Commuting in Cherokee County, Kansas: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 8:06 PM
How many minutes is the average drive to work in Cherokee County?
Map AI9/24/26, 8:06 PM
Commute Time Burden in Cherokee County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Cherokee County spend about 40 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 167 hours, about 7.0 full days, spent commuting. That is 16% more time on the road than the Kansas average of 17.2 minutes each way, a difference of 2.8 minutes.
Cherokee County holds about 0.7% of Kansas's population but accounts for roughly 0.8% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Cherokee County would save about 67 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,071 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)
Cherokee County
20.0 min
40.1 min
167 hrs/yr
$5,177
1,152
Kansas
17.2 min
34.4 min
143 hrs/yr
$4,448
662
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
20.0
minutes to get to work in
Cherokee County.
That's 11% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Slower than 86% of counties in Kansas
The most common departure window is 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM, followed by 06:00 AM – 06:29 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 5.0% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Cherokee County
Car:
92.8%
Worked at Home:
5.0%
Other:
1.1%
Walked:
0.8%
Motorcycle:
0.2%
Bicycle:
0.1%
Public Transportation:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Public transit is essentially absent in Cherokee County, versus 0.4% in Kansas.
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Cherokee County, versus 0.2% in Kansas.
Commute Mode Trends in Cherokee County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Cherokee 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
Bicycle
Public Transportation
Taxi
2009
91.5%
3.7%
1.0%
3.1%
0.6%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2010
90.1%
5.3%
1.1%
3.1%
0.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2011
91.9%
4.1%
1.5%
2.1%
0.3%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2012
92.9%
3.2%
1.2%
2.4%
0.3%
0.0%
0.0%
0.1%
2013
92.6%
3.0%
1.3%
2.8%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2014
92.3%
3.5%
1.1%
2.5%
0.3%
0.2%
0.0%
0.1%
2015
93.4%
2.4%
0.9%
2.6%
0.3%
0.2%
0.0%
0.1%
2016
93.4%
2.9%
0.3%
2.5%
0.6%
0.1%
0.0%
0.1%
2017
92.7%
3.2%
0.2%
3.2%
0.5%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2018
91.9%
4.4%
0.3%
2.8%
0.3%
0.2%
0.0%
0.0%
2019
92.6%
4.6%
0.3%
2.6%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2020
91.7%
4.8%
0.3%
3.2%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2021
92.4%
4.5%
0.3%
2.7%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2022
92.1%
5.1%
0.9%
2.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2023
91.8%
5.0%
1.1%
1.9%
0.1%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2024
92.8%
5.0%
1.1%
0.8%
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 was highest in 2015 at 93.4% and lowest in 2010 at 90.1%. Overall it rose from 91.5% in 2009 to 92.8% in 2024, up 1.3 percentage points. It has risen in the latest release.
Working from home gained the most ground in Cherokee County: its share of workers rose from 3.7% in 2009 to 5.0% in 2024, up 1.3 percentage points.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 3.1% to 0.8% of workers (down 2.3 percentage points).
Commute Start Times in Cherokee County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Cherokee County?
The bars show when commuters in Cherokee 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 Kansas for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMCherokee County6.7%Kansas4.7%
6.7%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMCherokee County7.7%Kansas3.5%
7.7%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMCherokee County7.8%Kansas5.2%
7.8%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMCherokee County11.1%Kansas7.6%
11.1%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMCherokee County10.6%Kansas10.3%
10.6%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMCherokee County12.5%Kansas14.9%
12.5%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMCherokee County11.1%Kansas16.8%
11.1%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMCherokee County6.5%Kansas10.4%
6.5%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMCherokee County5.7%Kansas4.5%
5.7%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMCherokee County5.1%Kansas5.0%
5.1%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMCherokee County2.4%Kansas2.5%
2.4%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMCherokee County0.0%Kansas1.1%
0.0%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMCherokee County6.4%Kansas7.0%
6.4%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMCherokee County6.3%Kansas6.6%
6.3%
Cherokee CountyKansasSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Cherokee County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 12.5% of commuters leave home, compared with 14.9% across Kansas. Early starts are more common than in Kansas: 22.2% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 13.5% there. The morning rush is more spread out than in Kansas: 40.7% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 52.3% there. About 1 in 5 commuters (20.3%) 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 Cherokee 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 Cherokee 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 Cherokee County next to Kansas 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
Cherokee County
Kansas
United States
2009
7:28 AM
7:39 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:27 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:20 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:19 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:23 AM
7:38 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:20 AM
7:38 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:23 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:28 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:28 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:24 AM
7:37 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:28 AM
7:37 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:15 AM
7:37 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:11 AM
7:37 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:09 AM
7:37 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:15 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:15 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Cherokee County were on the road by 7:15 AM, 13 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:28 AM). The shift is sharper than across Kansas, where the typical start moved 2 minutes earlier. Commuters in Cherokee 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 Cherokee County has moved 13 minutes earlier.
How does Cherokee County's commute time compare?
Metric
Cherokee County
Kansas
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
20.0 min
17.2 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
06:00 AM – 06:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
5.0%
11.8%
15.0%
Walked
0.8%
2.3%
2.4%
Public Transit
< 0.1%
0.4%
3.2%
The average commute time in Cherokee County is 20.0 minutes, longer than the 17.2 minutes in Kansas.
0.0% commute by public transit, lower than the 0.4% in Kansas. 0.8% commute by walking, lower than the 2.3% in Kansas.
Cherokee County, KS Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Cherokee County, KS is the 5th largest of the 6 counties compared here, 19,151 residents against a local median of 30,341. Where Cherokee County, KS breaks from the counties next to it is work from home, sitting 27% below the local median of 6.8% at 5.0%.
One-way commute tells the same story from another angle: 20.0 min against a local median of 16.7 min, 20% above it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is one-way commute, and at 20% above the local median it puts Cherokee County, KS at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves spread 5.7% on work from home, so Cherokee County, KS sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Cherokee County, KS has the 5th highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Cherokee County, Kansas.
Is commuting expensive in Cherokee County, Kansas?
Commuters here spend an estimated 167 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,177 at a typical national wage. That's 16% more than the typical Kansas commuter spends.
What time should you leave for work to avoid traffic in Cherokee County, Kansas?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Cherokee County, Kansas. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 06:00 AM – 06:29 AM also sees a secondary bump.
Do people use public transit in Cherokee County, Kansas?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.0% of commuters use it versus 0.4% in Kansas, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in Kansas?
Among counties in Kansas, the shortest average commutes are in Wichita County (7.0 min), Scott County (7.1 min), Greeley County (7.2 min). The longest are in Linn County (31.3 min), Miami County (30.8 min), Jefferson County (30.3 min).