Washington, D.C. Ranked Best City for Teleworking

US Cities ripe for mobile workstyle enabled by Intel(r) Centrino(r) Duo Mobile Technology

HILLSBORO, Ore., March 30, 2006 - Washington, D.C has been named the "Best City for Teleworking" in America, according to a new study released today by research firm Sperling's BestPlaces and Intel Corporation. The phenomenon of telework has grown rapidly in recent years thanks in part to the availability of powerful mobile computers based on Intel(r) Centrino(r) Mobile Technology and a network of more than 19,000 hotspots in the US that are part of Intel's Wireless Verification Program.

The Best Places for Teleworking study ranked cities based on the potential benefits that teleworking would offer residents in those cities. 80 metropolitan areas in the US were examined and ranked alongside other similarly sized areas. After Washington, the top cities in the very large metro area category are Boston, Atlanta, Chicago and San Francisco. The large metro area category was topped by San Jose, CA, followed by Baltimore, Denver, San Diego and Indianapolis. Bridgeport/Stamford/Norwalk, CT led the medium metro area category and Boulder, CO headed up the small metro area list.

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Teleworking is an advanced form of telecommuting which goes beyond simply allowing employees to work from home or an alternative location a couple of days a week and instead enables them to work at any time or place that allows them to successfully complete their work. In short, it means bringing the work to the worker instead of the worker to the work. This freedom and mobility is made possible by new technology including laptops based on Intel Centrino Duo Mobile Technology that provide desktop equivalent performance with long battery life and secure wireless networking capabilities.

"At Intel we've experienced the benefits of teleworking for years," said Nigel Ballard, teleworking campaign manager for Intel. "We're a global company, doing business in many locations and across all time zones, the thought of being tied to an office or cube is anathema. And the benefits of teleworking aren't just added productivity for the employer; there are new and welcome benefits for the employee as well, a more flexible work week, the ability to work efficiently from home and the substantial saving on gas and personal vehicle wear and tear"

This new study identifies cities that hold the greatest potential for teleworking based on a host of factors including typical commuting times, fuel prices, availability of broadband Internet access and percentage of the population in telework friendly jobs. Washington, D.C. earned the top spot with its high scores in all of these categories. It has one of the highest percentages of white-collar workers in the study, plus the daily commute is one of the most time-consuming and costly in the US. A single Washington office worker who teleworks just one day each week can see savings of $488 in transportation costs and $2,708 in time savings each year.

"Recent increases in fuel prices, crowded highways and security concerns have all combined to make telework increasingly important in today's world," said Bert Sperling, principal author of the study. "Our analysis shows that working from home even one day a week can have a huge beneficial effect for employees, companies and the entire community."

Study Methodology

Eighty of the largest metropolitan areas in the US were included in this study of the "Best Places for Teleworking." To create the rankings, Sperling's BestPlaces evaluated each area's factors in the categories of commuting, office-based workforce, internet infrastructure, extreme climate and natural hazards. The climate category included the annual number of days with heavy snow, rain and ice which may disrupt a commute. The natural hazards category measured the risk from hurricanes, earthquakes and tornadoes.

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More about Teleworking

Telework Exchange is an online community where you can find out more about teleworking and calculate your savings.