Two hours to the office, two minutes to the kitchen table: trends in local public-transportation expenditures from 2018 to 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic altered consumer spending on public transportation, including both intracity (mass transit, taxi, and limousine) and intercity (air, ship, bus, and train). According to the Consumer Expenditure Surveys, spending on public and other transportation fell 66.3 percent in 2020. With shifts toward virtual work and school attendance, many commuters’ 2 hours to the office became 2 minutes to the kitchen table. This article examines changes in dollars spent for public transportation, mainly intracity mass-transit spending from January 2018 to December 2021, among various unique demographic groups: urban and rural residency, occupation type, educational attainment, and selected metropolitan statistical areas. Essential workers generally were unable to telework. Simultaneously, private-transportation costs declined in 2020 for all, while affordability rose for many. Gasoline prices fell 46 cents (17 percent) per gallon in 2020, according to the Consumer Price Index.