Gas prices
are not slowing down the rush hour commute -- a sign that fewer employees are
working from home.
The number
of New Jersey residents heading into the city is up, says Caleb Silver from
Investopedia.
"Bridge
and tunnel traffic in and out of the city is pretty strong, it's almost all
the way back to pre-pandemic levels,” says Silver. “It's up 1.7% last month.
That said these high gas prices are causing folks to think twice about filling
up."
It has some
commuters trying to figure out cost effective commutes – both for the short
term and down the road.
"Everything
is going up faster than the paycheck goes up,” says Paul Kelleher.
People are
doing what they can to save on their commute, as many are ditching cars for
public transportation.
"Taking
the train has been a good thing,” says Jennifer Roche.
For Louis
Nespoli, it's the bus for now. He's been working on Wall Street for more than
30 years.
"Going
back to work, it's taking a little adjustment,” says Nespoli.
After
working from home for two years, he's back in the office on a hybrid schedule.
He uses the Park & Ride in Howell, where commuters pay either $3 a day or
$105 a quarter to hop on a NJ Transit bus -- that's cheaper than paying for the
gas, tolls and parking fees to drive into the city.
Here is the
thing. You need to make going to work, work for you, experts say.
Some suggest
asking your boss to work from home, even if it is a couple of days a
week, until gas prices come down. Or ask to work 10-hour shifts four days a week
-- that saves you one day on the roads. Or ask to change work hours to off-peak
times so you aren't sitting in traffic.
Or look at
bigger, long term changes -- move closer to work or find a new job closer to
home. Some commuters say they are already doing whatever they can to save on
their commute, such as cutting other things like eating out or going on
vacations.
"Thankfully
I live near the beach so I don't have to travel as far to relax," says
David Wolfson.