Commuting in Del Norte County, California: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 5:47 PM
What does a typical morning commute look like in Del Norte County?
Map AI9/24/26, 5:47 PM
Commute Time Burden in Del Norte County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Del Norte County spend about 24 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 101 hours, about 4.2 full days, spent commuting. That is 48% less time on the road than the California average of 23.5 minutes each way, a difference of 11.4 minutes.
Del Norte County holds about 0.1% of California's population but accounts for roughly 0.0% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Del Norte County would save about 40 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $1,250 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)
Del Norte County
12.1 min
24.2 min
101 hrs/yr
$3,125
226
California
23.5 min
47.0 min
196 hrs/yr
$6,065
2,449
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
12.1
minutes to get to work in
Del Norte County.
That's 46% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Among the top 3 fastest counties in California
The most common departure window is 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM, followed by 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 7.4% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Del Norte County
Car:
87.1%
Worked at Home:
7.4%
Walked:
3.0%
Other:
1.2%
Public Transportation:
0.8%unusually low
Motorcycle:
0.4%
Bicycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Public transit is unusually rare in Del Norte County: 3.7 times less than the California average (0.8% vs 2.9%).
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Del Norte County, versus 0.2% in California.
Biking is unusually rare in Del Norte County: 9.7 times less than the California average (0.1% vs 0.7%).
Commute Mode Trends in Del Norte County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Del Norte 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
Other
Public Transportation
Motorcycle
Bicycle
Taxi
2009
86.6%
5.6%
4.9%
0.3%
0.0%
0.4%
1.0%
1.2%
2010
86.0%
6.7%
4.9%
0.2%
0.1%
0.4%
1.1%
0.7%
2011
87.1%
5.4%
4.4%
0.5%
0.2%
0.4%
1.5%
0.5%
2012
86.4%
5.3%
4.9%
0.6%
0.4%
0.5%
1.4%
0.6%
2013
86.8%
5.8%
3.6%
1.4%
0.3%
0.3%
0.9%
0.9%
2014
87.1%
6.5%
3.5%
0.9%
0.8%
0.1%
1.1%
0.0%
2015
87.7%
5.9%
3.5%
1.0%
0.6%
0.1%
1.2%
0.0%
2016
88.3%
6.1%
2.8%
0.7%
0.8%
0.1%
1.2%
0.0%
2017
88.2%
5.6%
3.6%
0.8%
0.6%
0.0%
1.1%
0.0%
2018
88.3%
5.0%
4.7%
0.2%
0.8%
0.2%
0.8%
0.0%
2019
89.2%
4.1%
5.3%
0.2%
0.4%
0.2%
0.6%
0.0%
2020
88.6%
6.2%
4.3%
0.2%
0.3%
0.2%
0.2%
0.0%
2021
89.1%
5.4%
4.0%
0.5%
0.5%
0.2%
0.3%
0.0%
2022
86.0%
6.9%
5.2%
0.7%
0.6%
0.5%
0.0%
0.0%
2023
86.8%
7.5%
3.7%
0.9%
0.4%
0.6%
0.1%
0.0%
2024
87.1%
7.4%
3.0%
1.2%
0.8%
0.4%
0.1%
0.0%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share was highest in 2019 at 89.2% and lowest in 2010 at 86.0%. Overall it rose from 86.6% in 2009 to 87.1% in 2024, up 0.5 percentage points. It has risen in each of the last 2 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Del Norte County: its share of workers rose from 5.6% in 2009 to 7.4% in 2024, up 1.8 percentage points. Most of that increase, 3.3 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 4.9% to 3.0% of workers (down 1.9 percentage points).
Public transit overtook biking to become the 5th most common choice in the 2020 release and has stayed ahead since.
Commute Start Times in Del Norte County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Del Norte County?
The bars show when commuters in Del Norte 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 California for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMDel Norte County4.0%California6.7%
4.0%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMDel Norte County3.9%California4.5%
3.9%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMDel Norte County3.7%California4.5%
3.7%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMDel Norte County6.2%California8.4%
6.2%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMDel Norte County9.8%California7.5%
9.8%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMDel Norte County12.1%California13.1%
12.1%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMDel Norte County17.7%California10.2%
17.7%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMDel Norte County11.5%California12.6%
11.5%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMDel Norte County6.2%California5.8%
6.2%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMDel Norte County6.1%California8.6%
6.1%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMDel Norte County1.4%California3.9%
1.4%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMDel Norte County2.1%California1.8%
2.1%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMDel Norte County7.3%California6.9%
7.3%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMDel Norte County8.1%California5.5%
8.1%
Del Norte CountyCaliforniaSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Del Norte County is 7:30-7:59 AM, when 17.7% of commuters leave home, compared with 10.2% across California. Early starts are less common than in California: 11.6% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 15.8% there. The morning rush is more concentrated than in California: 51.1% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 43.3% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (25.0%) 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 Del Norte 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 Del Norte 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 Del Norte County next to California 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
Del Norte County
California
United States
2009
7:49 AM
7:39 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:48 AM
7:41 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:52 AM
7:41 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:55 AM
7:42 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:58 AM
7:43 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:53 AM
7:43 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:56 AM
7:43 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:53 AM
7:43 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:54 AM
7:42 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:55 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:56 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:51 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:49 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:48 AM
7:43 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:44 AM
7:44 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:48 AM
7:45 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Del Norte County were on the road by 7:48 AM, 1 minute earlier than in 2009 (7:49 AM). That goes against the trend across California, where the typical commuter now leaves 6 minutes later than in 2009. Commuters in Del Norte County now leave 10 minutes later than the typical American commuter (7:38 AM). Since the 2019 release, which covers the years just before the pandemic, the typical start in Del Norte County has moved 9 minutes earlier.
How does Del Norte County's commute time compare?
Metric
Del Norte County
California
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
12.1 min
23.5 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
08:00 AM – 08:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
7.4%
17.2%
15.0%
Walked
3.0%
2.4%
2.4%
Public Transit
0.8%
2.9%
3.2%
The average commute time in Del Norte County is 12.1 minutes, shorter than the 23.5 minutes in California.
0.8% commute by public transit, lower than the 2.9% in California. 3.0% commute by walking, higher than the 2.4% in California.
Del Norte County, CA Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Del Norte County, CA is the 4th largest of the 6 counties compared here, 27,106 residents against a local median of 88,176. Where Del Norte County, CA breaks from the counties next to it is work from home, sitting 43% below the local median of 13.0% at 7.4%.
One-way commute tells the same story from another angle: 12.1 min against a local median of 16.9 min, 29% below it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is one-way commute, and at 29% below the local median it puts Del Norte County, CA at the better end of the local range. The counties themselves spread 9.2% on work from home, so Del Norte County, CA sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Del Norte County, CA has the 6th highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Del Norte County, California.
Is commuting expensive in Del Norte County, California?
Commuters here spend an estimated 101 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $3,125 at a typical national wage. That's 48% less than the typical California commuter spends.
What time should you leave for work to avoid traffic in Del Norte County, California?
Traffic peaks between 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM in Del Norte County, California. 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.
Is public transportation a realistic commute option in Del Norte County, California?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.8% of commuters use it versus 2.9% in California, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
How do commute times compare across counties in California?
Among counties in California, the shortest average commutes are in Inyo County (11.1 min), Mono County (12.0 min), Del Norte County (12.1 min). The longest are in Alpine County (31.3 min), San Benito County (31.2 min), Contra Costa County (31.0 min).