Suggested Citation:
Morrison, Geoffrey M. (2011) Driving in Force: Why the U.S. Military Commutes by Automobile. Institute of Transportation Studies, University of California, Davis, Research Report UCD-ITS-RR-11-21

This paper explores the U.S. military’s preference for commuting by automobile. After controlling for typical predictors of travel behavior such as socio-economic, demographic, family-related, immigration, transit availability, and built environment variables, military personnel are still more likely to drive to work than civilian counterparts. We investigate a number of incentives for driving to base such as discounted gasoline, free parking, and lack of walkability. We find that veterans have a greater likelihood of driving to work than civilian workers after controlling for the same predictors of travel, suggesting either a self-selection of auto-oriented individuals into the military or a “peer effect” whereby military individuals are conditioned to drive to work while in the military. We find evidence of the latter but cannot refute the former. An inherent bias towards consumptive behavior in the private lives of military members could have major implications for the military’s overall energy use and environmental impact.

Keywords: military, mode choice, commute, travel behavior, DoD, IPUMS, Census