By Staci DaSilva
sdasilva@kcautv.com
Gas prices have spiked between $.15-$.20 in just the past few days. AAA, the auto club, estimates prices will continue to rise through spring.
And that has many commuters wishing they didn't have to drive so far for work, but what if you didn't have to drive anywhere?
Loree Vander Zwaag doesn't have to start an engine to go to work. Instead, she walks to her office, in her home, just like her 30 or so employees do.
She owns Covenant Business Group Inc., a business-to-business appointment making company, which means she and her employees spend their days on the phone.
Her workers are sprawled all across urban and rural America and they all gravitated to Vander Zwaag's business because they wanted to work from home.
Loree Vander Zwaag said, "That's the main thing, whenever I interview people. The one question I ask them is 'why do you want to work from home?' [they say] 'I just can't afford to commute, it's just costing me too much."
Between 3-4 million Americans consider themselves telecommuters, a growing trend of people taking advantage of the connectivity of the Internet and telephones and the convenience of working from home.
Like Vander Zwaag, who's just happy she doesn't have to fill up to go to work, especially when she sees prices jump $.20 in 1 week.
"My husband goes to work over in Sioux Center every day and I started thinking it cost something like $70-$80 a month just to have him go to Sioux Center and that's really close!" said Vander Zwaag.
