3 of USA’s 20 most hellacious commutes are happening right in NJ

When I moved to Monmouth County and my commute time nearly doubled, it was an eye-opener. Two hours of my life every day just to get to and from work adds up. Financially, too, now with gas prices well over $4 per gallon.

Yet many have it much worse.

A new study from A Mission for Michael looked at more than 3,000 commuters and identified America’s so-called “burnout belts.”

These are stretches of road where the daily drive doesn’t just get you to work, it quietly steals your soul.

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Photo by Musa Haef on Unsplash

And guess what? Three of the 20 worst commutes in the entire country are right here in New Jersey. Are we really surprised? Or are we more surprised it’s not half the list?

The study pinpointed certain ‘commuter belts,’ specific stretches of point A to point B. And it’s not just the distance in between. It’s the time and aggravation. The start and stop traffic. The stressful merging. It all forms a mosaic of anxiety that’s become too familiar to many of us.

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Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

Which three ‘commuter belts’ ranked among the nation’s 20 worst?

Let’s go from least to most stressful.

The report says getting the relatively short distance from Princeton to Trenton every day is the 18th worst in the country. If you were surprised by this, so was I.

Next is the suburb of North Bergen, traveling to the urban area of Jersey City. This ranked 14th-worst commute in the U.S.

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Photo by Robin Pierre on Unsplash

Finally, according to this study, the most frustrating commute in New Jersey and the 11th most frustrating in the nation is going from Union to Newark.

My one-hour drive isn’t seeming so bad now, because you know what? At least it’s almost always moving.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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