OMAHA, Neb. — New data released by the Metropolitan Area Planning Agency (MAPA) indicates a significant surge in traffic within the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area during the period between 2020 and 2022.
The report from MAPA reveals that overall traffic in the region experienced a substantial growth of 13.4% during this timeframe. This surge was particularly notable in specific counties, with Sarpy County seeing a 15% increase and Douglas, Pottawattamie, and Mills Counties each witnessing a 13% uptick in traffic. The most substantial increases were observed in the rural and exurban areas of Douglas and Sarpy Counties, where traffic surged by 23% to 28%.
One contributing factor to this increase, according to Owen Stuckey, MAPA GIS Coordinator, is the resurgence of office work following the COVID-19 pandemic. “The urban core is a large employment center for the region, and it is likely that a shift back to working in offices after the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to this increase,” Stuckey noted. However, it’s important to highlight that even with this growth, traffic levels in 2022 remained lower than those observed in 2019, before the pandemic.