Above: Number of jobs accessible from different points within 30 minutes, between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. Click here to see the full map, with a legend.

The Twin Cities ranks 13th nationally in the accessibility of jobs by transit, according to new research from the University of Minnesota.

Researchers at the U's Accessibility Observatory performed a detailed analysis of employment and transit times in 46 of the country's largest metropolitan areas. The analysis considered how many jobs could be reached from different points during morning rush hour, with shorter trips weighted heavier.

Their work accounted for everything from transfer times to the walking time to reach and depart a transit station. Census data revealed where jobs are located.

Not surprisingly, New York City ranked No. 1, followed by San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington and Chicago. Minneapolis-St. Paul's No. 13 ranking was about on par with its No. 14 nationally ranking for overall employment.

But Professor David Levinson, a co-author of the study, noted that Minneapolis ranked 5th nationally in a similar 2013 survey by the U of automobile access to jobs.

"That means we've outperformed on the accessibility by highway, by auto, and we're not outperforming on transit," Levinson said. "So relatively speaking we've done a better job at providing a highway system than we've done of providing a transit system to enable people to reach jobs."

Notably, the report does not account for the Green Line light rail. Levinson said they are working on a separate report that will compare pre- and post-Green Line access.

Levinson highlighted that some metro areas with fewer jobs, including Milwaukee, Portland and Denver, nonetheless ranked ahead of Minneapolis for accessibility to jobs by transit. Others with more jobs, such as Houston and Miami, ranked lower.

The report observes that while transit accessibility studies have been performed in the past, they have been typically focused on individual cities -- rather than comparing cities across the country.