Commuting in Dallas County, Alabama: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 3:44 PM
What does a typical morning commute look like in Dallas County?
Map AI9/24/26, 3:44 PM
Commute Time Burden in Dallas County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Dallas County spend about 41 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 169 hours, about 7.0 full days, spent commuting. That is 8% less time on the road than the Alabama average of 22.1 minutes each way, a difference of 1.8 minutes.
Dallas County holds about 0.7% of Alabama's population and accounts for roughly 0.7% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Dallas County would save about 68 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,096 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)
Dallas County
20.3 min
40.6 min
169 hrs/yr
$5,240
435
Alabama
22.1 min
44.3 min
184 hrs/yr
$5,717
1,193
United States
22.4 min
44.8 min
187 hrs/yr
$5,790
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.
On average, it takes
20.3
minutes to get to work in
Dallas County.
That's 10% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Faster than 83% of counties in Alabama
The most common departure window is 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM, followed by 06:30 AM – 06:59 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 6.0% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Dallas County
Car:
91.5%
Worked at Home:
6.0%
Walked:
1.4%
Public Transportation:
0.7%
Other:
0.3%
Motorcycle:
< 0.1%
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Bicycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Dallas County, versus 0.1% in Alabama.
Biking is essentially absent in Dallas County, versus 0.1% in Alabama.
Commute Mode Trends in Dallas County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Dallas County get to work, as a share of all workers aged 16 and over, across 16 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) releases from 2009 to 2024. Each release is a 5-year estimate: the 2024 figures cover surveys taken from 2020 to 2024. Because neighboring releases share most of their survey years, the lines move gradually, and a sudden change such as the rise of remote work in 2020 spreads across several releases. Hover over or tap a line to highlight it, and use the legend to show or hide a mode. Driving starts hidden so the smaller modes stay readable.
Share of workers aged 16 and over, by ACS 5-year release year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.Show commute mode data by year
Year
Car
Worked at Home
Walked
Public Transportation
Other
Motorcycle
Taxi
Bicycle
2009
95.3%
1.2%
0.9%
0.2%
1.6%
0.0%
0.8%
0.1%
2010
95.8%
1.0%
1.4%
0.1%
1.1%
0.0%
0.6%
0.1%
2011
94.7%
1.9%
1.7%
0.1%
1.0%
0.0%
0.5%
0.0%
2012
93.8%
2.0%
2.0%
0.2%
1.7%
0.0%
0.4%
0.0%
2013
93.9%
2.1%
2.1%
0.3%
1.1%
0.0%
0.5%
0.0%
2014
93.1%
2.1%
2.5%
0.2%
1.6%
0.0%
0.2%
0.3%
2015
93.8%
2.2%
2.2%
0.3%
1.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.5%
2016
94.6%
1.3%
2.0%
0.3%
1.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.3%
2017
95.5%
1.2%
1.8%
0.2%
1.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.3%
2018
95.6%
1.5%
1.5%
0.0%
1.3%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2019
95.4%
1.9%
1.5%
0.0%
1.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.1%
2020
95.8%
1.8%
1.1%
0.0%
1.3%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2021
93.8%
3.5%
1.3%
0.8%
0.7%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2022
93.8%
4.1%
0.8%
0.5%
0.7%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2023
92.7%
5.1%
1.2%
0.5%
0.4%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2024
91.5%
6.0%
1.4%
0.7%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share peaked in 2010 at 95.8%. Overall it fell from 95.3% in 2009 to 91.5% in 2024, down 3.8 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 2 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Dallas County: its share of workers rose from 1.2% in 2009 to 6.0% in 2024, up 4.8 percentage points. Most of that increase, 4.1 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Taking a taxi lost the most ground, falling from 0.8% to 0.0% of workers (down 0.8 percentage points).
Public transit overtook taking a taxi to become the 4th most common choice in the 2021 release and has stayed ahead since.
Walking peaked at 2.5% in 2014 and has since fallen back to 1.4%.
Commute Start Times in Dallas County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Dallas County?
The bars show when commuters in Dallas County leave home for work, as a share of everyone who commutes (people who work from home are not counted), from the 2024 ACS 5-year estimates. The thin violet marks show Alabama for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMDallas County8.1%Alabama6.8%
8.1%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMDallas County4.0%Alabama5.1%
4.0%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMDallas County5.2%Alabama5.9%
5.2%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMDallas County8.0%Alabama9.9%
8.0%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMDallas County16.0%Alabama11.3%
16.0%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMDallas County17.3%Alabama16.8%
17.3%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMDallas County9.8%Alabama11.8%
9.8%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMDallas County7.7%Alabama8.6%
7.7%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMDallas County9.1%Alabama3.5%
9.1%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMDallas County4.7%Alabama4.6%
4.7%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMDallas County2.3%Alabama2.2%
2.3%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMDallas County1.6%Alabama1.0%
1.6%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMDallas County1.2%Alabama6.3%
1.2%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMDallas County4.9%Alabama6.2%
4.9%
Dallas CountyAlabamaSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Dallas County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 17.3% of commuters leave home, compared with 16.8% across Alabama. Early starts are about as common as in Alabama: 17.4% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 17.9% there. The morning rush is more concentrated than in Alabama: 50.8% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 48.6% there. About 1 in 7 commuters (14.8%) leave at 9 AM or later, which usually points to shift work, flexible hours or part-time jobs.
When people leave matters as much as how far they go. Rush-hour traffic shrinks how much ground a 20-minute trip covers, so a trade area drawn as a simple circle often takes in neighborhoods that customers or staff would never drive from and misses others that are an easy trip. A drive-time zone, also called an isochrone, outlines every place within a set number of minutes of an address, which makes it the more honest way to size a store's catchment, a hiring area or the commute from a new home.
See it for yourself on the interactive map: click any spot in Dallas County, pick a 5, 10, 15 or 30-minute drive and see the local demographics of the people who live within that exact drive time.
Is Dallas County Waking Up Earlier? Typical Departure Time, 2009-2024
Each line follows the typical (median) departure time: the moment by which half of commuters have already left home. Higher on the chart means a later start. Setting Dallas County next to Alabama and the U.S. shows whether local mornings are drifting earlier or later than everyone else's. The figures span 16 ACS 5-year releases, so changes build up gradually rather than jumping from one year to the next.
Median time commuters leave home, by ACS 5-year release year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.Show typical departure times by year
Year
Dallas County
Alabama
United States
2009
7:15 AM
7:20 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:17 AM
7:20 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:16 AM
7:20 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:17 AM
7:20 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:20 AM
7:21 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:21 AM
7:21 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:16 AM
7:21 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:19 AM
7:21 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:20 AM
7:21 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:17 AM
7:20 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:19 AM
7:20 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:14 AM
7:20 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:20 AM
7:21 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:18 AM
7:20 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:17 AM
7:20 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:15 AM
7:19 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Dallas County were on the road by 7:15 AM, almost exactly the same as in 2009. Across Alabama, the typical start barely moved either. Commuters in Dallas County now leave 23 minutes earlier than the typical American commuter (7:38 AM). Since the 2019 release, which covers the years just before the pandemic, the typical start in Dallas County has moved 4 minutes earlier.
How does Dallas County's commute time compare?
Metric
Dallas County
Alabama
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
20.3 min
22.1 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window
06:30 AM – 06:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
6.0%
8.8%
15.0%
Walked
1.4%
1.1%
2.4%
Public Transit
0.7%
0.3%
3.2%
The average commute time in Dallas County is 20.3 minutes, shorter than the 22.1 minutes in Alabama.
0.7% commute by public transit, higher than the 0.3% in Alabama. 1.4% commute by walking, higher than the 1.1% in Alabama.
Dallas County, AL Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Dallas County, AL is the 3rd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 36,858 residents against a local median of 10,172. Where Dallas County, AL breaks from the counties next to it is one-way commute, sitting 22% below the local median of 26.0 min at 20.3 min. That is the better end of the local range on this measure.
Work from home tells the same story from another angle: 6.0% against a local median of 5.1%, 19% above it. The counties themselves spread 9.7 min on one-way commute, so Dallas County, AL sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Dallas County, AL has the lowest one-way commute of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Dallas County, Alabama.
Is living in Dallas County, Alabama good for avoiding long commute costs?
Commuters here spend an estimated 169 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,240 at a typical national wage. That's 8% less than the typical Alabama commuter spends.
When is peak congestion during the morning commute in Dallas County, Alabama?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Dallas County, Alabama. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 06:30 AM – 06:59 AM also sees a secondary bump.
Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in Alabama?
Among counties in Alabama, the shortest average commutes are in Pike County (16.4 min), Houston County (18.3 min), Escambia County (18.5 min). The longest are in Blount County (33.2 min), Pickens County (32.5 min), Lowndes County (31.9 min).