Paterson Commute Time Map & Patterns

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You 9/3/26, 9:43 PM
Is the commute in Paterson longer than the national average?
Map AI 9/3/26, 9:43 PM

Commute Time Burden in Paterson: Annual Hours and Cost

Commuters in Paterson spend about 42 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 174 hours, about 7.2 full days, spent commuting.

That is 22% less time on the road than the New Jersey average of 26.6 minutes each way, a difference of 5.7 minutes.

Paterson holds about 1.6% of New Jersey's population but accounts for roughly 1.3% of its total commuting time.

Working from home just 2 days a week in Paterson would save about 69 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,153 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)
Paterson 20.8 min 41.7 min 174 hrs/yr $5,381 3,332
New Jersey 26.6 min 53.1 min 221 hrs/yr $6,865 2,109
United States 22.5 min 44.9 min 187 hrs/yr $5,803 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.

Paterson Commute Map

On average, it takes 20.8 minutes to get to work in Paterson. That's 7% shorter than the 22.5-minute U.S. average.

The most common departure window is 06:30 AM – 06:59 AM , followed by 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM .

Most people travel to work by Car , followed by Public Transportation . About 4.8% work from home.

Commute mode distribution

  • Car: 79.6%
  • Public Transportation: 8.0%
  • Walked: 5.8%
  • Worked at Home: 4.8% unusually low
  • Taxi: 1.2%
  • Other: 0.6%
  • Bicycle: < 0.1% unusually low
  • Motorcycle: < 0.1% unusually low

Motorcycle commuting is essentially absent in Paterson, versus 0.0% in New Jersey.

Worked at Home commuting is unusually low in Paterson: 3.1 times less than the New Jersey average (4.8% vs 15.0%).

Bicycle commuting is unusually low in Paterson: 3.9 times less than the New Jersey average (0.1% vs 0.3%).

How does Paterson's commute time compare?

Metric Paterson New Jersey US Average
Avg. Commute Time 20.8 min 26.6 min 22.5 min
Departure Window 06:30 AM – 06:59 AM 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home 4.8% 15.0% 13.4%
Walked 5.8% 2.6% 2.4%
Public Transit 8.0% 8.5% 3.5%

The average commute time in Paterson is 20.8 minutes, shorter than the 26.6 minutes in New Jersey.

8.0% commute by public transit, lower than the 8.5% in New Jersey. 5.8% commute by walking, higher than the 2.6% in New Jersey.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about commuting in Paterson, New Jersey.

Is living in Paterson, New Jersey good for avoiding long commute costs?

Commuters here spend an estimated 174 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,381 at a typical national wage. That's 22% less than the typical New Jersey commuter spends.

When is peak congestion during the morning commute in Paterson, New Jersey?

Traffic peaks between 06:30 AM – 06:59 AM in Paterson, New Jersey. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM also sees a secondary bump.