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 Release Information CB11-158 **Contact:**  Public Information Office
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 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  12:01 A.M. EDT, THURSDAY, SEPT. 22, 2011 Census Bureau Releases 2010 American Community  Survey Single Year Estimates The U.S. Census Bureau  today released findings from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS), the most  relied-on source for up-to-date socioeconomic information every year. The release  covers more than 40 topics, such as educational attainment, income, health  insurance coverage, occupation, language spoken at home, nativity, ancestry and  selected monthly homeowner costs. The estimates are available in detailed tables for the nation,  all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, every congressional  district, every metropolitan area, and all counties and places with populations  of 65,000 or more. See the Census Bureau's <American FactFinder> database  to find statistics for your area. Selected high-level highlights can be found  <here>. One illustration of the extent of information available on one  of the major topics covered is the commute to work. According to the data,  average travel time for workers 16 and older inched   up from 25.1 minutes in  2009 to 25.3 minutes in 2010. The percentage who drove to work alone increased  from 76.1 percent in 2009 to 76.6 percent in 2010. Conversely, the percentage  who carpooled declined from 10.0 percent to 9.7 percent and the percentage  taking public transportation slipped from 5.0 percent to 4.9 percent. Another  4.3 percent worked at home and 2.8 percent walked to  work. About 1.7 percent commuted to work in other ways, including commuting by  bicycle (731,286), motorcycle (266,777) and taxicab (151,247). Average travel time to work was highest in Maryland (31.8  minutes), followed by New York (31.3 minutes). North Dakota and South Dakota  had the shortest travel times, at 16.1 minutes and 16.8 minutes, respectively.  Not coincidentally, Maryland also had the second-highest percentage of workers  with jobs outside their county of residence (47.0 percent), behind only  Virginia (51.3 percent). New Jersey (45.7 percent) and Georgia (41.6 percent)  followed Maryland. **Detailed Report  on Commuting** Also released today was*<Commuting in the United States: 2009>*, a report that provides  additional layers of analysis about commuting patterns for the nation and metro  areas. Based on the 2009 ACS, the analysis gives a historical perspective of  the nation's commuting patterns. It also looks at how our commutes differ based  on how we get to work, when we leave for work and how long it takes us. It  further analyzes commutes based on a host of demographic characteristics,  including race and Hispanic origin, occupation, gender, place of birth and  other variables. According to the report: The recent rise in mean travel time to work is  nothing new. In 1980, the first time the census collected such information,  average travel time was just under 22 minutes, then increased to about 25  minutes in 2000, where it remained in 2009.
  In 2009, workers who carpooled took longer to  get to work than those who drove alone; the difference was largest for those  who departed in the midnight to 4:59 a.m. period, where average travel time for  carpool commuters was 45.1 minutes, compared with 30.8 minutes for workers who  drove alone.

  Those who worked in production, transportation  and material moving occupations were more likely to depart for work between  midnight and 4:59 a.m. than any other occupational category (10.5 percent). At  1.9 percent, those in managerial, professional and related occupations had the  lowest percentage of departures during this time period.
  Mean travel time to work varied by nativity  status: 28.1 minutes for foreign-born workers compared with 24.9 minutes for  those who were native-born. Hispanic workers had the longest mean travel time  when carpooling (29.0 minutes) and the shortest time for public transportation  usage (46.0 minutes). **American Community Survey Brief Series** In addition, the Census Bureau released today a set of four  separate briefs based on the 2010 ACS. These  short reports supplement detailed tables with additional analysis on four key  topics. These include: Health  insurance coverage
  Employment  ratios
  Household  income
  Foreign-born  from Latin America and the Caribbean More than a dozen additional  briefs will be released in monthly waves through the end of the year. **More about the American Community Survey (ACS)** As a complete count of the population, the 2010 Census results  are critical for people who need to know how many people live in the United  States and where they live. The ACS statistics, on the other hand, are based on  a sample survey of the nation conducted over the course of the 2010 calendar  year and describe how we live by providing estimates of key social, economic  and housing characteristics. In October, the Census Bureau will release a set of ACS  statistics covering all areas with populations of 20,000 or more, based on data  collected between 2008 and 2010. A third set of ACS statistics, available for  all geographic areas regardless of population size, down to the block group  level, will be released in December; these estimates will cover 2006-2010. **Methodology** As is the case with all surveys, statistics from sample surveys  are subject to sampling and nonsampling error. All comparisons made in the  reports have been tested and found to be statistically significant at the 90  percent confidence level, unless otherwise noted. Please consult 
  the tables for specific  margins of error. For more information, go to <https://www.census.gov/acs/www/data_documentation/documentation_main/>. Changes in survey design from year to year can affect results.  See https://www.census.gov/acs/www/data_documentation/2010_release/ for more information on changes affecting the 2010 statistics. See https://www.census.gov/acs/www/guidance_for_data_users/comparing_2010/ for guidance on comparing 2010 ACS statistics with previous years and the 2000  Census. **Special Note** **The Census Bureau released all of  the 2010 ACS 1-year estimates on Thursday, September 22. Due to a technical  issue, a limited number of products for smaller geographic areas are not  available through American FactFinder at this time. However, all Detailed  Tables are accessible in the ACS Summary File, through the Census Bureau's FTP  site:  http://www2.census.gov/acs2010_1yr/summaryfile/.  The Census Bureau will release the full set of ACS products for all areas of  65,000 or more in American FactFinder on Tuesday, September 27.** **Working with the ACS Summary File  requires computer expertise. Technical documentation is available at http://www2.census.gov/acs2010_1yr/summaryfile/ACS_2010_SF_Tech_Doc.pdf.   Data users who are not able to access the Summary File can contact the  American Community Survey Office (301-763-1405, acso.users.support@census.gov).** -X-
 
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