WASHINGTON — More people than ever are driving alone to work as the nation's commuters balk at carpools and mass transit.

Regardless of fuel prices, housing and work patterns make it hard for suburban commuters to change their gas-guzzling ways.

From 2000 to 2005, the share of people driving alone to work increased slightly to 77 percent, according to a Census Bureau report yesterday. Carpooling dropped and the share of commuters using public transportation stayed the same.

More recent statistics — through March — show that few drivers are cutting back despite gasoline prices topping $3 a gallon.

Midwesterners are the most prone to solo driving — half of the top 10 metro areas for driving alone to work are in Ohio.

Mass transit is most popular in older cities. The Census Bureau's report showed 29.8 percent of New Yorkers use mass transit, followed by San Francisco with 13.7 percent and Washington with 13.2 percent.

HONOLULU GREENER

Honolulu ranks 10th, with 7.9 percent of the population using public transportation.

And according to Census Bureau data, more people in Honolulu also walk, bike or carpool to work than in most other large U.S. cities.

Walking is a favored means of transport for 6.9 percent of Honolulu commuters, ranking the city No. 6 in this category. Boston is tops with 12.5 percent.

Bicycles are used by only 1.4 percent of Honolulu's working population. But that is good for ninth in the nation. In Portland, which was No. 1 in this category, 3.5 percent ride a bike.

Honolulu commuters rank 10th, at 15.3 percent, in carpooling among the top cities.

Carpooling is most popular in the Western states, driven in part by immigrants. Seven of the top 10 metro areas for carpooling are in California. Most are in the center of the state, where a lot of immigrant farm workers share rides.

For most suburban commuters, "it's very hard to find someone to ride with, and it's very hard to find public transportation," said Alan Pisarski, author of "Commuting in America."

"There aren't always a lot of options for people."

SUBURBAN SPRAWL

People have been flocking to the suburbs since the end of World War II. Jobs have followed, enabling commuters to move even farther from city centers — and from public transportation systems.

Ron Hughes runs a ride-sharing program in central California, about halfway between Fresno and Bakersfield. In 2000, the program started supplying vans to transport farm workers from the suburbs to the fields, he said. It has since grown to more than 300 vans and includes workers in other industries, operating much like a rural mass transit system, with riders paying $25 or more a week.

"It just grew, and we just added people and vans to meet that growing demand," said Hughes, executive director of the Kings County Area Public Transit Agency.

As for fuel prices, the average price of regular unleaded gasoline increased from $1.50 a gallon at the start of the decade to $2.28 in 2005, according to the American Automobile Association.

During the same period, the share of people carpooling dropped from 12.2 percent to 10.7 percent. The nation's public transportation systems report that ridership is up, but the share of commuters using mass transit stayed the same at 4.7 percent, according to the Census Bureau.

QUALITY OF LIFE

Gasoline prices have since topped $3 gallon. Miles driven by Americans increased through 2006, though they leveled off in the first three months of 2007, the Federal Highway Administration said.

The report on commuting came as the Senate started debating an energy bill this week that would raise auto fuel economy standards for the first time in nearly 20 years.

Democratic leaders in both the Senate and House say they want broad energy legislation passed before the Fourth of July congressional recess, though President Bush has opposed mandatory increases in fuel efficiency.

AAA spokesman Geoff Sundstrom said commuters are willing to drive more fuel-efficient autos but are loath to give up the keys entirely, regardless of gas prices. He said many people equate carpooling and mass transit with "a decline in their personal standard of living."

"The freedom of mobility that comes with the use of a personal automobile is something we are very, very reluctant to give up as individuals," Sundstrom said.