Long Bay Area Commute Driving Some Workers to Quit or Leave

Residents of Brentwood, a suburban city in Contra Costa County east of San Francisco, endure the longest average commutes in the United States and some are quitting jobs or relocating to avoid them, according to U.S. Census Bureau data and interviews with local workers.

Census figures collected in 2023 show the average one-way commute for Brentwood’s roughly 65,000 residents is 46 minutes — about 19 minutes longer than the national mean. About three-quarters of commuters drive to work, more than 20% leave home before 6 a.m., and 38% spend an hour or more each way getting to and from their jobs. With limited high-paying employment locally, many residents travel to San Francisco, Oakland and Silicon Valley for work.

Local interviews describe the toll long commutes take on workers and households. Chris Moyer, a 59-year-old union carpenter who commuted from Brentwood to Oakland for 12 years, told the San Francisco Chronicle he routinely left at 4:30 a.m. for a 7:30 a.m. shift. He said prolonged hours in gridlock and reduced family time prompted him to consider retirement earlier than planned. "The commute was killing me," he said.

Younger workers tell a similar story. Mathew Scolari, 27, a software engineer, drives roughly 60 miles round trip to Foster City, a commute that can take about two hours a day. He moved back to Brentwood in 2023 after rent for a one-bedroom in Mountain View rose to about $2,900 a month. Scolari said the combination of long travel times and housing cost pressures has led him to consider leaving the Bay Area entirely.

Brentwood has become relatively more affordable compared with other Bay Area communities. Realtor.com lists the city’s median home price near $800,000, roughly $500,000 lower than the regional median, attracting families seeking lower housing costs. But the tradeoff for lower housing expenses, residents and developers say, is a long, often congested commute.

Sean McCauley, a local real estate developer, said residents moved to Brentwood seeking a higher quality of life but return home too tired to enjoy it during the workweek. The lack of efficient public transit options linking Brentwood to major job centers and persistent highway crowding amplify the problem, community leaders and commuters say.

The commuting pattern has implications for regional labor markets and local economies. Employers in big-city job centers may face retention challenges for workers living in outlying suburbs, particularly for roles that require early starts or in-person presence. The pressure has pushed some workers to seek fully remote roles, change jobs to reduce travel, retire earlier than planned or consider relocating to more affordable metro areas with shorter commutes.

Efforts to address congestion and transit access in the Bay Area are long-standing and complex, involving multiple counties, state agencies and regional transit operators. For Brentwood residents, however, the immediate choices remain limited: pay higher housing costs to move closer to jobs, endure extended commutes, shift to remote work where possible, or leave the region.

The Census data and local reporting underscore a broader tension in high-cost metropolitan regions: housing affordability at the urban fringe can create longer commutes that affect worker well-being and regional labor dynamics. Policymakers, transit planners and employers will face continued pressure to find solutions that balance housing costs, commute times and workforce stability.