Radio is the medium occupying the beachfront property in the world of commuting, and dual forces are conspiring to increase the property’s value – if radio takes care to preserve its dominance inside America’s automobiles.
For starters, cities don’t move, but they do grow, even while the availability of land for new housing diminishes. It is also easier for many to find affordable housing farther out from the urban center, providing two major forces driving workers further into the exurbs.
But the jobs in the urban center remain as major attraction pulling those who have moved out right back in every day. Although some can become an e-employee, working from home thanks to the internet, there is still a strong need for live human bodies in the brick and mortar environment.
The recent spike in gasoline prices caused many to look at the possibility of telecommuting, but as fuel costs have come back down to earth, at least for now, fewer seem to be seriously exploring that option.
More and more outlying communities force their residents into super-commutes of an hour or more one-way.
Add in the upcoming economic stimulus package, which is expected to feature major infrastructure work, including road and bridge repairs. Although the obvious goal of these projects is to relieve pressure on traffic, the early result is usually to inflict even greater pressure.
The Washington Post looked at citizens in its area, because a national report from the Census Bureau put four of its bedroom communities on the top twelve towns with the worst average commute in America. It placed an enclave in western Prince William County VA at 46.3 minutes – and it that doesn’t seem so bad, remember that the average includes people who work only five or ten minutes away. The ones heading toward Washington itself can look forward to over two hours in their car every day.
The national average commute is just over 25 minutes one-way.
RBR/TVBR observation: These statistics should shift the salivary glands of radio executives into fifth gear. Each and every one of these commuters is trapped in a venue in which the radio has long been the dominant medium. The fact that the period of entrapment figures to only get longer is great news, especially during the current economic downturn.
Radio has a long history of turning away would-be competitors. Tape decks, CD players and satellite radio have made only minor dents in overall commuter listening habits. However, both are still around, and are being joined on an increasing basis by internet services and, to an extent, personal music devices like iPods.
However, commuting, for the time being, figures to be a growth industry, and radio must do everything in its power to seize this opportunity, and maintain its dominance of morning and afternoon drive.
