Resident travel distances

We know that being able to meet your daily needs locally is one of the hallmarks of a great place. But in which Australian neighbourhoods do locals actually STAY LOCAL?

Using our monthly resident movement tools, we checked the numbers, and it's actually quite surprising... powered by mobile phone movement data (10 million unique devices monthly nationwide), these maps show the average distance travelled by residents when leaving their homes in September 2024.

KEY: Aqua = shortest distances & Pink = longest distances

These are some of the surprising things I found about who 'stays local':

• Noosa Heads (3.70km) is the most 'local' place in South East Queensland‍, with Mooloolaba (4.36km) a distant second place and Brisbane CBD is 6.08km.
• Sydney's eastern suburbs are in the top 10% of the country with Tamarama (3.68km) Bellvue HIll (3.75km), and North Bondi (3.91km) the winners.
• How local residents stay is NOT correlated with public transport access - while it is true that people stay local in underserviced areas (like regional towns), neighbourhoods well-serviced by transport may ALSO enjoy short average distances.
• Melbourne boasts the largest 'local zone' in the country- with more than 3/4 of the inner 20km travelling less than the Australian average

If you want to check out the results yourself - create a free account on our website (Opt in for the "Pro Trial" to access resident movement data nationwide for 14 days)

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