Calvert County DED Announces 2003 Commuter Survey Results

PRINCE FREDERICK, Md., -- May 27, 2003 -- The Department of Economic Development (DED) announced today the results of their recent annual commuter survey. The survey was distributed in April to each household in Calvert County and made available on their Internet site.

The DED asked 10 specific questions about home and work location, commuting patterns, telecommuting, recruitment, and skill sets. Based on the survey results, almost 52 percent of respondents work in the private sector, 40 percent work for the Federal government and 7.7 percent work for State and Local government. Most commuters work in Washington D.C. (32.6 percent) while 28.9 percent work in Prince George’s County, 10.2 percent in Northern Virginia and 7.5 percent in St. Mary’s County. Professions included information technology (11.9 percent), defense (8.7 percent), engineering (6.2 percent), accounting (5.2 percent), legal (4.2 percent), and consulting (3.2 percent). Over 11 percent of the respondents indicated that they would be willing to help the DED recruit their organization to the County with 82.1 percent indicating they would prefer to work in Calvert County.

Calvert County boasts the first telecommuting center in Southern Maryland. While 54.2 percent of respondents indicated they were interested in telecommuting, only 27.9 percent of their employers offered this option. Individuals who requested more information on telecommuting will be contacted by the College of Southern Maryland’s telecommuting staff. For more information on Southern Maryland Telecommuting Centers, please call (301) 870-3008 ext. 7628 or visit their web site at http://www.telecommutesomd.org/

Approximately 60 percent of Calvert’s labor force commutes out-of-county daily. The DED hopes to reduce that number by using the information gained from this survey to target industries to relocate to Calvert County. The results are especially helpful as recruitment efforts have begun for the Patuxent Business Park in Lusby.

Results of the survey are available to the public online by clicking here (.pdf file) or by calling 410.535.4583 or 301.855.1880 to receive a copy by mail.

For more information on the Calvert County, Maryland Department of Economic Development, our visitor sites and attractions and the services available to assist County businesses, call 410.535.4583, 800.331.9771 or 301.855.1880; or send an e-mail to info@ecalvert.com