A Nation Of Super-Commuters?
This story appeared on the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric.
Only 5 percent of the country's commuters take public transportation. Everyone else is stubbornly sticking to their cars.
In fact, since 1990, the number of so-called "super-commuters," those who drive 90 minutes or more, has risen 95 percent.
One of them is Brian McCausland, a father of four. I met him in Pennsylvania farm country, and joined him on his ride to work, 50 miles away.
"Of course like the rest of the country we had no idea that the price of gas was going to essentially double," he said.
I asked his wife: "How have the gas prices affected his family's finances?"
"Well, I had to go back to work," she said.
The cost of commuting is also killing Harris Rosenberg. He's up before dawn every morning for the two-hour drive to his job, delivering – ironically – gasoline in New York City.
"My wife and I were planning on taking our grandchildren to a Met game and a Yankee game this season," he said. "It's all just going to food and gas right now."
Both are at a crossroads. They moved out to the country to save money. But now…
"I could probably get another job that pays the same closer to home," he said. "In this type of economy, starting fresh, that's a little tough."
