Commuting in Washington County, Colorado: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 8:32 PM
What does a typical morning commute look like in Washington County?
Map AI9/24/26, 8:32 PM
Commute Time Burden in Washington County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Washington County spend about 32 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 133 hours, about 5.5 full days, spent commuting. That is 28% less time on the road than the Colorado average of 22.0 minutes each way, a difference of 6.1 minutes.
Washington County holds about 0.1% of Colorado's population and accounts for roughly 0.1% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Washington County would save about 53 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $1,649 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)
Washington County
16.0 min
31.9 min
133 hrs/yr
$4,123
193
Colorado
22.0 min
44.1 min
184 hrs/yr
$5,694
1,277
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
16.0
minutes to get to work in
Washington County.
That's 29% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
The most common departure window is 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM, followed by 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 11.4% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Washington County
Car:
82.9%
Worked at Home:
11.4%
Walked:
5.0%
Other:
0.6%
Public Transportation:
0.1%unusually low
Motorcycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Bicycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Riding a motorcycle is essentially absent in Washington County, versus 0.1% in Colorado.
Public transit is unusually rare in Washington County: 12.0 times less than the Colorado average (0.1% vs 1.6%).
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Washington County, versus 0.1% in Colorado.
Biking is essentially absent in Washington County, versus 0.9% in Colorado.
Commute Mode Trends in Washington County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Washington 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
Taxi
Motorcycle
Bicycle
2009
80.9%
6.1%
11.3%
0.6%
0.2%
0.0%
0.9%
0.0%
2010
81.5%
7.1%
9.0%
1.0%
0.5%
0.0%
0.8%
0.0%
2011
82.4%
6.7%
8.7%
0.8%
0.4%
0.0%
0.8%
0.1%
2012
83.2%
6.9%
8.0%
1.4%
0.3%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2013
81.5%
9.5%
6.5%
1.3%
0.9%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2014
82.9%
9.7%
5.1%
1.4%
0.8%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2015
83.0%
9.9%
5.2%
1.1%
0.7%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2016
83.1%
10.5%
4.9%
0.8%
0.7%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2017
83.9%
11.1%
3.3%
0.6%
0.7%
0.0%
0.4%
0.0%
2018
84.8%
11.4%
2.8%
0.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.4%
0.1%
2019
83.4%
12.9%
2.8%
0.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.3%
0.1%
2020
82.8%
11.6%
4.6%
0.3%
0.0%
0.0%
0.7%
0.1%
2021
81.0%
13.6%
4.4%
0.2%
0.2%
0.0%
0.5%
0.2%
2022
82.3%
12.5%
4.6%
0.1%
0.2%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2023
81.8%
12.4%
5.5%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2024
82.9%
11.4%
5.0%
0.6%
0.1%
0.0%
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 2018 at 84.8%. Overall it rose from 80.9% in 2009 to 82.9% in 2024, up 2.0 percentage points. It has risen in the latest release.
Working from home gained the most ground in Washington County: its share of workers rose from 6.1% in 2009 to 11.4% in 2024, up 5.3 percentage points.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 11.3% to 5.0% of workers (down 6.3 percentage points).
Working from home overtook walking to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2013 release and has stayed ahead since.
Working from home peaked at 13.6% in 2021 and has since fallen back to 11.4%.
Commute Start Times in Washington County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Washington County?
The bars show when commuters in Washington 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 Colorado for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMWashington County5.3%Colorado4.6%
5.3%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMWashington County2.9%Colorado3.6%
2.9%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMWashington County3.9%Colorado5.0%
3.9%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMWashington County10.7%Colorado8.5%
10.7%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMWashington County14.9%Colorado10.2%
14.9%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMWashington County22.6%Colorado15.3%
22.6%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMWashington County17.8%Colorado12.8%
17.8%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMWashington County8.7%Colorado11.8%
8.7%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMWashington County2.1%Colorado5.4%
2.1%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMWashington County3.3%Colorado6.9%
3.3%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMWashington County0.3%Colorado3.2%
0.3%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMWashington County0.0%Colorado1.5%
0.0%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMWashington County5.3%Colorado6.0%
5.3%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMWashington County2.2%Colorado5.2%
2.2%
Washington CountyColoradoSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Washington County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 22.6% of commuters leave home, compared with 15.3% across Colorado. Early starts are less common than in Colorado: 12.1% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 13.1% there. The morning rush is more concentrated than in Colorado: 64.1% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 50.1% there. About 1 in 9 commuters (11.0%) 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 Washington 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 Washington 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 Washington County next to Colorado 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
Washington County
Colorado
United States
2009
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:24 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:21 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:21 AM
7:37 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:14 AM
7:36 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:13 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:14 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:10 AM
7:33 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:06 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:05 AM
7:34 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:08 AM
7:35 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:09 AM
7:35 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:14 AM
7:36 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:15 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:16 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Washington County were on the road by 7:16 AM, 10 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:26 AM). Across Colorado, the typical start barely moved over the same years. Commuters in Washington County now leave 21 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 Washington County has moved 12 minutes later.
How does Washington County's commute time compare?
Metric
Washington County
Colorado
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
16.0 min
22.0 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
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
11.4%
21.0%
15.0%
Walked
5.0%
2.5%
2.4%
Public Transit
0.1%
1.6%
3.2%
The average commute time in Washington County is 16.0 minutes, shorter than the 22.0 minutes in Colorado.
0.1% commute by public transit, lower than the 1.6% in Colorado. 5.0% commute by walking, higher than the 2.5% in Colorado.
Washington County, CO Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Washington County, CO is the smallest of the 6 counties compared here, 4,831 residents against a local median of 9,979. The measure that sets Washington County, CO apart most is work from home: 11.4%, 33% above the local median of 8.6%.
One-way commute tells the same story from another angle: 16.0 min against a local median of 12.8 min, 25% above it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is one-way commute, and at 25% above the local median it puts Washington County, CO at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves spread 6.7% on work from home, so Washington County, CO sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Washington County, CO has the highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Washington County, Colorado.
How much does the average commute cost workers in Washington County, Colorado?
Commuters here spend an estimated 133 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $4,123 at a typical national wage. That's 28% less than the typical Colorado commuter spends.
When is rush hour worst in Washington County, Colorado?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Washington County, Colorado. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM also sees a secondary bump.
Do people use public transit in Washington County, Colorado?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.1% of commuters use it versus 1.6% in Colorado, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in Colorado?
Among counties in Colorado, the shortest average commutes are in Hinsdale County (6.6 min), Prowers County (7.6 min), Cheyenne County (7.7 min). The longest are in Park County (42.5 min), Elbert County (41.5 min), Teller County (31.3 min).