[Responding to a letter in the Merc's 7/20/05 Roadshow column, in which a man named Justin explains his need to live near Sacramento and work in San Jose, 96 mile drive each way.]
While I recognize the reality of housing prices, Justin Oliver’s answer avoids the actual question of wasting a month per year on commuting as well as the high and increasing cost of that commute.
Make some generous estimates, say 47 working weeks, 25 MPG and average price of $2.25 a gallon, and Oliver’s spending over $4000 annually just on the gas. Working locally either out by Sacramento or in San Jose, let’s just guess that the total cost would be equivalent to the difference in maintenance and insurance from the current commute, or that he could use lightrail and leave the car home.
So $325 a month, probably not enough to get that two bedroom, two bath here, maybe it is. However, is it enough to get something good enough so that his quality of life would be better overall? When that child he mentions comes along having, say, 2-3 hours a day more to spend together will surely more than make up for a smaller home.
Finally, what about the environmental cost of that commute, multiplied by all the current and future Justin’s those studies claim are coming? Beyond the direct pollution put out by their cars and trucks, as you’ve written several times, the supply of available gas isn’t getting bigger and most likely will decrease as international competition grows and aging refineries go out of business without replacements. This conflict between gas, housing and jobs is likely to be the major economic issue of the next decade.
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