Commuting in Ulster County, New York: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 12:27 PM
What does a typical morning commute look like in Ulster County?
Map AI9/24/26, 12:27 PM
Commute Time Burden in Ulster County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Ulster County spend about 44 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 183 hours, about 7.6 full days, spent commuting. That is 23% less time on the road than the New York average of 28.7 minutes each way, a difference of 6.7 minutes.
Ulster County holds about 0.9% of New York's population but accounts for roughly 0.7% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Ulster County would save about 73 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,274 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)
Ulster County
22.0 min
44.0 min
183 hrs/yr
$5,686
1,331
New York
28.7 min
57.4 min
239 hrs/yr
$7,414
1,586
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
22.0
minutes to get to work in
Ulster County.
That's 2% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
The most common departure window is 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM, followed by 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 17.6% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Ulster County
Car:
75.4%unusually high
Worked at Home:
17.6%
Walked:
3.3%
Public Transportation:
1.9%unusually low
Other:
0.8%
Bicycle:
0.5%
Taxi:
0.3%
Motorcycle:
0.1%
Driving is 37% more common in Ulster County than the New York average (75.4% vs 55.0%).
Public transit is unusually rare in Ulster County: 11.2 times less than the New York average (1.9% vs 21.7%).
Commute Mode Trends in Ulster County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Ulster 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
Other
Bicycle
Taxi
Motorcycle
2009
85.9%
6.6%
4.2%
2.1%
0.3%
0.4%
0.4%
0.1%
2010
85.6%
7.0%
4.2%
2.0%
0.3%
0.6%
0.3%
0.1%
2011
85.8%
6.7%
4.1%
2.3%
0.3%
0.5%
0.3%
0.1%
2012
86.1%
6.8%
3.9%
2.1%
0.3%
0.5%
0.2%
0.1%
2013
85.7%
6.8%
4.0%
2.2%
0.4%
0.6%
0.3%
0.1%
2014
85.1%
6.7%
4.4%
2.3%
0.6%
0.5%
0.4%
0.0%
2015
85.6%
6.2%
4.4%
2.4%
0.6%
0.5%
0.3%
0.0%
2016
86.0%
6.4%
3.9%
2.3%
0.6%
0.5%
0.3%
0.0%
2017
85.6%
6.4%
4.1%
2.4%
0.7%
0.5%
0.2%
0.1%
2018
84.7%
7.0%
4.3%
2.5%
0.8%
0.3%
0.2%
0.1%
2019
84.2%
8.0%
3.9%
2.6%
1.0%
0.3%
0.1%
0.1%
2020
82.8%
9.6%
3.3%
2.4%
1.1%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
2021
80.6%
11.6%
3.5%
2.5%
1.2%
0.4%
0.2%
0.1%
2022
78.3%
14.2%
3.1%
2.3%
1.3%
0.4%
0.3%
0.1%
2023
77.3%
15.6%
3.1%
2.1%
1.0%
0.4%
0.3%
0.1%
2024
75.4%
17.6%
3.3%
1.9%
0.8%
0.5%
0.3%
0.1%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share peaked in 2012 at 86.1%. Overall it fell from 85.9% in 2009 to 75.4% in 2024, down 10.5 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 8 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Ulster County: its share of workers rose from 6.6% in 2009 to 17.6% in 2024, up 11.0 percentage points. Most of that increase, 9.6 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 4.2% to 3.3% of workers (down 0.9 percentage points).
Commute Start Times in Ulster County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Ulster County?
The bars show when commuters in Ulster 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 York for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMUlster County3.5%New York3.9%
3.5%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMUlster County2.1%New York2.9%
2.1%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMUlster County4.3%New York3.7%
4.3%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMUlster County7.9%New York7.5%
7.9%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMUlster County9.4%New York8.1%
9.4%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMUlster County13.6%New York13.9%
13.6%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMUlster County12.5%New York11.1%
12.5%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMUlster County12.0%New York14.0%
12.0%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMUlster County9.0%New York7.7%
9.0%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMUlster County7.8%New York9.5%
7.8%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMUlster County3.5%New York3.7%
3.5%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMUlster County2.2%New York1.7%
2.2%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMUlster County6.9%New York6.9%
6.9%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMUlster County5.2%New York5.3%
5.2%
Ulster CountyNew YorkSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Ulster County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 13.6% of commuters leave home, compared with 13.9% across New York. Early starts are about as common as in New York: 9.9% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 10.6% there. The morning rush looks much like New York's: 47.6% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 47.1% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (25.6%) 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 Ulster 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 Ulster 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 Ulster County next to New York 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
Ulster County
New York
United States
2009
7:47 AM
7:54 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:48 AM
7:54 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:50 AM
7:54 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:52 AM
7:55 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:51 AM
7:56 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:54 AM
7:56 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:53 AM
7:56 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:52 AM
7:56 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:52 AM
7:56 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:50 AM
7:55 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:50 AM
7:55 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:51 AM
7:55 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:50 AM
7:55 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:52 AM
7:56 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:53 AM
7:56 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:52 AM
7:57 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Ulster County were on the road by 7:52 AM, 5 minutes later than in 2009 (7:47 AM). New York followed the same path, with the typical start moving 3 minutes later. Commuters in Ulster County now leave 14 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 Ulster County has moved 2 minutes later.
How does Ulster County's commute time compare?
Metric
Ulster County
New York
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
22.0 min
28.7 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
08:00 AM – 08:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
17.6%
15.0%
15.0%
Walked
3.3%
5.6%
2.4%
Public Transit
1.9%
21.7%
3.2%
The average commute time in Ulster County is 22.0 minutes, shorter than the 28.7 minutes in New York.
1.9% commute by public transit, lower than the 21.7% in New York. 3.3% commute by walking, lower than the 5.6% in New York.
Ulster County, NY Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Ulster County, NY is the 3rd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 182,585 residents against a local median of 98,107. Ulster County, NY's work from home, at 17.6%, runs 34% above the 13.2% typical of the counties around it.
The counties themselves spread 2.6% on work from home, so Ulster County, NY sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Ulster County, NY has the highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Ulster County, New York.
What is the financial impact of commuting in Ulster County, New York?
Commuters here spend an estimated 183 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,686 at a typical national wage. That's 23% less than the typical New York commuter spends.
What are the busiest morning travel hours in Ulster County, New York?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Ulster County, New York. 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 Ulster County, New York?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 1.9% of commuters use it versus 21.7% in New York, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in New York?
Among counties in New York, the shortest average commutes are in Hamilton County (13.6 min), Chautauqua County (15.4 min), Franklin County (16.4 min). The longest are in Bronx County (43.2 min), Queens County (41.8 min), Kings County (41.6 min).