What if everyone who could telecommute actually did?
April 19, 2008 · Print This Article
I’m always ranting about how the price of gas would drop like a stone tomorrow if all those who could do their work at home actually did. Here in the Philly ‘burbs, the main arteries leading to the city and to the office parks of King of Prussia are CLOGGED daily with information workers of one stripe or another, who, truth be told, really don’t need to be in the office all the time. Now, there is a study that tries to quantify the possible result:
They asked the simple question: what would be the impact if everyone who could work from home actually did? The answer they came up with for the USA: a savings of 625 million barrels of oil a year, as well as $43 billion less spent on gasoline and elimination of a couple of weeks of wasted commuting time per person.
The study (done by telework advocacy website Undress4Success) focuses on the immense environmental benefits of such a scenario, but there are compelling economic woes that can be alleviated as well. With skyrocketing oil prices linked to everything from worldwide food inflation to bankrupt airlines to shuttered pizza shops, anything that can drive down the cost of energy would help reverse the damage. For every infoworker who can skip the daily commute, life is made a bit easier (less traffic) and more affordable (cheaper gas) for those who can’t telecommute: nurses, farmers, police officers, chefs, hairstylists and truckers (and our truckers really need a break)!
The less obvious benefits: happier and more productive workers, fewer car accidents, cheaper auto insurance, independence from foreign oil - and perhaps most gratifying of all - handing Big Oil a well-deserved cash “haircut”.
Thanks to the wonderful Web Worker Daily for the validation I was looking for!
Be sure to read the original article about the study, at Undress4Success.
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