The Gasoline Price and the Commuting Behavior of Us Workers : Towards Sustainable Modes of Transport

This paper analyzes how gasoline price is related to the time US workers spend commuting by private vehicle, public transit, walking, or cycling. Using data from the American Time Use Survey for the years 2003-2019 and collecting data on gasoline prices by state and year, we find that higher gasoline prices are related to more time spent commuting. A 1% increase in gasoline price is related to an increase of 0.285% in total commuting time. Furthermore, a negative relationship is found between gasoline price and the proportion of commuting by private car, along with a positive relationship for the proportion of commuting by public transit, walking, and cycling, the latter being transportation alternatives that are more sustainable. A 1% increase in gasoline price is associated with an increase in the proportion of commuting time by public transit, walking, and cycling of 0.418%, 0.664% and 0.216%, respectively, and a decrease of 0.844% in the proportion of commuting done by private car. A deeper investigation shows that these relationships vary by urban characteristics, suggesting a total substitution from private vehicle to sustainable means of travel only in urban areas. By analyzing the relationship between commuting time, and gasoline price in the US, our results can inform future policies aiming to develop low-carbon transport systems, especially in urban areas, where workers seem to be more responsive to gasoline prices (and thus taxation)