The science behind commuting and happiness

Yesterday, I wrote about how taxes can reduce commuting times, thereby making commuters, and society, much better off.  I knew I was right about the science, but I couldn’t find all my sources after a quick search.  Fortunately, Jonah Lehrer read the same David Brooks column that I did and wrote about the science substantiating his commuting claim. Money quote:

Of course, as Brooks notes, that time in traffic is torture, and the big house isn’t worth it. According to the calculations of Frey and Stutzer, a person with a one-hour commute has to earn 40 percent more money to be as satisfied with life as someone who walks to the office. Another study, led by Daniel Kahneman and the economist Alan Krueger, surveyed nine hundred working women in Texas and found that commuting was, by far, the least pleasurable part of their day.