Commuting in Clay County, Arkansas: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 8:16 PM
How long is the round-trip commute in Clay County?
Map AI9/24/26, 8:16 PM
Commute Time Burden in Clay County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Clay 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 7.1 full days, spent commuting. That is 9% more time on the road than the Arkansas average of 18.6 minutes each way, a difference of 1.7 minutes.
Clay County holds about 0.5% of Arkansas's population and accounts for roughly 0.5% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Clay County would save about 68 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,101 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)
Clay County
20.3 min
40.7 min
169 hrs/yr
$5,252
409
Arkansas
18.6 min
37.2 min
155 hrs/yr
$4,807
912
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
Clay County.
That's 9% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
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 Clay County
Car:
90.6%
Worked at Home:
6.0%
Other:
1.6%
Walked:
1.5%
Motorcycle:
0.2%
Public Transportation:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Bicycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Public transit is unusually rare in Clay County: 3.2 times less than the Arkansas average (0.1% vs 0.3%).
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Clay County, versus 0.1% in Arkansas.
Biking is essentially absent in Clay County, versus 0.2% in Arkansas.
Commute Mode Trends in Clay County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Clay 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
Other
Walked
Motorcycle
Public Transportation
Taxi
Bicycle
2009
96.3%
2.2%
0.2%
1.3%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2010
95.8%
2.3%
0.1%
1.7%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2011
94.8%
2.7%
0.5%
2.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2012
93.2%
2.7%
0.9%
2.8%
0.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2013
93.9%
2.4%
1.1%
2.2%
0.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2014
94.1%
2.2%
1.0%
2.3%
0.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2015
93.7%
2.0%
0.9%
2.9%
0.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2016
93.6%
2.1%
0.8%
3.0%
0.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2017
94.5%
1.9%
0.5%
3.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2018
93.7%
2.1%
0.9%
3.3%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2019
92.9%
2.4%
1.3%
3.3%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2020
90.1%
5.3%
1.2%
3.3%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2021
90.8%
5.1%
1.2%
2.8%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2022
90.2%
5.6%
1.4%
2.5%
0.2%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2023
89.9%
6.2%
1.7%
2.0%
0.2%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2024
90.6%
6.0%
1.6%
1.5%
0.2%
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 bottomed out in 2023 at 89.9%. Overall it fell from 96.3% in 2009 to 90.6% in 2024, down 5.7 percentage points. It has risen in the latest release.
Working from home gained the most ground in Clay County: its share of workers rose from 2.2% in 2009 to 6.0% in 2024, up 3.8 percentage points. Most of that increase, 3.6 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking peaked at 3.3% in 2018 and has since fallen back to 1.5%.
Commute Start Times in Clay County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Clay County?
The bars show when commuters in Clay 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 Arkansas for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMClay County7.6%Arkansas5.6%
7.6%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMClay County6.4%Arkansas4.1%
6.4%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMClay County6.9%Arkansas5.2%
6.9%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMClay County10.1%Arkansas9.3%
10.1%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMClay County15.3%Arkansas11.2%
15.3%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMClay County17.8%Arkansas17.5%
17.8%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMClay County13.5%Arkansas13.9%
13.5%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMClay County5.0%Arkansas9.2%
5.0%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMClay County2.5%Arkansas3.6%
2.5%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMClay County2.7%Arkansas4.5%
2.7%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMClay County1.0%Arkansas2.2%
1.0%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMClay County1.5%Arkansas1.1%
1.5%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMClay County6.4%Arkansas6.2%
6.4%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMClay County3.2%Arkansas6.4%
3.2%
Clay CountyArkansasSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Clay County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 17.8% of commuters leave home, compared with 17.5% across Arkansas. Early starts are more common than in Arkansas: 21.0% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 14.8% there. The morning rush looks much like Arkansas's: 51.6% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 51.9% 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 Clay 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 Clay 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 Clay County next to Arkansas 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
Clay County
Arkansas
United States
2009
7:16 AM
7:28 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:21 AM
7:28 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:21 AM
7:28 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:17 AM
7:27 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:15 AM
7:27 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:11 AM
7:27 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:12 AM
7:27 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:09 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:13 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:19 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:16 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:15 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:22 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:19 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:07 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:06 AM
7:25 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Clay County were on the road by 7:06 AM, 10 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:16 AM). The shift is sharper than across Arkansas, where the typical start moved 3 minutes earlier. Commuters in Clay County now leave 32 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 Clay County has moved 10 minutes earlier. The 2024 release is the earliest typical start for Clay County in the whole series.
How does Clay County's commute time compare?
Metric
Clay County
Arkansas
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
20.3 min
18.6 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
1.5%
1.4%
2.4%
Public Transit
< 0.1%
0.3%
3.2%
The average commute time in Clay County is 20.3 minutes, longer than the 18.6 minutes in Arkansas.
0.1% commute by public transit, lower than the 0.3% in Arkansas. 1.5% commute by walking, higher than the 1.4% in Arkansas.
Clay County, AR Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Clay County, AR is the 5th largest of the 6 counties compared here, 14,278 residents against a local median of 42,020. The measure that sets Clay County, AR apart most is one-way commute: 20.3 min, 18% above the local median of 17.3 min. That is the weaker end of the local range on this measure.
The counties themselves spread 10.5 min on one-way commute, so Clay County, AR sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Clay County, AR has the 5th lowest one-way commute of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Clay County, Arkansas.
How much does the average commute cost workers in Clay County, Arkansas?
Commuters here spend an estimated 169 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,252 at a typical national wage. That's 9% more than the typical Arkansas commuter spends.
When is rush hour worst in Clay County, Arkansas?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Clay County, Arkansas. 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.
Is public transportation a realistic commute option in Clay County, Arkansas?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.1% of commuters use it versus 0.3% in Arkansas, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
How do commute times compare across counties in Arkansas?
Among counties in Arkansas, the shortest average commutes are in Arkansas County (11.9 min), Phillips County (13.2 min), Howard County (13.4 min). The longest are in Perry County (32.2 min), Newton County (31.6 min), Madison County (31.1 min).