Commuting in Valencia County, New Mexico: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 5:43 PM
How many minutes is the average drive to work in Valencia County?
Map AI9/24/26, 5:43 PM
Commute Time Burden in Valencia County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Valencia County spend about 60 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 250 hours, about 10.4 full days, spent commuting. That is 60% more time on the road than the New Mexico average of 18.8 minutes each way, a difference of 11.2 minutes.
Valencia County holds about 3.7% of New Mexico's population but accounts for roughly 5.9% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Valencia County would save about 100 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $3,105 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)
Valencia County
30.1 min
60.1 min
250 hrs/yr
$7,763
1,017
New Mexico
18.8 min
37.7 min
157 hrs/yr
$4,866
619
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
30.1
minutes to get to work in
Valencia County.
That's 34% longer than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Among the 3 slowest counties in New Mexico
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 11.1% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Valencia County
Car:
86.0%
Worked at Home:
11.1%
Other:
1.5%
Walked:
0.9%
Public Transportation:
0.4%
Motorcycle:
0.2%
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Bicycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Valencia County, versus 0.1% in New Mexico.
Biking is essentially absent in Valencia County, versus 0.5% in New Mexico.
Commute Mode Trends in Valencia County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Valencia 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
Public Transportation
Motorcycle
Taxi
Bicycle
2009
92.1%
4.5%
1.8%
1.0%
0.5%
0.1%
0.0%
0.1%
2010
91.5%
4.1%
1.9%
1.6%
0.9%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2011
91.1%
3.8%
2.1%
1.8%
1.1%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2012
91.4%
3.7%
1.5%
1.9%
1.3%
0.2%
0.0%
0.0%
2013
90.7%
3.9%
1.9%
2.0%
1.4%
0.2%
0.0%
0.0%
2014
91.1%
3.6%
1.7%
1.7%
1.5%
0.2%
0.1%
0.0%
2015
91.1%
4.0%
1.5%
1.6%
1.3%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
2016
91.3%
4.5%
1.6%
1.0%
1.3%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
2017
90.8%
5.0%
1.8%
1.2%
0.9%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
2018
92.1%
4.7%
1.2%
0.8%
0.8%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
2019
92.1%
4.3%
1.6%
0.8%
1.0%
0.3%
0.0%
0.0%
2020
91.5%
5.4%
1.5%
0.8%
0.7%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2021
90.9%
6.3%
1.2%
1.0%
0.5%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2022
88.9%
7.8%
1.5%
1.0%
0.7%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2023
87.7%
9.3%
1.4%
1.0%
0.5%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
2024
86.0%
11.1%
1.5%
0.9%
0.4%
0.2%
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 92.1% in 2009 to 86.0% in 2024, down 6.1 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 5 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Valencia County: its share of workers rose from 4.5% in 2009 to 11.1% in 2024, up 6.6 percentage points. Most of that increase, 6.8 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking peaked at 2.0% in 2013 and has since fallen back to 0.9%.
Commute Start Times in Valencia County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Valencia County?
The bars show when commuters in Valencia 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 New Mexico for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMValencia County6.0%New Mexico4.6%
6.0%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMValencia County4.0%New Mexico3.5%
4.0%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMValencia County5.5%New Mexico5.1%
5.5%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMValencia County12.4%New Mexico8.7%
12.4%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMValencia County11.5%New Mexico10.1%
11.5%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMValencia County18.7%New Mexico15.5%
18.7%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMValencia County10.3%New Mexico14.8%
10.3%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMValencia County7.2%New Mexico11.1%
7.2%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMValencia County3.9%New Mexico4.5%
3.9%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMValencia County3.9%New Mexico6.0%
3.9%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMValencia County1.8%New Mexico3.1%
1.8%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMValencia County1.5%New Mexico1.3%
1.5%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMValencia County7.2%New Mexico6.3%
7.2%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMValencia County5.9%New Mexico5.5%
5.9%
Valencia CountyNew MexicoSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Valencia County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 18.7% of commuters leave home, compared with 15.5% across New Mexico. Early starts are more common than in New Mexico: 15.4% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 13.1% there. The morning rush is more spread out than in New Mexico: 47.8% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 51.5% there. About 1 in 5 commuters (20.4%) 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 Valencia 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 Valencia 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 Valencia County next to New Mexico 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
Valencia County
New Mexico
United States
2009
7:24 AM
7:37 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:23 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:19 AM
7:36 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:23 AM
7:36 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:22 AM
7:36 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:22 AM
7:37 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:24 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:24 AM
7:36 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:21 AM
7:36 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:20 AM
7:36 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:18 AM
7:35 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:21 AM
7:35 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:18 AM
7:35 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:19 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:17 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Valencia County were on the road by 7:17 AM, 7 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:24 AM). The shift is sharper than across New Mexico, where the typical start moved 2 minutes earlier. Commuters in Valencia County now leave 21 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 Valencia County has moved 3 minutes earlier. The 2024 release is the earliest typical start for Valencia County in the whole series.
How does Valencia County's commute time compare?
Metric
Valencia County
New Mexico
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
30.1 min
18.8 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window
06:00 AM – 06:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
11.1%
12.2%
15.0%
Walked
0.9%
1.9%
2.4%
Public Transit
0.4%
0.6%
3.2%
The average commute time in Valencia County is 30.1 minutes, longer than the 18.8 minutes in New Mexico.
0.4% commute by public transit, lower than the 0.6% in New Mexico. 0.9% commute by walking, lower than the 1.9% in New Mexico.
Valencia County, NM Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Valencia County, NM is the 4th largest of the 6 counties compared here, 78,461 residents against a local median of 153,584. Where Valencia County, NM breaks from the counties next to it is one-way commute, sitting 44% above the local median of 20.9 min at 30.1 min. That is the weaker end of the local range on this measure.
Work from home tells the same story from another angle: 11.1% against a local median of 16.8%, 34% below it. The counties themselves spread 24.9 min on one-way commute, so Valencia County, NM sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Valencia County, NM has the 5th lowest one-way commute of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Valencia County, New Mexico.
Is living in Valencia County, New Mexico good for avoiding long commute costs?
Commuters here spend an estimated 250 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $7,763 at a typical national wage. That's 60% more than the typical New Mexico commuter spends.
When is peak congestion during the morning commute in Valencia County, New Mexico?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Valencia County, New Mexico. 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.
Which counties in New Mexico have the fastest and slowest commutes?
Among counties in New Mexico, the shortest average commutes are in De Baca County (7.9 min), Quay County (8.0 min), Union County (8.3 min). The longest are in Torrance County (36.5 min), Mora County (30.1 min), Valencia County (30.1 min).