Alaska Commute Time Map & Patterns

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You 9/3/26, 6:56 PM
How many minutes is the average drive to work in Alaska?
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Commute Time Burden in Alaska: Annual Hours and Cost

Commuters in Alaska spend about 32 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 135 hours, about 5.6 full days, spent commuting.

That is 28% less time on the road than the US average of 22.5 minutes each way, a difference of 6.3 minutes.

Alaska holds about 0.2% of US's population and accounts for roughly 0.2% of its total commuting time.

Working from home just 2 days a week in Alaska would save about 54 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $1,671 at the same national wage assumption used above.

Area One-Way Commute Daily Round-Trip Yearly Time Spent Estimated Yearly Cost Local Road Traffic (VPD)
Alaska 16.2 min 32.3 min 135 hrs/yr $4,177 583
US 22.5 min 44.9 min 187 hrs/yr $5,803 1,355

The estimated yearly cost applies a single national rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area - treat it as a rough estimate, not a paycheck figure. Local road traffic counts, vehicles per day on non-highway roads, come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.

Commute Time Map: Alaska Counties

Fastest commutes among counties in Alaska
  1. Nome Census Area (5.3 min)
  2. Skagway Municipality (5.3 min)
  3. Wrangell City and Borough (5.6 min)
Slowest commutes among counties in Alaska
  1. Matanuska-Susitna Borough (23.7 min)
  2. Fairbanks North Star Borough (17.5 min)
  3. Anchorage Municipality (17.2 min)

Compare commute times among different counties

On average, it takes 16.2 minutes to get to work in Alaska. That's 28% shorter than the 22.5-minute U.S. average.

Among the top 5 fastest states in US

The most common departure window is 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM , followed by 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM .

Most people travel to work by Car , followed by Worked at Home . About 8.8% work from home.

Commute mode distribution

  • Car: 77.4%
  • Worked at Home: 8.8%
  • Walked: 7.5% unusually high
  • Other: 4.0%
  • Public Transportation: 1.0% unusually low
  • Bicycle: 0.6%
  • Taxi: 0.5%
  • Motorcycle: 0.1%

Walked commuting is unusually common in Alaska: 3.1 times more than the US average (7.5% vs 2.4%).

Public Transportation commuting is unusually low in Alaska: 3.3 times less than the US average (1.0% vs 3.5%).

How does Alaska's commute time compare?

Metric Alaska US Average
Avg. Commute Time 16.2 min 22.5 min
Work From Home 8.8% 13.4%
Walked 7.5% 2.4%
Public Transit 1.0% 3.5%

The average commute time in Alaska is 16.2 minutes, shorter than the 22.5 minutes in US.

1.0% commute by public transit, lower than the 3.5% in US. 7.5% commute by walking, higher than the 2.4% in US.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about commuting in Alaska.

How much does the average commute cost workers in Alaska?

Commuters here spend an estimated 135 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $4,177 at a typical national wage. That's 28% less than the typical US commuter spends.

When is rush hour worst in Alaska?

Traffic peaks between 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM in Alaska. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM also sees a secondary bump.

How common is public transit use in Alaska?

Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 1.0% of commuters use it versus 3.5% in US, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.

Which counties in Alaska have the fastest and slowest commutes?

Among counties in Alaska, the shortest average commutes are in Nome Census Area (5.3 min), Skagway Municipality (5.3 min), Wrangell City and Borough (5.6 min). The longest are in Matanuska-Susitna Borough (23.7 min), Fairbanks North Star Borough (17.5 min), Anchorage Municipality (17.2 min).