The impact of commuting on mental health

As previous research suggests, commuting can occupy a substantial amount of time in an employee’s day and, for some, the journey to and from work is rarely straightforward; adverse conditions such as congested roads, overcrowded train carriages and/or busy foot traffic in and around public transport hubs are often antecedents of employee stress (Legrain et al., 2015; Novaco & Gonzalez, 2009), negative workplace behaviour (Hennessy, 2008), and occupational burn-out (Amponsah-Tawiah et al., 2016). Furthermore, research indicates that challenging travel conditions can also significantly impact the mental health and well-being of commuters (Chatterjee et al., 2019; Paton, 2017; Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), 2016; Urhonen et al., 2016; Wang et al., 2019). Interestingly “years spent commuting” can also affect commuter health. Urhonen et al. (2016) found that whilst physical complaints increased with years spent commuting (10+ years), mental health complaints such as stress diminished as the years increased, potentially through travel adaptation and learning to use the time more efficiently (Sposato et al., 2012). As such, this section will consider the impact of the commute on our mental health and the impact of flexible vs. non-flexible working.

Within this section we take the definition that mental health relates to a person’s “state of mind” and a level of psychological well-being that forms an essential part of an individual’s overall health (World Health Organization (WHO), 2018). Stable emotional and psychological health is typically partnered with positive social functioning and the ability to appropriately operate in personal and professional circumstances; and usually in the absence of mental disorders, such as depression and anxiety (Barry, 2009; National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 2019). Mental health disorders, which affect approximately 450 million people worldwide, can also have a significant impact on workplace performance, causing a decrease in job satisfaction and workplace productivity, and an increase in levels of absenteeism (Friman et al., 2017; Szeto & Dobson, 2010; Taylor et al., 2017; WHO, 2001; Wright & Cropanzano, 2000). In relation to flexible working, Milner et al. (2015), suggest that reduced working hours can help to support better employee mental health and also typically equates to decreased commuting time (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), 2016).

Looking more closely at how flexible working may support mental health, Barck-Holst et al. (2017) propose that stress, negative emotions, exhaustion levels and memory difficulties are less prevalent when “time demands” of work are reduced. Additionally, research by Schiller et al. (2017) found that a 25% reduction to working time improves sleep quality and reduces the experience of stress. Flexible working options also provide employees with a greater degree of autonomy when selecting work patterns to suit their personal and family life (International Workplace Group (1WG), 2019; Feng & Boyle, 2014; Riiger et al., 2017; Stutzer & Frey, 2008).

Considering our working-day, long commutes by definition occupy long periods of time and, as a consequence, often lead to personal “time losses” (Besser et al., 2008; Cassidy, 1992). These can disrupt our work-life balance, commonly leading to family tensions and decreased levels of satisfaction with personal/family activities (Christian, 2012a; Jang & Zippay, 2011). This may also feel especially burdensome for commuters who do not perceive the commute as “quality” (e.g. due to mode choice and related issues) (Handy & Thigpen, 2019; Lorenz, 2018). In a study involving 5,216 survey participants from the 16 wave version (1991—2006) of the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS), researchers identified that journey times of over one hour were likely to cause commuter distress, in particular for women with children, who showed higher risk of poor mental health in all of the commuting times analysed (0—29 minutes, 30—59 minutes and 60+ minutes) compared to their peers with no children (Feng & Boyle, 2014). These findings suggest that women who have other time-pressured commitments (e.g. child care) may be more sensitive to adverse travel events (such as traffic congestion and travel unpredictability) during the commute (Evans et al., 2002). In addition to these findings it is important to recognise that gender disparity in employment is slowly declining, evidenced by a developing female workforce and shared work-life responsibilities between men and women, where men are also taking the lead at home with domestic duties (Lyness & Judiesch, 2014). Haar et al. (2014) further highlight that a positive “work-life balance” and job satisfaction is more likely for those in a high gender-egalitarian culture compared to areas with traditional gender “norms”.

Whilst flexible working hours commonly reduce commuting time and therefore help both male and female employees to achieve a better worklife balance, this method of working is not without risk. Working patterns (such as compressed hours) are often presented as a compact working week, therefore requiring longer hourly attendance in a shorter space of time with the potential for more stress, exhaustion and psychological strain (Golden,

2012). Additionally, the decreased commuting hours commonly associated with flexible working may in fact deprive employees of certain travel benefits (i.e. opportunity to unwind, work day preparation or reading). Linked to this, Jachimowicz et al. (2018) claim that some commuters typically lack a clearly defined “role” when travelling between home and the workplace; during a commute, they are not an employee nor are they occupying personal roles (e.g. a parent). Jachimowicz et al. (2018) found that those who were able to focus on role-clarification prospection during the journey, were better able to prepare for, and potentially improve, their workplace experience. These viewpoints highlight that an overlap of roles may contribute to issues of work-life conflict, particularly if the “employee role” is functioning within a home environment (e.g. cannot switch off from work), therefore potentially affecting the stress levels and mental health of the commuter and family members. Similarly, these principles feature in the “inter-domain transfer effect” framework (Novaco et al., 1990), and more recently, the “work—family enrichment theory” (Greenhaus & Powell, 2006), where each model considers emotion and experience to be transferable between separate domains. A negative experience in the home domain (e.g. a personal dispute), can be transferred to the commute and/or work domain, thus making the journey and/or workplace seem negative. Conversely, a positive commute/ work experience may encourage positivity and improved performance in subsequent domains.

It also remains relevant that, alongside flexible working patterns and “travel activity/behaviour”, environmental and organisational conditions are also adapted to ease the burden of long commutes. Research suggests, that developments in transport infrastructure may help to alleviate some of the adverse conditions of lengthy commutes, whilst also implementing future sustainable commuting options (Rahman et al., 2015; Yigitcanlar & Kamruzzaman,

2018) . For example, mayors and academics in Japan proposed a “Smart Wellness City” in 2009 to support the mental and physical health of residents (Koike et al., 2017). These changes include improved public transport access to avoid the stress and anxiety commonly associated with congestion through car dependency (Higgins et al., 2018), and the development of a more “walking friendly” environment (Hopkins & Mckay, 2019; Koike et al., 2017). The expansion of “smarter” cities and public mobility projects have also become more popular in Melbourne, Australia, where flexible working or “anywhere working” arrangements are intended to challenge the increasing issue of traffic congestion, including public transport (Hopkins & Mckay, 2019).

As evidenced above, stressors associated with commuting are not exclusive to a single modality or context. A 2006 study of rail commuters travelling into Manhattan, New York, found that passenger stress levels, as indicated by raised cortisol readings, were higher following a long commute (45 to 180 minutes) (Evans et al., 2006). Additionally, a decline in post-commute task outcomes (a proofreading task) and an increase in self-reported stress perception (irrespective of gender) further confirmed the negative impact of extended travel time on mental health and motivation. These findings are again indicative of commuting stressors, particularly in connection to long commutes, which are perhaps less emotionally tolerable (Norgate et al.,

2019) , and less physiologically tolerable due to the prolonged exposure to environmental contaminants, noise pollution, lack of facilities and/or overcrowding (Cantwell et al., 2009; Cox et al., 2006).

Despite numerous unfavourable outcomes associated with commuting, it is important to consider the benefits, many of which are linked to active commuting and can be enjoyed in both flexible and traditional working arrangements (which will be picked up in more detail in the next section) (Lancee et al., 2017; Martin et al., 2014; Olsson et al., 2013; Smith, 2017). Cycling and walking are considered common forms of active commuting that help to reduce cortisol levels (related to stress) and increase endorphins (related to mood). Active commuting also allows people to connect with natural spaces to help improve mental health (Triguero-Mas et al., 2015; Triguero-Mas et al., 2017), cognitive functioning (Zijlema et al., 2017), and reduce stress, particularly for those who cycle on a consistent basis (e.g. 4+ days per week) (Avila-Palencia et al., 2017). Cycling and walking to work may also provide the commuter with more privacy for self-reflection and relaxation, although in some cities, there can be a risk of exposure to pollution and large numbers of other commuters.

Section conclusion and practical initiatives

Despite the variety of adverse conditions associated with certain commuting conditions (i.e. extended time travel), researchers have attempted to establish several practical recommendations to help alleviate the concerns associated with work travel, particularly those that impact commuter mental health and well-being. One of the more significant findings to emerge is commuting duration, identified as a leading risk to commuter mental health; weighing particularly heavy on those with other time-sensitive commitments (Feng & Boyle, 2014). Research highlights that flexible working arrangements can perhaps mitigate these outcomes by reducing the frequency of commuting hours, thus making space for more leisure and family orientated activities (CIPD, 2016; Wielers & Raven, 2011). However, in the absence of flexible working options, long commutes can significantly impact commuter mental health, typically presenting as anxiety, stress and exhaustion (Gottholmseder et al., 2009; Hilbrecht et al.. 2014; Nomoto et al., 2015).

One intervention, which may support commuters, is the use of cognitive and behavioural strategies, such as “mindfulness-based” therapy. Techniques used within mindfulness-based cognitive therapy can help a person to manage stress by encouraging positive physical and psychological behaviours when exposed to adverse experiences. In a commuting context, an example of this would be to identify, process and ultimately accept some of the common commuting stress triggers (i.e. inevitable time delays and/or an over stimulating/noisy environment) in order to discard negative stimuli and direct attention to more constructive “present moment” experiences of the journey (Boe & Hagen, 2015; Paredes et al., 2017; Sagui-Henson et al., 2018).

Evidence also suggests that people are psychologically influenced by their surroundings and/or perception of commute characteristics (Handy & Thigpen, 2019; Zijlema et al., 2018; Wei et al., 2019). Excessively polluted cities, for example, make active commuting options much less desirable. Furthermore, commuters who are bound by economic/personal circumstances (e.g. lower-income families) may have to walk or cycle through necessity rather than choice, thus restricting travel autonomy. There are, however, very clear physical benefits to active commuting, most of which also positively impact mental health, as mental and physical health are fundamentally linked.