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Musselshell County Commute Time Map & Patterns

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Commuting in Musselshell County, Montana: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.

You 9/24/26, 7:55 PM
Is the commute in Musselshell County longer than the national average?
Map AI 9/24/26, 7:55 PM

Commute Time Burden in Musselshell County: Annual Hours and Cost

Commuters in Musselshell County spend about 36 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 149 hours, about 6.2 full days, spent commuting. That is 11% more time on the road than the Montana average of 16.0 minutes each way, a difference of 1.8 minutes.

Musselshell County holds about 0.5% of Montana's population and accounts for roughly 0.5% of its total commuting time.

Working from home just 2 days a week in Musselshell County would save about 60 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $1,845 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)
Musselshell County 17.9 min 35.7 min 149 hrs/yr $4,613 200
Montana 16.0 min 32.1 min 134 hrs/yr $4,143 403
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.

Commute Time Map: Montana Counties

Fastest commutes among counties in Montana
  1. Treasure County (7.2 min)
  2. Rosebud County (8.2 min)
  3. Fallon County (8.4 min)
Slowest commutes among counties in Montana
  1. Broadwater County (30.3 min)
  2. Stillwater County (27.8 min)
  3. Granite County (23.3 min)

Compare commute times among different counties

Musselshell County
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Average commute time

On average, it takes 17.9 minutes to get to work in Musselshell County. That's 20% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.

Slower than 89% of counties in Montana

The most common departure window is 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM, followed by 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 22.8% work from home.

How People Get to Work in Musselshell County

  • Car: 68.0%
  • Worked at Home: 22.8%
  • Walked: 5.8%
  • Other: 3.5%
  • 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 Musselshell County, versus 0.1% in Montana.

Public transit is essentially absent in Musselshell County, versus 0.6% in Montana.

Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Musselshell County, versus 0.1% in Montana.

Biking is essentially absent in Musselshell County, versus 1.0% in Montana.

Commute Mode Trends in Musselshell County, 2009-2024

This chart shows how workers in Musselshell 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 87.6% 5.4% 5.9% 0.3% 0.0% 0.0% 0.2% 0.7%
2010 80.9% 5.4% 7.1% 0.3% 0.0% 0.0% 5.8% 0.6%
2011 83.2% 7.1% 6.6% 0.3% 0.0% 0.0% 2.9% 0.0%
2012 81.3% 9.7% 5.7% 0.3% 0.0% 0.0% 3.0% 0.0%
2013 77.5% 12.8% 5.7% 0.2% 0.0% 0.0% 3.8% 0.0%
2014 80.9% 11.5% 5.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2.6% 0.0%
2015 81.2% 14.0% 4.7% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2016 77.7% 16.3% 6.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2017 75.6% 16.1% 5.4% 3.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2018 76.3% 14.9% 5.5% 3.4% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2019 77.2% 13.7% 6.5% 2.6% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2020 75.5% 15.1% 6.3% 3.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2021 77.8% 16.4% 3.0% 2.8% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2022 79.7% 15.7% 3.1% 1.5% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2023 73.1% 20.2% 3.6% 3.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
2024 68.0% 22.8% 5.8% 3.5% 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. Overall its share fell from 87.6% in 2009 to 68.0% in 2024, down 19.6 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 2 releases.

Working from home gained the most ground in Musselshell County: its share of workers rose from 5.4% in 2009 to 22.8% in 2024, up 17.4 percentage points.

Biking lost the most ground, falling from 0.7% to 0.0% of workers (down 0.7 percentage points).

Working from home overtook walking to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2011 release and has stayed ahead since.

Riding a motorcycle peaked at 5.8% in 2010 and has since fallen back to 0.0%.

Commute Start Times in Musselshell County

  • Dawn PatrolThe 2nd-highest share of pre-6 AM departures among Montana's 56 counties: 23.9% of commuters leave before 6 AM.

What Time Do People Leave for Work in Musselshell County?

The bars show when commuters in Musselshell 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 Montana for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.

12:00-4:59 AM
11.2%
5:00-5:29 AM
5.4%
5:30-5:59 AM
7.3%
6:00-6:29 AM
7.4%
6:30-6:59 AM
9.6%
7:00-7:29 AM
13.2%
7:30-7:59 AM
17.2%
8:00-8:29 AM
9.5%
8:30-8:59 AM
2.1%
9:00-9:59 AM
5.0%
10:00-10:59 AM
2.7%
11:00-11:59 AM
0.0%
12:00-3:59 PM
3.4%
4:00-11:59 PM
6.0%

Musselshell County Montana Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates

The busiest time to head out in Musselshell County is 7:30-7:59 AM, when 17.2% of commuters leave home, compared with 19.2% across Montana. Early starts are more common than in Montana: 23.9% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 10.7% there. The morning rush is more spread out than in Montana: 49.5% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 55.0% there. About 1 in 6 commuters (17.1%) 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 Musselshell 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 Musselshell 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 Musselshell County next to Montana 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 Musselshell County Montana United States
2009 7:29 AM 7:45 AM 7:37 AM
2010 7:23 AM 7:45 AM 7:38 AM
2011 7:09 AM 7:45 AM 7:38 AM
2012 7:17 AM 7:45 AM 7:38 AM
2013 7:33 AM 7:45 AM 7:39 AM
2014 7:23 AM 7:45 AM 7:39 AM
2015 7:30 AM 7:44 AM 7:38 AM
2016 7:29 AM 7:44 AM 7:38 AM
2017 7:38 AM 7:44 AM 7:38 AM
2018 7:28 AM 7:44 AM 7:37 AM
2019 7:36 AM 7:44 AM 7:37 AM
2020 7:31 AM 7:45 AM 7:37 AM
2021 7:32 AM 7:45 AM 7:37 AM
2022 7:26 AM 7:44 AM 7:37 AM
2023 7:25 AM 7:43 AM 7:38 AM
2024 7:21 AM 7:43 AM 7:38 AM

In 2024, half of commuters in Musselshell County were on the road by 7:21 AM, 9 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:29 AM). The shift is sharper than across Montana, where the typical start moved 2 minutes earlier. Commuters in Musselshell County now leave 17 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 Musselshell County has moved 15 minutes earlier.

How does Musselshell County's commute time compare?

Metric Musselshell County Montana US Average
Avg. Commute Time 17.9 min 16.0 min 22.4 min
Departure Window 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home 22.8% 12.5% 15.0%
Walked 5.8% 3.9% 2.4%
Public Transit < 0.1% 0.6% 3.2%

The average commute time in Musselshell County is 17.9 minutes, longer than the 16.0 minutes in Montana.

0.0% commute by public transit, lower than the 0.6% in Montana. 5.8% commute by walking, higher than the 3.9% in Montana.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Musselshell County, MT Commute Compared With Nearby Counties

Musselshell County, MT is the 3rd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 5,152 residents against a local median of 897. The measure that sets Musselshell County, MT apart most is one-way commute: 17.9 min, 64% above the local median of 10.9 min. That is the weaker end of the local range on this measure.

Work from home tells the same story from another angle: 22.8% against a local median of 15.3%, 49% above it. The counties themselves spread 9.7 min on one-way commute, so Musselshell County, MT sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Musselshell County, MT has the 6th lowest one-way commute of the 6 areas compared here.

Area Population One-way commute Work from home Typical departure
Musselshell County, MT 5,152 17.9 min #6/6 22.8% #2/6 7:21 AM #4/6
Yellowstone County, MT 168,956 16.9 min 8.9% 7:37 AM
Petroleum County, MT 447 8.6 min 15.3% 7:07 AM
Golden Valley County, MT 897 15.7 min 14.1% 7:15 AM
Fergus County, MT 11,687 10.9 min 16.8% 7:34 AM
Treasure County, MT 732 7.2 min 25.1% 7:19 AM

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about commuting in Musselshell County, Montana.

How much does the average commute cost workers in Musselshell County, Montana?

Commuters here spend an estimated 149 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $4,613 at a typical national wage. That's 11% more than the typical Montana commuter spends.

When is rush hour worst in Musselshell County, Montana?

Traffic peaks between 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM in Musselshell County, Montana. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM also sees a secondary bump.

Do people use public transit in Musselshell County, Montana?

Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.0% of commuters use it versus 0.6% in Montana, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.

How much time do residents in Musselshell County, Montana save by working from home?

About 22.8% of workers here already work from home. Working from home just 2 days a week in Musselshell County would save about 60 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $1,845 at the same national wage assumption used above.

Which counties in Montana have the fastest and slowest commutes?

Among counties in Montana, the shortest average commutes are in Treasure County (7.2 min), Rosebud County (8.2 min), Fallon County (8.4 min). The longest are in Broadwater County (30.3 min), Stillwater County (27.8 min), Granite County (23.3 min).