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Commuting New Yorkers Really, Really Hate Germs, Study Says

By Nicole Levy | March 9, 2016 3:16pm
 Asked to rank five
Asked to rank five "commuter super-powers" based on which they would want most, 47 percent of New York City residents participating in the online survey said they wished they had the power to kill germs on subways, buses and trains.
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You're not the only one in this city hoarding hand sanitizer.

Commuting New Yorkers may be more germophobic than commuters most major U.S. cities, a recent study by the credit card Chase Freedom has found.

Asked to rank five "commuter super powers" based on which they would want most, 47 percent of New York City residents participating in the online survey said they wished they had the power to kill germs on subways, buses and trains. They chose that over the ability to clear traffic jams, to mute all the sounds on one's trip, to rid the air of unpleasant smells and to guarantee oneself an empty seat. (Somehow, the power to teleport did not make the list.)

The survey, which polled a small random sampling — not just cardholders — of 108 New Yorkers 18 years old and up, is far from comprehensive, but its findings are fun to consider.

Other results, which compared answers from respondents in 13 major U.S. cities, suggest that New Yorkers dislike their journeys to and from work more than most commuters in America. Across the sample pool nationwide, 19 percent of respondents said they disliked their commute; 25 percent of respondents in the Big Apple agreed. That be could because 22 percent — almost double the percent study-wide — get started on their work en route to the office.

 Chase commuting map
Chase commuting map
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Chase Freedom

At least the average length of daily commute (63.9 minutes) for New Yorkers was roughly 24 minutes shorter than that reported by commuters in Atlanta. And they're surprisingly not as stressed about it as they could be: only 19 percent of New York-based respondents said they found their commute stressful most or all of the time (and that's good for the other 81 percent because a stressful commute can honestly kill you).

But if they could hitch an Uber or Lyft ride for the same price as public transit, 64 percent said they would. (Can you imagine a $2.75 Uber ride?)

Take a gander at some of the survey's other findings below:

chase map

Credit: Chase Freedom