Commuting in Union County, Kentucky: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 8:21 PM
What does a typical morning commute look like in Union County?
Map AI9/24/26, 8:21 PM
Commute Time Burden in Union County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Union 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 169 hours, about 7.0 full days, spent commuting. That is 3% less time on the road than the Kentucky average of 20.8 minutes each way, a difference of 0.5 minutes.
Union County holds about 0.3% of Kentucky's population and accounts for roughly 0.3% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Union County would save about 67 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,092 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)
Union County
20.2 min
40.5 min
169 hrs/yr
$5,230
384
Kentucky
20.8 min
41.6 min
173 hrs/yr
$5,369
832
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
20.2
minutes to get to work in
Union County.
That's 10% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
The most common departure window is 06:30 AM – 06:59 AM, followed by 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 6.4% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Union County
Car:
91.0%
Worked at Home:
6.4%
Walked:
1.8%
Other:
0.8%
Motorcycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Public Transportation:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Bicycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Riding a motorcycle is essentially absent in Union County, versus 0.1% in Kentucky.
Public transit is essentially absent in Union County, versus 0.6% in Kentucky.
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Union County, versus 0.1% in Kentucky.
Biking is essentially absent in Union County, versus 0.2% in Kentucky.
Commute Mode Trends in Union County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Union 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
87.3%
4.7%
5.1%
1.5%
0.9%
0.0%
0.5%
0.0%
2010
90.2%
3.7%
3.3%
1.2%
1.4%
0.0%
0.2%
0.0%
2011
91.7%
3.1%
2.7%
0.9%
1.4%
0.0%
0.1%
0.0%
2012
92.5%
2.7%
2.9%
0.9%
0.9%
0.0%
0.1%
0.0%
2013
89.4%
1.9%
6.7%
0.5%
1.5%
0.0%
0.1%
0.0%
2014
91.2%
1.1%
6.3%
0.5%
0.8%
0.0%
0.1%
0.0%
2015
88.3%
1.1%
8.9%
0.6%
0.9%
0.0%
0.2%
0.0%
2016
88.0%
1.0%
9.7%
0.4%
0.8%
0.0%
0.1%
0.0%
2017
86.5%
0.5%
11.0%
1.1%
0.6%
0.0%
0.2%
0.0%
2018
92.9%
0.5%
5.3%
0.8%
0.4%
0.0%
0.2%
0.0%
2019
93.4%
1.2%
4.0%
1.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.3%
0.0%
2020
94.3%
1.4%
3.0%
1.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2021
91.6%
2.9%
3.8%
1.6%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2022
93.0%
3.3%
2.2%
1.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2023
91.1%
5.0%
2.0%
1.9%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2024
91.0%
6.4%
1.8%
0.8%
0.0%
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 was highest in 2020 at 94.3% and lowest in 2017 at 86.5%. Overall it rose from 87.3% in 2009 to 91.0% in 2024, up 3.7 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 2 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Union County: its share of workers rose from 4.7% in 2009 to 6.4% in 2024, up 1.7 percentage points. Most of that increase, 5.2 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 5.1% to 1.8% of workers (down 3.3 percentage points).
Working from home overtook walking to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2022 release and has stayed ahead since.
Commute Start Times in Union County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Union County?
The bars show when commuters in Union 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 Kentucky for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMUnion County4.9%Kentucky5.9%
4.9%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMUnion County11.6%Kentucky4.3%
11.6%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMUnion County5.9%Kentucky5.3%
5.9%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMUnion County10.2%Kentucky8.3%
10.2%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMUnion County14.1%Kentucky10.3%
14.1%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMUnion County12.7%Kentucky14.8%
12.7%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMUnion County13.7%Kentucky12.4%
13.7%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMUnion County4.5%Kentucky9.6%
4.5%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMUnion County2.2%Kentucky4.5%
2.2%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMUnion County1.3%Kentucky5.2%
1.3%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMUnion County1.3%Kentucky2.5%
1.3%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMUnion County0.3%Kentucky1.3%
0.3%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMUnion County8.6%Kentucky7.3%
8.6%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMUnion County8.5%Kentucky8.4%
8.5%
Union CountyKentuckySource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Union County is 6:30-6:59 AM, when 14.1% of commuters leave home, compared with 10.3% across Kentucky. Early starts are more common than in Kentucky: 22.4% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 15.5% there. The morning rush is more spread out than in Kentucky: 45.1% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 47.1% there. About 1 in 5 commuters (20.0%) 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 Union 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 Union 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 Union County next to Kentucky 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
Union County
Kentucky
United States
2009
7:19 AM
7:35 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:19 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:21 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:16 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:13 AM
7:35 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:18 AM
7:35 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:17 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:11 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:13 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:09 AM
7:34 AM
7:37 AM
2019
6:59 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:01 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2021
6:59 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:02 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:03 AM
7:32 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:08 AM
7:33 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Union County were on the road by 7:08 AM, 11 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:19 AM). The shift is sharper than across Kentucky, where the typical start moved 2 minutes earlier. Commuters in Union County now leave 30 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 Union County has moved 9 minutes later.
How does Union County's commute time compare?
Metric
Union County
Kentucky
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
20.2 min
20.8 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
06:30 AM – 06:59 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
6.4%
10.2%
15.0%
Walked
1.8%
2.0%
2.4%
Public Transit
< 0.1%
0.6%
3.2%
The average commute time in Union County is 20.2 minutes, shorter than the 20.8 minutes in Kentucky.
0.0% commute by public transit, lower than the 0.6% in Kentucky. 1.8% commute by walking, lower than the 2.0% in Kentucky.
Union County, KY Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Union County, KY is the 2nd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 13,258 residents against a local median of 8,979. Where Union County, KY breaks from the counties next to it is work from home, sitting 144% above the local median of 2.6% at 6.4%.
The counties themselves spread 3.8% on work from home, so Union County, KY sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Union County, KY has the highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Union County, Kentucky.
How much does the average commute cost workers in Union County, Kentucky?
Commuters here spend an estimated 169 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,230 at a typical national wage. That's 3% less than the typical Kentucky commuter spends.
When is rush hour worst in Union County, Kentucky?
Traffic peaks between 06:30 AM – 06:59 AM in Union County, Kentucky. 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 Union County, Kentucky?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.0% of commuters use it versus 0.6% in Kentucky, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
Which counties in Kentucky have the fastest and slowest commutes?
Among counties in Kentucky, the shortest average commutes are in Calloway County (13.9 min), Owsley County (15.0 min), Taylor County (15.3 min). The longest are in Owen County (37.7 min), Spencer County (33.3 min), Bracken County (33.2 min).