News Updates

New household travel survey highlights emerging post-pandemic travel trends

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) periodically surveys households across northeastern Illinois about their travel habits. These surveys, known as My Daily Travel (MDT), provide data on the travel behavior characteristics of northeastern Illinois residents and inform the agency’s policy analysis, regional travel demand modeling, and long-range transportation planning. CMAP is currently updating the survey, and initial MDT results are summarized below.

The previous survey was conducted in 2019, with key insights summarized in a series of four policy updates examining why and how residents travel; travel behavior by demographic groups; early impacts of telecommuting on travel patterns; and the prevalence of micromobility in the region. CMAP also periodically analyzes mobility trends to inform policy and planning activities. For example, CMAP released the Mobility Recovery report outlining  recommendations to support a stronger multimodal system in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Together, these efforts provide key insights into how residents navigate the region and help inform priorities for future transportation investments.

This policy update analyzes the Phase One data from the 2026 travel survey, conducted from September 2024 to June 2025. As the first travel survey conducted since 2020, it offers early insights into how travel patterns have shifted since the pandemic, though results may shift once the full survey is available in early 2027. The Phase One dataset includes responses from a regionally representative sample of 3,525 households, out of an anticipated total of 12,000 households in the full MDT update. CMAP will analyze the complete survey once all data is collected and released.

Stable travel trends over time

Despite the pandemic’s unprecedented disruption to travel, including transit ridership and remote work, CMAP’s Phase One analysis indicates that most travel trends remained stable over time. Findings from the 2019 policy updates, such as mode share and average travel patterns across demographic groups, are broadly consistent with the Phase One data. The following analyses highlight key similarities between the two surveys.

Chicago and Cook County residents continue to rely most on non-car modes

Driving — either alone in a single occupancy vehicle (SOV) or with others in a high occupancy vehicle (HOV) — accounted for 76 percent of all trips. Walking and transit were the next most common modes, accounting for 12 percent and 6 percent of all trips, respectively. In 2019, the corresponding mode shares were similar: 78 percent driving, 10 percent walking, and 7 percent transit.

Figure 1 shows that mode share differs based on where travelers live. For instance, in Chicago and suburban Cook County, travelers relied more on non-car modes than in the collar counties. In Chicago, non-car modes — such as walking, biking, and transit — accounted for approximately 43 percent of all trips, with walking and transit comprising most of these trips. Suburban Cook County residents used non-car modes for about 20 percent of trips, while residents of all other counties in the region used them for 17 percent or fewer. These patterns are consistent with the 2019 travel survey found similar non-car mode shares, of 44, 17, and 12 percent, respectively.

Figure 1: Residents of Chicago and Cook County had the highest non-car mode share in the region

Travelers from low-income households continue to use transit for a wide range of trips

Phase One results confirm that mode share also varies by household income. Travelers from low-income households are more likely to use transit overall (Figure 2) and are more likely to use transit for a wider variety of trips. In contrast, higher-income travelers (with incomes of $150,000 or more) primarily use transit for work trips, which account for 82 percent of their transit trips. This pattern is consistent with the 2019 survey, which found that work trips represented around 30 percent of the transit trips among residents with incomes below $35,000, compared with 82 percent among those with incomes of $150,000 or more.

Figure 2: Travelers from low-income households use transit for a wider range of trips than those from other households

Emerging post-pandemic travel trends

Several disruptions caused by the pandemic appear to have shifted how people travel throughout the region, consistent with increased remote work across many industries.

Telecommuting rose significantly, though trends across demographic groups remained stable

The share of residents who report telecommuting at least once per week increased substantially, from 14 percent in 2019 to 46 percent in 2025 (Figure 3). National estimates suggest that telecommuting remains elevated but at lower levels. For example, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 23 percent of the national workforce reported working from home at some point during an average week in the first quarter of 2024. The higher share observed in the Phase One survey may reflect its relatively small sample size. CMAP will continue to monitor telecommuting trends as the remainder of the 2026 survey is completed.

Across demographic groups, telecommuting patterns remained broadly consistent with the 2019 survey. Residents from low-income households and residents of color were the least likely to telecommute. These findings are consistent with prior CMAP analyses that found low-income residents of color to be more likely to work in service-oriented jobs that require in-person attendance. In contrast, residents of prime working age, white and Asian residents, and those making $100,000 or more were most likely to telecommute at least once a week.

Figure 3: Low-income, Black, and Latino residents were the least likely to telecommute

Transit ridership was highest among part-time telecommuters

Part-time telecommuters were more likely to use transit for work trips than those who always work in person (Figure 4). Workers who never telecommute used transit for fewer than 20 percent of their work trips, while part-time telecommuters used transit for between 20 and 40 percent of their in-person work trips, depending on their county of residence. In all cases, Chicago residents were the most likely to use transit for work trips, followed by suburban Cook County and collar county residents.

Across all geographies, the share of transit work trips by part-time telecommuters increased between the 2019 and Phase One surveys. The largest increase occurred among Chicago residents, rising from 22 percent in 2019 to 37 percent in 2025. Transit use for in-person work trips also modestly increased in suburban Cook County and the collar counties by 3 and 5 percent, respectively.

These findings reflect the types of jobs that allow telecommuting — often office-based roles in knowledge industries — which are disproportionately located in transit-served areas such as Chicago’s Central Business District. Despite this trend, overall transit ridership in the region remains below pre-pandemic levels. In 2025, systemwide ridership was approximately 70 percent of 2019 levels, due in part to continued remote work.

Figure 4: Part-time telecommuters across the region were more likely to use transit on days they worked outside the home

Midday travel rose significantly compared to pre-pandemic levels

According to the Phase One survey, residents took nearly 24 million trips during an average weekday, down from around 27 million in 2019. Weekday travel in the Phase One survey peaked in the morning and evening, with 1.2 million and 1.3 million trips underway around 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., respectively (Figure 5). This pattern is consistent with trends in the 2019 survey and reflects typical commuting behavior.

Midday travel, however, increased significantly in the Phase One data compared to pre-pandemic levels. In the 2019 survey, peak midday travel reached about 48 percent of the morning and evening peak levels. In Phase One, midday travel reached approximately 67 percent of peak levels. This shift is consistent with research from peer regions, which suggests that remote workers are more likely to take discretionary trips during the day.

Figure 5: Morning and evening peaks in travel demand were pronounced, although midday travel rose compared to pre-pandemic levels

Heightened midday travel is driven by non-work trips

Increased midday travel is consistent with higher rates of telecommuting. People working from home often have greater flexibility to run errands or make personal trips during the day. Figure 6 illustrates this pattern, showing that shopping trips and other trips — such as school, meals, or social and recreational activities — have midday peaks around 1:00 p.m. Both shopping and other trip purposes reached approximately 400,000 trips at midday in the Phase One dataset, compared to about 200,000 trips during the same period in the 2019 survey.

Figure 6: Heightened midday travel is driven by non-work trips

On average, residents are taking longer trips

Compared with 2019, the Phase One results indicate that average trips are longer in both duration and distance (Figure 7). Average trip distance increased from 4.5 miles in 2019 to 5.7 miles in 2025, and average trip duration increased from 21.1 minutes in 2019 to 29.4 minutes in 2025.

These changes may reflect post-pandemic shifts in population within the region, from urban to more suburban locations. From 2019 to 2023, Cook County’s population declined by approximately 63,000 people, while counties such as Kendall, Lake, and Will experienced growth over the same period. As more residents live in lower density areas with greater distances between home and employment centers, average trip lengths may increase. Given the increase in telecommuting, longer trips may also reflect greater willingness to travel farther for work when commuting occurs fewer days per week.

Consistent with 2019 findings, Black and Hispanic residents and residents with incomes below $60,000 experienced the longest average trip durations. These disparities widened in the Phase One data, with average trip times for Black, Hispanic, and low-income residents increasing by more than 10 minutes compared to the 2019 survey. While these groups had longer travel times, Black and low-income residents also had the shortest average trip distances. This pattern may reflect differences in transportation access and mode choice.

Low-income residents and residents of color are more likely to depend on transit while commuting to areas that lack transit connectivity. These findings may also reflect recent challenges in the transit system, such as increases in the number of CTA rail slow zones and safety and security incidents across the RTA system, which affect the reliability and desirability of transit.

Figure 7: Average travel patterns vary based on demographic and telecommuting characteristics

New travel behavior impacts how residents experience the region’s transportation systems

The Phase One survey results provide early insights into post-pandemic travel across northeastern Illinois. While many travel behaviors remain consistent with past trends, the data point to emerging shifts that warrant further analysis as the full 2026 survey is completed.

Changes in when people travel may have implications for congestion management and transit service planning. As transit ridership continues to lag behind pre-pandemic levels, there may be a need to reimagine service to better align with current travel patterns and improve convenience for riders. In addition, widening disparities in travel times for low-income and residents of color suggests that our transportation systems may not be serving all residents equally.

CMAP and its partners have identified improved reliability, congestion management, and expanded multimodal access as key priorities for the 2026 Regional Transportation Plan. These priorities will help guide future strategies and investments to support the region’s desired future transportation system.