Yahoo says Valdez is about 123 miles from Anchorage or 3 1/2 hours. Where did you get the 220 miles? But, definately not a commute.
You know what I heard up there? "Nice thing about Anchorage is that it is only 15 minutes away from Alaska!" But then what do you expect from folks that hunt and eat the state bird? The state bird is the Willow Ptarmigan. Well, OK, it is a small (15-17 inches), arctic grouse.