelmsford | 56 | 19 |
| Bridgend | 56 | 19 |
| Luton | 52 | 17 |
| Eastbourne | 52 | 17 |
| Nottingham | 52 | 17 |
| Cambridge | 50 | 17 |
| Huntingdon | 50 | 17 |
| Reading | 50 | 17 |
| Barnsley | 48 | 16 |
| Bedford | 48 | 16 |
| Bristol | 48 | 16 |
| Birmingham | 48 | 16 |
| Canterbury | 48 | 16 |
| Leeds | 48 | 16 |
| York | 48 | 16 |
| Coventry | 48 | 16 |
| Derby | 46 | 15 |
| Worcester | 46 | 15 |