Suggested Citation:
Handy, Susan L., Gil Tal, Marlon G. Boarnet (2013) Brief: Impacts of Telecommuting Based on a Review of the Empirical Literature. Institute of Transportation Studies, University of California, Davis, Brief UCD-ITS-RR-13-61

A review of the literature to assess the benefits of telecommuting was limited to experimental designs, which are the most rigorous approach to establishing the causal effect of a policy on vehicle miles of travel (VMT). Three studies examined changes in VMT from before to after workers began telecommuting, measured VMT for control groups of non-telecommuters, and used travel diary surveys to collect data on all travel, not just the commute (see Table 1). Studies that did not use before-and-after measurements, control groups, or travel diary surveys (e.g. Nelson, et al. 2007) were excluded, as well as studies from outside the U.S.

Key words: Telecommuting, vehicle miles traveled, consumer behavior