Commuting in Washtenaw County, Michigan: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
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How much time do drivers in Washtenaw County spend on the road daily?
Map AI9/24/26, 8:12 PM
Commute Time Burden in Washtenaw County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Washtenaw County spend about 42 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 177 hours, about 7.4 full days, spent commuting. That is 1% less time on the road than the Michigan average of 21.3 minutes each way, a difference of 0.1 minutes.
Washtenaw County holds about 3.7% of Michigan's population and accounts for roughly 3.7% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Washtenaw County would save about 71 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,192 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)
Washtenaw County
21.2 min
42.4 min
177 hrs/yr
$5,481
1,836
Michigan
21.3 min
42.6 min
178 hrs/yr
$5,509
1,585
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
21.2
minutes to get to work in
Washtenaw County.
That's 5% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
The most common departure window is 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM, followed by 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 22.6% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Washtenaw County
Car:
66.2%
Worked at Home:
22.6%
Walked:
5.6%
Public Transportation:
3.7%unusually high
Bicycle:
1.0%
Other:
0.8%
Taxi:
0.1%
Motorcycle:
< 0.1%
Public transit is unusually common in Washtenaw County: 3.9 times more than the Michigan average (3.7% vs 0.9%).
Commute Mode Trends in Washtenaw County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Washtenaw 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
Public Transportation
Bicycle
Other
Taxi
Motorcycle
2009
82.7%
5.0%
6.6%
3.7%
1.4%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
2010
82.2%
5.1%
6.7%
3.8%
1.4%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
2011
81.8%
5.0%
6.8%
4.4%
1.4%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
2012
81.5%
5.1%
6.7%
4.6%
1.5%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
2013
81.2%
5.2%
6.5%
4.7%
1.7%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
2014
80.7%
5.3%
6.5%
5.0%
1.8%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
2015
80.1%
5.6%
6.4%
5.4%
1.9%
0.5%
0.1%
0.1%
2016
79.9%
5.9%
6.5%
5.1%
1.8%
0.5%
0.1%
0.1%
2017
79.7%
5.9%
6.7%
5.2%
1.8%
0.5%
0.1%
0.1%
2018
79.3%
5.9%
7.3%
5.2%
1.6%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
2019
79.4%
5.9%
7.2%
5.2%
1.6%
0.5%
0.1%
0.1%
2020
76.7%
9.1%
7.4%
4.7%
1.5%
0.5%
0.1%
0.1%
2021
72.6%
14.2%
6.9%
4.2%
1.3%
0.6%
0.1%
0.1%
2022
70.0%
17.8%
6.5%
3.9%
1.1%
0.6%
0.0%
0.1%
2023
68.3%
20.3%
5.8%
3.8%
1.0%
0.7%
0.1%
0.0%
2024
66.2%
22.6%
5.6%
3.7%
1.0%
0.8%
0.1%
0.1%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Overall its share fell from 82.7% in 2009 to 66.2% in 2024, down 16.5 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 5 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Washtenaw County: its share of workers rose from 5.0% in 2009 to 22.6% in 2024, up 17.6 percentage points. Most of that increase, 16.7 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 6.6% to 5.6% of workers (down 1.0 percentage points).
Working from home overtook walking to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2020 release and has stayed ahead since.
Public transit peaked at 5.4% in 2015 and has since fallen back to 3.7%.
Commute Start Times in Washtenaw County
🦉Night OwlThe latest start among Michigan's 83 counties: half of commuters are still at home at 8:12 AM.
😴Sleeping InThe highest share of 9 AM-or-later starts among Michigan's 83 counties: 33.4% of commuters leave at 9 AM or later.
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Washtenaw County?
The bars show when commuters in Washtenaw 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 Michigan for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMWashtenaw County2.8%Michigan5.3%
2.8%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMWashtenaw County2.6%Michigan3.9%
2.6%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMWashtenaw County2.9%Michigan5.1%
2.9%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMWashtenaw County5.7%Michigan8.0%
5.7%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMWashtenaw County6.8%Michigan9.0%
6.8%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMWashtenaw County11.2%Michigan13.0%
11.2%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMWashtenaw County12.7%Michigan12.1%
12.7%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMWashtenaw County13.3%Michigan10.9%
13.3%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMWashtenaw County8.7%Michigan5.6%
8.7%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMWashtenaw County10.7%Michigan6.7%
10.7%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMWashtenaw County4.9%Michigan3.2%
4.9%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMWashtenaw County2.5%Michigan1.6%
2.5%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMWashtenaw County9.5%Michigan8.5%
9.5%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMWashtenaw County5.8%Michigan7.1%
5.8%
Washtenaw CountyMichiganSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Washtenaw County is 8:00-8:29 AM, when 13.3% of commuters leave home, compared with 10.9% across Michigan. Early starts are less common than in Michigan: 8.2% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 14.3% there. The morning rush looks much like Michigan's: 44.0% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 45.0% there. About 1 in 3 commuters (33.4%) 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 Washtenaw 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 Washtenaw 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 Washtenaw County next to Michigan 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
Washtenaw County
Michigan
United States
2009
8:04 AM
7:44 AM
7:37 AM
2010
8:04 AM
7:45 AM
7:38 AM
2011
8:05 AM
7:45 AM
7:38 AM
2012
8:06 AM
7:45 AM
7:38 AM
2013
8:07 AM
7:45 AM
7:39 AM
2014
8:07 AM
7:45 AM
7:39 AM
2015
8:08 AM
7:44 AM
7:38 AM
2016
8:07 AM
7:44 AM
7:38 AM
2017
8:06 AM
7:43 AM
7:38 AM
2018
8:06 AM
7:43 AM
7:37 AM
2019
8:06 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2020
8:06 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2021
8:07 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2022
8:09 AM
7:43 AM
7:37 AM
2023
8:10 AM
7:43 AM
7:38 AM
2024
8:12 AM
7:44 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Washtenaw County were on the road by 8:12 AM, 8 minutes later than in 2009 (8:04 AM). Across Michigan, the typical start barely moved over the same years. Commuters in Washtenaw County now leave 34 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 Washtenaw County has moved 7 minutes later. The 2024 release is the latest typical start for Washtenaw County in the whole series.
How does Washtenaw County's commute time compare?
Metric
Washtenaw County
Michigan
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
21.2 min
21.3 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
08:00 AM – 08:29 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
22.6%
13.5%
15.0%
Walked
5.6%
2.0%
2.4%
Public Transit
3.7%
0.9%
3.2%
The average commute time in Washtenaw County is about the same as in Michigan.
3.7% commute by public transit, higher than the 0.9% in Michigan. 5.6% commute by walking, higher than the 2.0% in Michigan.
Washtenaw County, MI Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Washtenaw County, MI is the 2nd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 369,612 residents against a local median of 160,066. Where Washtenaw County, MI breaks from the counties next to it is work from home, sitting 129% above the local median of 9.8% at 22.6%.
The counties themselves spread 7.9% on work from home, so Washtenaw County, MI sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Washtenaw County, MI has the highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Washtenaw County, Michigan.
Is living in Washtenaw County, Michigan good for avoiding long commute costs?
Commuters here spend an estimated 177 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,481 at a typical national wage. That's 1% less than the typical Michigan commuter spends.
When is peak congestion during the morning commute in Washtenaw County, Michigan?
Traffic peaks between 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM in Washtenaw County, Michigan. 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 Washtenaw County, Michigan?
Public transit usage is notably higher here than typical: about 3.7% of commuters use it versus 0.9% in Michigan, making it a realistic option for many workers.
Is Washtenaw County, Michigan a good location for remote and hybrid workers?
About 22.6% of workers here already work from home. Working from home just 2 days a week in Washtenaw County would save about 71 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,192 at the same national wage assumption used above.
Which counties in Michigan have the fastest and slowest commutes?
Among counties in Michigan, the shortest average commutes are in Luce County (11.4 min), Dickinson County (12.2 min), Schoolcraft County (12.5 min). The longest are in Lapeer County (31.3 min), Lake County (31.1 min), Livingston County (28.6 min).