The Death Of Public Transportation
Silicon Valley was one of the first regions to go fully remote when the coronavirus pandemic began. Now, many of the tech industry’s most prominent companies are slowly making plans to bring workers back.
Anxiety over returning to the office is very real. Last week, Blind, an anonymous community of verified professionals with 4 million+ users, ran a survey gauging if professionals were anxious about returning to the office and why. 65% of professionals on Blind are anxious about the office reopening, according to results.
4,200 users across different industries share their cause of concerns as offices announce reopening dates. Of those experiencing anxiety, 47% are “very concerned” about the health risks associated with returning to the office. 15% anticipate never returning to the office.
There is so much to consider before professionals take that first step back into the office, mainly how they will even get there. Blind began running a survey across three major areas (the Bay Area, Seattle, and NYC) gauging if and how professionals would be commuting to the office post-pandemic.
Key learning: Public transportation is dead.
4,500 users across three different cities share how they used to commute to the office, how they plan to once it reopens, and why they changed their morning commute. 39% of professionals used public transportation to get to the office. Now, only 22% of professionals plan on taking public transportation when the office reopens.
Here are more notable learnings:
- Of those who feel unsafe on public transit due to health concerns, 36% will be commuting with their private car.
- Of the 39% of professionals who took public transportation pre-Covid, 69% will be opting in for other forms of transportation
- Of the 63% of professionals who did not change their place of residence during the pandemic, 78% still are choosing not to get back on public transportation
- The professionals who are no longer taking public transportation overwhelmingly are now commuting by privately owned cars or staying remote) – Relocating during the pandemic plays little to no influence on the morning commute
Access an in-depth deck: here.
A Blind user at Amazon posted, “Scared of the daily commute to Seattle from Kirkland post-COVID. Switched job last year. Enjoying the wfh so far. But I don’t know how I am going to do 5 days a week Seattle downtown commute from my home at Kirkland. ?”
For some, the pandemic made them realize their hours-long commutes into the city really weren’t necessary. Many worry about hopping back onto public transit in crowds, where disease could easily spread. With so many professionals opting in for other options, is public transportation dead?
Join the conversation here.