the big dig was touted as saving time and money for commuters, but the most recent Census data show travel time to work for most cities and towns around Boston stayed the same or increased since 2000.

According to US Census five-year community surveys, which have taken the place of the long-form census questionnaire, Cohasset residents have the longest commute in the state with an estimated average time of 39-plus minutes to get to the office. Ten years ago it took Cohasset workers nearly five minutes less to get to work.

Statewide, the estimated average commute time is slightly more than 27 minutes, up about six seconds from 2000. The national average is just over 25 minutes, which dropped about 1 percent from 2000.
Not everyone, of course, works in Boston, where the Big Dig was dug, but one might expect those in the surrounding cities and towns to see some reduction in their commuting time.

Quincy residents, however, have the same length of commute—a little more than 31 minutes—as they did in 2000. To the north, the trend is the same. Saugus commuters are taking a little more time to get to work, with average commuting time going up 1.5 percent from 2000 to nearly 27 minutes today. Lynn and Beverly, meanwhile, stayed the same over the last decade, 27 minutes and 25½ minutes, respectively.

The commute for Wellesley workers rose about a minute from just over 24 minutes to a little more than 25, but, interestingly, more people abandoned their cars and bought new walking shoes. Nearly 18 percent of people from Wellesley walk to work compared with less than 12 percent in 2000.

If a short commute is what you seek, look offshore. Residents in Nantucket have the easiest daily commute to work in Massachusetts, with an estimated average of 11 minutes to get there. In addition, islanders are much more likely to carpool, with 16.2 percent sharing a ride, nearly twice the statewide average.