Amherst County Commute Time Map & Patterns
HelpCommuting in Amherst County, Virginia: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
Commute Time Burden in Amherst County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Amherst 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 182 hours, about 7.6 full days, spent commuting. That is 6% less time on the road than the Virginia average of 23.2 minutes each way, a difference of 1.3 minutes.
Amherst County holds about 0.4% of Virginia's population but accounts for roughly 0.3% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Amherst County would save about 73 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,262 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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amherst County | 21.9 min | 43.8 min | 182 hrs/yr | $5,655 | 1,025 |
| Virginia | 23.2 min | 46.3 min | 193 hrs/yr | $5,986 | 1,531 |
| 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: Virginia Counties
- Lexington city (10.6 min)
- Covington city (12.2 min)
- Norton city (13.1 min)
- Amelia County (43.7 min)
- Craig County (41.3 min)
- Buckingham County (41.3 min)
Compare commute times among different counties
On average, it takes 21.9 minutes to get to work in Amherst 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 10.1% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Amherst County
- Car: 87.0%
- Worked at Home: 10.1%
- Walked: 1.4%
- Other: 1.3%
- Public Transportation: 0.2% unusually low
- Taxi: < 0.1% unusually low
- Motorcycle: < 0.1% unusually low
- Bicycle: < 0.1% unusually low
Riding a motorcycle is essentially absent in Amherst County, versus 0.1% in Virginia.
Public transit is unusually rare in Amherst County: 12.9 times less than the Virginia average (0.2% vs 2.3%).
Taking a taxi is unusually rare in Amherst County: 3.9 times less than the Virginia average (0.1% vs 0.2%).
Biking is essentially absent in Amherst County, versus 0.3% in Virginia.
Commute Mode Trends in Amherst County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Amherst 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.
Show commute mode data by year
| Year | Car | Worked at Home | Walked | Other | Public Transportation | Taxi | Motorcycle | Bicycle |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 91.2% | 4.0% | 3.0% | 0.8% | 0.5% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.4% |
| 2010 | 91.0% | 3.6% | 3.4% | 0.9% | 0.5% | 0.3% | 0.1% | 0.3% |
| 2011 | 91.4% | 3.2% | 3.5% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| 2012 | 91.4% | 2.3% | 3.4% | 0.5% | 1.6% | 0.4% | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| 2013 | 91.3% | 2.1% | 3.4% | 0.9% | 1.4% | 0.4% | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| 2014 | 91.7% | 2.7% | 2.9% | 1.2% | 1.0% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.1% |
| 2015 | 92.2% | 2.7% | 2.0% | 1.4% | 1.3% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.0% |
| 2016 | 92.3% | 2.8% | 1.7% | 1.5% | 1.4% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.0% |
| 2017 | 93.3% | 2.6% | 1.3% | 2.1% | 0.6% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.0% |
| 2018 | 94.4% | 2.4% | 1.3% | 1.2% | 0.6% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.0% |
| 2019 | 93.3% | 3.1% | 1.6% | 1.3% | 0.3% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| 2020 | 92.3% | 3.7% | 1.9% | 1.4% | 0.4% | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| 2021 | 90.7% | 6.6% | 1.6% | 0.7% | 0.3% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| 2022 | 89.3% | 8.0% | 1.9% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% |
| 2023 | 88.2% | 9.2% | 1.4% | 0.8% | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| 2024 | 87.0% | 10.1% | 1.4% | 1.3% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share peaked in 2018 at 94.4%. Overall it fell from 91.2% in 2009 to 87.0% in 2024, down 4.2 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 6 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Amherst County: its share of workers rose from 4.0% in 2009 to 10.1% in 2024, up 6.1 percentage points. Most of that increase, 7.0 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 3.0% to 1.4% of workers (down 1.6 percentage points).
Public transit peaked at 1.6% in 2012 and has since fallen back to 0.2%.
Commute Start Times in Amherst County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Amherst County?
The bars show when commuters in Amherst 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 Virginia for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
| 12:00-4:59 AM |
12:00-4:59 AM
Amherst County3.6%
Virginia5.0%
|
3.6% |
|---|---|---|
| 5:00-5:29 AM |
5:00-5:29 AM
Amherst County5.8%
Virginia4.0%
|
5.8% |
| 5:30-5:59 AM |
5:30-5:59 AM
Amherst County5.5%
Virginia5.0%
|
5.5% |
| 6:00-6:29 AM |
6:00-6:29 AM
Amherst County8.9%
Virginia8.7%
|
8.9% |
| 6:30-6:59 AM |
6:30-6:59 AM
Amherst County9.5%
Virginia9.2%
|
9.5% |
| 7:00-7:29 AM |
7:00-7:29 AM
Amherst County12.6%
Virginia14.2%
|
12.6% |
| 7:30-7:59 AM |
7:30-7:59 AM
Amherst County12.0%
Virginia12.1%
|
12.0% |
| 8:00-8:29 AM |
8:00-8:29 AM
Amherst County10.6%
Virginia12.1%
|
10.6% |
| 8:30-8:59 AM |
8:30-8:59 AM
Amherst County6.7%
Virginia6.4%
|
6.7% |
| 9:00-9:59 AM |
9:00-9:59 AM
Amherst County5.2%
Virginia7.2%
|
5.2% |
| 10:00-10:59 AM |
10:00-10:59 AM
Amherst County3.4%
Virginia3.0%
|
3.4% |
| 11:00-11:59 AM |
11:00-11:59 AM
Amherst County1.1%
Virginia1.4%
|
1.1% |
| 12:00-3:59 PM |
12:00-3:59 PM
Amherst County9.0%
Virginia6.0%
|
9.0% |
| 4:00-11:59 PM |
4:00-11:59 PM
Amherst County6.2%
Virginia5.7%
|
6.2% |
Amherst County Virginia Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Amherst County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 12.6% of commuters leave home, compared with 14.2% across Virginia. Early starts are about as common as in Virginia: 14.8% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 14.0% there. The morning rush is more spread out than in Virginia: 44.6% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 47.5% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (25.0%) 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 Amherst 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 Amherst 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 Amherst County next to Virginia 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.
Show typical departure times by year
| Year | Amherst County | Virginia | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 7:34 AM | 7:37 AM | 7:37 AM |
| 2010 | 7:36 AM | 7:37 AM | 7:38 AM |
| 2011 | 7:33 AM | 7:37 AM | 7:38 AM |
| 2012 | 7:34 AM | 7:38 AM | 7:38 AM |
| 2013 | 7:35 AM | 7:38 AM | 7:39 AM |
| 2014 | 7:34 AM | 7:38 AM | 7:39 AM |
| 2015 | 7:33 AM | 7:39 AM | 7:38 AM |
| 2016 | 7:30 AM | 7:39 AM | 7:38 AM |
| 2017 | 7:30 AM | 7:39 AM | 7:38 AM |
| 2018 | 7:28 AM | 7:38 AM | 7:37 AM |
| 2019 | 7:27 AM | 7:38 AM | 7:37 AM |
| 2020 | 7:26 AM | 7:38 AM | 7:37 AM |
| 2021 | 7:23 AM | 7:38 AM | 7:37 AM |
| 2022 | 7:29 AM | 7:39 AM | 7:37 AM |
| 2023 | 7:37 AM | 7:39 AM | 7:38 AM |
| 2024 | 7:41 AM | 7:40 AM | 7:38 AM |
In 2024, half of commuters in Amherst County were on the road by 7:41 AM, 6 minutes later than in 2009 (7:34 AM). The shift is sharper than across Virginia, where the typical start moved 3 minutes later. Commuters in Amherst County now leave 3 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 Amherst County has moved 14 minutes later. The 2024 release is the latest typical start for Amherst County in the whole series.
How does Amherst County's commute time compare?
| Metric | Amherst County | Virginia | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avg. Commute Time | 21.9 min | 23.2 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 | 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM | 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM | 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM |
| Work From Home | 10.1% | 18.3% | 15.0% |
| Walked | 1.4% | 2.1% | 2.4% |
| Public Transit | 0.2% | 2.3% | 3.2% |
The average commute time in Amherst County is 21.9 minutes, shorter than the 23.2 minutes in Virginia.
0.2% commute by public transit, lower than the 2.3% in Virginia. 1.4% commute by walking, lower than the 2.1% in Virginia.
Amherst County, VA Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
How Amherst County, VA compares with the 2 counties closest to it.
| Area | Population | One-way commute | Work from home | Typical departure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amherst County, VA | 31,478 | 21.9 min #1/3 | 10.1% #3/3 | 7:41 AM #3/3 |
| Nelson County, VA | 14,732 | 31.3 min | 19.1% | 7:23 AM |
| Rockbridge County, VA | 22,531 | 22.4 min | 10.3% | 7:39 AM |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about commuting in Amherst County, Virginia.
Is commuting expensive in Amherst County, Virginia?
Commuters here spend an estimated 182 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,655 at a typical national wage. That's 6% less than the typical Virginia commuter spends.
What time should you leave for work to avoid traffic in Amherst County, Virginia?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Amherst County, Virginia. 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.
Is public transportation a realistic commute option in Amherst County, Virginia?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.2% of commuters use it versus 2.3% in Virginia, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in Virginia?
Among counties in Virginia, the shortest average commutes are in Lexington city (10.6 min), Covington city (12.2 min), Norton city (13.1 min). The longest are in Amelia County (43.7 min), Craig County (41.3 min), Buckingham County (41.3 min).