An hour in traffic for every four in work

FOR every four hours a person spends in work they spend an hour stuck in traffic or negotiating public transport.

This is according to a survey that said the average person is spending two hours and 20 minutes getting to and from work.

This amounts to 23 days travelling every year and is an increase of 23 minutes compared with five years ago.

Unsurprisingly the times vary across the country with those living in the greater Dublin area and working in the capital spending the most time in transit — two hours and 35 minutes.

People in Munster get away with the shortest daily journey with an average of two hours and 11 minutes a day — a half hour longer than five years ago.

According to the survey more than half the people in Dublin and Munster blamed increased traffic for their journey times.

Those in Dublin’s commuter belt blamed poor infrastructure.

Presenter Síle Seoige is spokeswoman for Centra, which sponsored the study.

She said it showed how little time people had available for recreation.

“Today’s lifestyles are becoming more hectic and fast-paced, with the increase in daily commuting, due to longer travelling distances and increased traffic volume, just one of a number of factors costing people valuable time.

“The demands of commuting places greater time pressures and stress on ordinary life in Ireland today,” she said.

The survey was conducted by market researchers Red C. It questioned 1,002 adults in January to examine their travel habits.

Convenience store operator Centra sponsored the research and suggested a number of ways to make use of scarce time.

This included trying to adjust work routines to travel when it is not rush hour and the importance of studying routes to know the best way of avoiding traffic.

Centra plans to conduct six surveys throughout this year to examine how people manage their time given the pressure of work and travel.