When I attend meetings that discuss the risks and
opportunities for European companies expanding into the United States and
Canada, the sheer size of the North American continent versus the size of the
European continent is always mentioned.
Often meeting attendees will be shown an interesting overlay map like
the one here, at which point they will either audibly gasp – mainly, I suspect, because
that is what they think this is the reaction expected of them – or they will
nod knowingly, as they remember back to that interminable drive from Orlando to
Miami the last time they were on vacation in the United States. To give some context of my own to this
conversation about size, I will give some points of comparison: the distance
between Washington, DC and New York City is roughly the same distance as
between Berlin and Prague; the distance between Miami, Florida and Boston,
Massachusetts is roughly the same distance as between Rome and Edinburgh; and
the distance between New York City and Los Angeles, California is roughly the
same distance as between Moscow and Lisbon.
Overlay Map of North
America and Europe[1]
But these conversations about the size of North America
never actually discuss what this distance really means in a practical context;
about how distance translates into time; and as any business school graduate
will tell you, about how time translates into money.
As we can see from the map above, the United States and
Canada are vast countries. At a combined
19.8 million square kilometers, the United States and Canada have a land mass
94% larger than the European land mass.
When we take population into account, the United States and Canada have
a combined population of 351.3 million compared to Europe’s combined population
of 739.2 million. That translates into a
population density in the United States of only 34.4 people per square
kilometer – only 47% the population density of Europe. Looking only at averages, this means that a
business needs to cover 2.1x as much territory to reach the same number of
potential customers.
But averages only take you so far. While Canada has the lowest population
density of any country in the world (3.4 per sq. km.), 80% of that population
lives within 150 kilometers of the border with the United States. 80% of the Canadian population also lives in
urban – rather than rural – communities, with 1/3 of the total Canadian
population living in the cities of Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. While the United States population is
slightly more evenly distributed, it is still heavily concentrated in the
northeastern states around the Washington, DC/Philadelphia/New York/Boston
corridor, in the upper-midwestern “rust belt” states around Chicago/Detroit/Cleveland,
and in individual cities in the west and southeast such as Los Angeles/San
Diego, Seattle/Portland, Dallas/Houston, and Atlanta/Tampa/Orlando/Miami. Many western states, such as New Mexico,
Wyoming, Montana, and the Dakotas have substantially lower population
densities, ranging from 6.3 down to 2.1 people per square kilometer.
Population Density Map
of North America[2]
Unfortunately, when considering population distribution
within regions, it is also misleading to only look at the population within the
actual boundaries of major cities. With
the flight of the middle class from large cities over the past several decades
for a variety of economic and social reasons, the populations of many large
cities have shrunk, while the populations of their surrounding suburbs have
grown exponentially. For example, the
population within the city limits of Washington, DC is only a little over 632,000
– ranking it the 24th largest city in the United States. However, when its substantial suburban
population is considered, Washington, DC’s population jumps to 2.4 million –
ranking it the 8th largest region in the United States. A similar story is told by Detroit, whose
shrinking population within the city limits (701,000) ranks it the 18th
largest city in the United States, a status which is offset by its large suburban
population (an additional 1.1 million people), which bumps Detroit’s rank up to
11th.
With a large population spread unevenly over an ever larger
area, the trick for any business is not necessarily reaching every customer in
every remote corner of Canada and the United States, but is instead reaching
within – and perhaps more importantly, between – sometimes widely scattered
population centers. With this in mind, perhaps a useful way to visualize time
and distance in North America is to look at the distances and amounts of time
it takes to transit both goods and people between major population
centers.
First, we will look at air transportation times. The times estimated are strictly based on the
time between gate departure in the city of origin and gate arrival in the
destination city on a non-stop commercial flight. It does not take into account the time it
takes to travel to and from airports, nor does it take into account the
sometimes significant amounts of time required to pass through ticketing and
security screening. Of course, when
traveling to smaller cities, multiple connecting flights are often required, which
can add exponentially to time in transit.
Air Travel Times via
Commercial Carriers Between Major Cities[3]
| New York, NY | Washington, DC | Atlanta, GA | Chicago, IL | Dallas, TX | Phoenix, AZ | Los Angeles, CA | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA | Montreal, QC | Toronto, ON | |
| New York, NY | 0 Hours | 1.5 Hours | 2.5 Hours | 2.67 Hours | 4.0 Hours | 5.5 Hours | 6.0 Hours | 6.5 Hours | 6.25 Hours | 1.5 Hours | 1.67 Hours |
| Washington, DC | 1.5 Hours | 0 Hours | 1.75 Hours | 1.8 Hours | 3.2 Hours | 5.1 Hours | 5.75 Hours | 5.8 Hours | 5.67 Hours | 1.75 Hours | 1.4 Hours |
| Atlanta, GA | 2.5 Hours | 1.75 Hours | 0 Hours | 2.0 Hours | 2.33 Hours | 4.0 Hours | 4.8 Hours | 5.33 Hours | 5.25 Hours | 2.6 Hours | 2.1 Hours |
| Chicago, IL | 2.67 Hours | 1.8 Hours | 2.0 Hours | 0 Hours | 2.33 Hours | 3.75 Hours | 4.33 Hours | 4.5 Hours | 4.4 Hours | 2.0 Hours | 1.5 Hours |
| Dallas, TX | 4.0 Hours | 3.2 Hours | 2.33 Hours | 2.33 Hours | 0 Hours | 2.5 Hours | 3.33 Hours | 3.8 Hours | 4.15 Hours | 3.6 Hours | 3.0 Hours |
| Phoenix, AZ | 5.5 Hours | 5.1 Hours | 4.0 Hours | 3.75 Hours | 2.5 Hours | 0 Hours | 1.3 Hours | 2.1 Hours | 2.8 Hours | N/A | N/A |
| Los Angeles, CA | 6.0 Hours | 5.75 Hours | 4.8 Hours | 4.33 Hours | 3.33 Hours | 1.3 Hours | 0 Hours | 1.33 Hours | 2.5 Hours | 5.3 Hours | 4.67 Hours |
| San Francisco, CA | 6.5 Hours | 5.8 Hours | 5.33 Hours | 4.5 Hours | 3.8 Hours | 2.1 Hours | 1.33 Hours | 0 Hours | 2.0 Hours | 5.5 Hours | 4.9 Hours |
| Seattle, WA | 6.25 Hours | 5.67 Hours | 5.25 Hours | 4.4 Hours | 4.15 Hours | 2.8 Hours | 2.5 Hours | 2.0 Hours | 0 Hours | N/A | 4.5 Hours |
| Montreal, QC | 1.5 Hours | 1.75 Hours | 2.6 Hours | 2.0 Hours | 3.6 Hours | N/A | 5.3 Hours | 5.5 Hours | N/A | 0 Hours | 1.25 Hours |
| Toronto, ON | 1.67 Hours | 1.4 Hours | 2.1 Hours | 1.5 Hours | 3.0 Hours | N/A | 4.67 Hours | 4.9 Hours | 4.5 Hours | 1.25 Hours | 0 Hours |
Next, let us assume that rather than travelling by air, once
chooses to travel by road (we could consider traveling by rail, but outside of
the Washington, DC/New York/Boston rail corridor, that is a ridiculous notion
for anything other than freight). Times
between major cities are listed assuming the use of major interstate highways,
and adherence to appropriate speed limits.
No allowance is made for stopping for refueling, rest, or other personal
needs.
Driving Times Between
Major Cities[4]
| New York, NY | Washington, DC | Atlanta, GA | Chicago, IL | Dallas, TX | Phoenix, AZ | Los Angeles, CA | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA | Montreal, QC | Toronto, ON | |
| New York, NY | 0 Hours | 4 Hours | 14 Hours | 13 Hours | 24 Hours | 38 Hours | 44 Hours | 46 Hours | 46 Hours | 6 Hours | 8 Hours |
| Washington, DC | 4 Hours | 0 Hours | 10 Hours | 12 Hours | 20 Hours | 36 Hours | 42 Hours | 44 Hours | 44 Hours | 10 Hours | 9 Hours |
| Atlanta, GA | 14 Hours | 10 Hours | 0 Hours | 11 Hours | 12 Hours | 28 Hours | 33 Hours | 39 Hours | 42 Hours | 19 Hours | 15 Hours |
| Chicago, IL | 13 Hours | 12 Hours | 11 Hours | 0 Hours | 15 Hours | 28 Hours | 31 Hours | 33 Hours | 33 Hours | 13 Hours | 8 Hours |
| Dallas, TX | 24 Hours | 20 Hours | 12 Hours | 15 Hours | 0 Hours | 16 Hours | 22 Hours | 28 Hours | 34 Hours | 28 Hours | 23 Hours |
| Phoenix, AZ | 38 Hours | 36 Hours | 28 Hours | 28 Hours | 16 Hours | 0 Hours | 6 Hours | 12 Hours | 23 Hours | 42 Hours | 36 Hours |
| Los Angeles, CA | 44 Hours | 42 Hours | 33 Hours | 31 Hours | 22 Hours | 6 Hours | 0 Hours | 7 Hours | 19 Hours | 46 Hours | 41 Hours |
| San Francisco, CA | 46 Hours | 44 Hours | 39 Hours | 33 Hours | 28 Hours | 12 Hours | 7 Hours | 0 Hours | 14 Hours | 48 Hours | 43 Hours |
| Seattle, WA | 46 Hours | 44 Hours | 42 Hours | 33 Hours | 34 Hours | 23 Hours | 19 Hours | 14 Hours | 0 Hours | 46 Hours | 41 Hours |
| Montreal, QC | 6 Hours | 10 Hours | 19 Hours | 13 Hours | 28 Hours | 42 Hours | 46 Hours | 48 Hours | 46 Hours | 0 Hours | 6 Hours |
| Toronto, ON | 8 Hours | 9 Hours | 15 Hours | 8 Hours | 23 Hours | 36 Hours | 41 Hours | 43 Hours | 41 Hours | 6 Hours | 0 Hours |
Finally, while sending people between locations in North
America is important, perhaps even more important to a business is shipping
goods. While the driving times between
cities can have an impact on shipping times, so too can the availability of
freight rail facilities, distance from distribution centers if using commercial
carriers, and distance from major transit infrastructure such as interstate
highways, waterways, and bridges. For
the sake of simplicity, I have listed the typical shipping times between major
cities for goods via ground services on commercial carriers. Of course, for a price, goods can be shipped
faster than the times listed, and depending on the nature and bulk of the goods
being shipped, time to destination can also be significantly longer.
Shipping Times Between
Major Cities via Commercial Ground Transportation[5]
| New York, NY | Washington, DC | Atlanta, GA | Chicago, IL | Dallas, TX | Phoenix, AZ | Los Angeles, CA | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA | Montreal, QC | Toronto, ON | |
| New York, NY | 1 Day | 1 Day | 2 Days | 2 Days | 3 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 5 Days | 5 Days | 2 Days | 2 Days |
| Washington, DC | 1 Day | 1 Day | 2 Days | 2 Days | 3 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 5 Days | 5 Days | 2 Days | 2 Days |
| Atlanta, GA | 2 Days | 2 Days | 1 Day | 2 Days | 2 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 5 Days | 4 Days | 3 Days |
| Chicago, IL | 2 Days | 2 Days | 2 Days | 1 Day | 2 Days | 3 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 3 Days | 2 Days |
| Dallas, TX | 3 Days | 3 Days | 2 Days | 2 Days | 1 Day | 3 Days | 3 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 8 Days | 8 Days |
| Phoenix, AZ | 4 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 3 Days | 3 Days | 1 Day | 2 Days | 3 Days | 3 Days | 9 Days | 8 Days |
| Los Angeles, CA | 4 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 3 Days | 2 Days | 1 Day | 2 Days | 3 Days | 9 Days | 8 Days |
| San Francisco, CA | 5 Days | 5 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 3 Days | 2 Days | 1 Day | 2 Days | 9 Days | 8 Days |
| Seattle, WA | 5 Days | 5 Days | 5 Days | 4 Days | 4 Days | 3 Days | 3 Days | 2 Days | 1 Day | 9 Days | 8 Days |
| Montreal, QC | 2 Days | 2 Days | 4 Days | 3 Days | 8 Days | 9 Days | 9 Days | 9 Days | 9 Days | 1 Day | 1 Day |
| Toronto, ON | 2 Days | 2 Days | 3 Days | 2 Days | 8 Days | 8 Days | 8 Days | 8 Days | 8 Days | 1 Day | 1 Day |
In the United States, there is a term for the area between
the heavily populated centers around New York on the east coast and Los Angeles
on the west coast: “fly-over country.”
While this intentionally insulting description disregards the economic,
social, and political importance of this vast expanse of land, it does reflect
the fact that – relatively speaking – the east and west coasts of the United
States contain a substantial proportion of the population and economic activity
in the country, with large areas of often thinly populated territory in between. The same can be said for Toronto, Montreal,
and Vancouver in Canada. Whether
considering where to locate a facility, where to develop partnerships, or
whether to target specific regional markets, the key for any business in North
America to consider is that distance and time are inextricably linked.
For more information on how Geyer Global Partners can help your business to "Go Global," visit our website at www.geyerglobal.de.
[1]
Swissmiss, www.swiss-miss.com.
[2]
Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com.
[3]
Average times compiled using publicly available commercial airline timetables.
[4]
Average times compiled using www.mapquest.com. If multiple routes between cities are
available, an average was taken of the available routes.
[5]
Shipping times are determined in consultation with the United Parcel Service,
and reflect UPS Ground service within the United States, UPS Worldwide Standard
service between the United States and Canada, and UPS Standard service within
Canada.
