Commuting in Worth County, Iowa: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 7:59 PM
How many minutes is the average drive to work in Worth County?
Map AI9/24/26, 7:59 PM
Commute Time Burden in Worth County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Worth County spend about 43 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 179 hours, about 7.4 full days, spent commuting. That is 26% more time on the road than the Iowa average of 17.0 minutes each way, a difference of 4.5 minutes.
Worth County holds about 0.2% of Iowa's population but accounts for roughly 0.3% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Worth County would save about 71 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,215 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)
Worth County
21.4 min
42.9 min
179 hrs/yr
$5,537
716
Iowa
17.0 min
33.9 min
141 hrs/yr
$4,382
606
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
21.4
minutes to get to work in
Worth County.
That's 4% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Slower than 87% of counties in Iowa
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 11.3% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Worth County
Car:
83.8%
Worked at Home:
11.3%
Walked:
2.1%
Other:
1.6%
Motorcycle:
0.8%unusually high
Bicycle:
0.3%
Public Transportation:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Riding a motorcycle is unusually common in Worth County: 8.4 times more than the Iowa average (0.8% vs 0.1%).
Public transit is unusually rare in Worth County: 13.2 times less than the Iowa average (0.1% vs 0.7%).
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Worth County, versus 0.2% in Iowa.
Commute Mode Trends in Worth County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Worth 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
Motorcycle
Bicycle
Public Transportation
Taxi
2009
87.4%
7.9%
3.1%
0.5%
0.2%
0.1%
0.8%
0.0%
2010
85.6%
10.3%
3.7%
0.1%
0.1%
0.1%
0.1%
0.0%
2011
84.9%
10.4%
4.1%
0.1%
0.1%
0.2%
0.2%
0.0%
2012
87.1%
9.1%
3.2%
0.2%
0.0%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
2013
86.9%
8.8%
3.4%
0.6%
0.0%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
2014
88.6%
6.1%
3.7%
0.5%
0.3%
0.2%
0.6%
0.0%
2015
90.1%
5.4%
3.0%
0.4%
0.4%
0.2%
0.6%
0.0%
2016
92.1%
4.4%
1.9%
0.2%
0.4%
0.3%
0.6%
0.0%
2017
91.6%
3.8%
2.7%
0.8%
0.5%
0.1%
0.5%
0.0%
2018
92.8%
3.7%
2.0%
0.6%
0.5%
0.1%
0.4%
0.0%
2019
90.1%
7.1%
1.6%
0.8%
0.3%
0.1%
0.1%
0.0%
2020
90.0%
7.3%
1.7%
0.8%
0.0%
0.1%
0.2%
0.0%
2021
88.3%
8.4%
1.5%
1.5%
0.2%
0.0%
0.1%
0.0%
2022
88.0%
9.1%
1.5%
1.1%
0.2%
0.0%
0.2%
0.0%
2023
84.4%
11.2%
1.6%
1.8%
0.9%
0.0%
0.1%
0.0%
2024
83.8%
11.3%
2.1%
1.6%
0.8%
0.3%
0.1%
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 92.8%. Overall it fell from 87.4% in 2009 to 83.8% in 2024, down 3.6 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 6 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Worth County: its share of workers rose from 7.9% in 2009 to 11.3% in 2024, up 3.4 percentage points. Most of that increase, 4.2 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 3.1% to 2.1% of workers (down 1.0 percentage points).
Riding a motorcycle overtook public transit to become the 5th most common choice in the 2023 release and has stayed ahead since.
Commute Start Times in Worth County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Worth County?
The bars show when commuters in Worth 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 Iowa for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMWorth County7.0%Iowa5.2%
7.0%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMWorth County9.9%Iowa4.1%
9.9%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMWorth County6.8%Iowa5.7%
6.8%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMWorth County10.0%Iowa8.2%
10.0%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMWorth County10.3%Iowa11.2%
10.3%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMWorth County17.1%Iowa15.1%
17.1%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMWorth County14.0%Iowa15.6%
14.0%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMWorth County5.5%Iowa9.1%
5.5%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMWorth County3.5%Iowa3.6%
3.5%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMWorth County4.2%Iowa4.4%
4.2%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMWorth County0.6%Iowa2.3%
0.6%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMWorth County0.5%Iowa1.1%
0.5%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMWorth County5.3%Iowa7.5%
5.3%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMWorth County5.2%Iowa6.8%
5.2%
Worth CountyIowaSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Worth County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 17.1% of commuters leave home, compared with 15.1% across Iowa. Early starts are more common than in Iowa: 23.7% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 14.9% there. The morning rush is more spread out than in Iowa: 46.9% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 51.0% there. About 1 in 6 commuters (15.8%) 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 Worth 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 Worth 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 Worth County next to Iowa 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
Worth County
Iowa
United States
2009
7:28 AM
7:35 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:15 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:23 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:20 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:19 AM
7:34 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:17 AM
7:33 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:18 AM
7:32 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:21 AM
7:32 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:25 AM
7:32 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:23 AM
7:31 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:24 AM
7:31 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:23 AM
7:31 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:21 AM
7:31 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:20 AM
7:31 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:18 AM
7:31 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:11 AM
7:31 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Worth County were on the road by 7:11 AM, 18 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:28 AM). The shift is sharper than across Iowa, where the typical start moved 3 minutes earlier. Commuters in Worth County now leave 27 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 Worth County has moved 14 minutes earlier. The 2024 release is the earliest typical start for Worth County in the whole series.
How does Worth County's commute time compare?
Metric
Worth County
Iowa
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
21.4 min
17.0 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
11.3%
11.3%
15.0%
Walked
2.1%
2.9%
2.4%
Public Transit
< 0.1%
0.7%
3.2%
The average commute time in Worth County is 21.4 minutes, longer than the 17.0 minutes in Iowa.
0.1% commute by public transit, lower than the 0.7% in Iowa. 2.1% commute by walking, lower than the 2.9% in Iowa.
Worth County, IA Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Worth County, IA is the smallest of the 6 counties compared here, 7,350 residents against a local median of 10,671. Worth County, IA's work from home, at 11.3%, runs 56% above the 7.2% typical of the counties around it.
One-way commute tells the same story from another angle: 21.4 min against a local median of 14.0 min, 53% above it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is one-way commute, and at 53% above the local median it puts Worth County, IA at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves spread 5.4% on work from home, so Worth County, IA sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Worth County, IA has the 2nd highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Worth County, Iowa.
What is the financial impact of commuting in Worth County, Iowa?
Commuters here spend an estimated 179 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,537 at a typical national wage. That's 26% more than the typical Iowa commuter spends.
What are the busiest morning travel hours in Worth County, Iowa?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Worth County, Iowa. 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.
How common is public transit use in Worth County, Iowa?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.1% of commuters use it versus 0.7% in Iowa, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
How do commute times compare across counties in Iowa?
Among counties in Iowa, the shortest average commutes are in Sioux County (10.1 min), Union County (10.4 min), Cass County (10.6 min). The longest are in Monroe County (30.4 min), Madison County (30.1 min), Mills County (26.7 min).