Commuters are already feeling the strain as return-to-office mandates ramp up says a recent study commissioned by SiriusXM.
According to the poll, 35% of Canadian commuters say their commute has gotten worse in the past year, and 41% describe their commute as stressful.
Still, 56% say they actually use their commute to relax or decompress, at least sometimes.
Also, 85% of commuters say audio like music and podcasts makes trips better while 73% say audio makes trips feel shorter.
Gen Z commuters are most impacted by long commutes, and are especially intentional with this time, as 59% say they use it to relax.
Nearly nine in 10 commuters (85%) listen to some form of audio during their commutes and nearly three in four commuters (74%) usually listen to music and 84% of listeners name it among their preferred forms of audio when commuting.
The study found 25% of commuters consume podcasts and 33% of listeners calling them a favourite; led by 18to 34 year olds at 43%.
News also still matters with 28% tuning in to news, climbing to 39% among commuters 55 and older.
These findings are from a survey conducted by SiriusXM from Sept. 15 to 17 among a representative sample of 1504 online adult Canadians who are members of the Angus Reid Forum.
For comparison purposes only, a probability sample of this size would carry a margin of error of +/-2.53 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
