The Average US Commute Time Is About 26 Minutes, Shorter Than It Was Before the Pandemic

If your commute is shorter than it was in 2019, you are not alone.

As Americans are switching jobs and there is less traffic on the roads due to more employees working from home, commutes are faster than they were before the pandemic, Axios reported, citing data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The average commute time in 2022 was around 26 minutes according to the Census Bureau's survey, which is down from the almost 28-minute average in 2019.

Less traffic benefits workers, the majority of whom (77%) drive to work, the survey showed. Only 3% of workers use public transportation to get to work, according to a survey from 2022.

Individuals who work from home are not accounted for in the commute time data, Axios added.

Around 85.5 million people have commutes that are under 30 minutes, according to Axios. 

Slightly more U.S. workers (almost 37%) have a 15- to 29-minute commute than they did in 2022 (almost 36%), according to Axios. Those with a commute time of less than 15 minutes has also increased slightly, up 26% from 25%. 

The number of workers with longer commutes decreased slightly.