[wronglebowski]

Maybe it's just the area. I'm in the Philly suburbs and while I love it here I cannot express how little people travel. Even going downtown is a "big deal" if you've grown up to believe either,

1. Cities are awful dangerous places with no value 2. Strip malls and chain restaurants are the pinnacle of civilization

When I moved from Bucks County to Chester County I was "moving away" and many people just wrote me off. Despite being an hour or two drive away.

[lotsofpulp]

I notice I do not hang out with people that live further than 30min (reliably). I might be willing to make the trek if I was single, but with kids and spouse, it becomes too time consuming for my taste.

[bombcar]

30min away is about the limit for "eh, let's go over" - anything more and you're talking planning, etc.

This is the reason people are willing to commute so damn far; you're forced to commute but if you're not near your friends, you'll never see them again.