subject: What's Receded In The Recession? [print this page] The recession changed America's lifestyleThe recession changed America's lifestyle. According to the Census Bureau's 2010 American Community Survey, Americans are marrying later. Since 2006 the median age of men's first marriage went from 26.7 to 28.7. For women it went from 25.9 to 27.5. Between 2008 and 2010 there were 200,000 fewer births to women ages 20 to 34 - even though the number of women in that age group increased by more than 1 million. There were also 7% fewer divorces. Finally, between 2006 and 2010 households with 2 or more cars dropped from 58% to 57.1% - as the recession "drove down" the economy.
Fewer Americans went to church, synagogue or temple during the recession. According to a 10-year study conducted by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research, more than 25% of congregations had fewer that 50 worshippers in 2010 and just under 50% had fewer than 100. Overall, median weekend worship attendance dropped from 130 to 108 in 10 years. Financial support also dropped. Thirty-one percent of congregations reported excellent financial health in 2000. In 2010 it was only 14%. In an attempt to improve attendance by being both innovative and contemporary, 41% of congregations used Facebook to communicate with congregants. It's a religious "face-lift".
The recession also decreased the number of traffic fatalities. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration analyzed unemployment and traffic fatalities data for 2008 and found metropolitan areas with the biggest increases in unemployment had the biggest decreases in traffic deaths. For example, both Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada were hard hit by the 2007-2008 recession and their traffic deaths fell 19% and 27% respectively. Nationwide, unemployment rose from 5% in 2007 to 7.3% in 2008. Traffic fatalities fell 10%. There were 37,261 fatalities in 2008; 33,808 in 2009; and 32,788 in 2010. These numbers "drive home" the point.
Nevertheless, the recession didn't decrease the number of people who drove to work alone. According to the Census Bureau, the number has increased every 10 years since the 1960 census; and according to the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, the number increased again in 2009. As of then, more than 75% of workers drove to work alone. About 10% carpooled, 5% took public transportation and the rest walked, biked or worked from home. As of 2009, the average commute time was about 25 minutes - a few minutes more than in 1980. That's long enough to "drive someone to distraction".
