Commuting in La Crosse County, Wisconsin: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 7:55 PM
Is the commute in La Crosse County longer than the national average?
Map AI9/24/26, 7:55 PM
Commute Time Burden in La Crosse County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in La Crosse County spend about 33 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 137 hours, about 5.7 full days, spent commuting. That is 12% less time on the road than the Wisconsin average of 18.8 minutes each way, a difference of 2.3 minutes.
La Crosse County holds about 2.0% of Wisconsin's population but accounts for roughly 1.8% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in La Crosse County would save about 55 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $1,697 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)
La Crosse County
16.4 min
32.9 min
137 hrs/yr
$4,243
969
Wisconsin
18.8 min
37.5 min
156 hrs/yr
$4,846
811
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
16.4
minutes to get to work in
La Crosse County.
That's 27% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Faster than 79% of counties in Wisconsin
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 11.6% work from home.
How People Get to Work in La Crosse County
Car:
82.3%
Worked at Home:
11.6%
Walked:
3.3%
Bicycle:
0.8%
Other:
0.8%
Public Transportation:
0.8%
Taxi:
0.1%
Motorcycle:
< 0.1%
Commute Mode Trends in La Crosse County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in La Crosse 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
Bicycle
Other
Taxi
Motorcycle
2009
88.0%
4.1%
5.0%
1.1%
1.0%
0.6%
0.1%
0.2%
2010
87.8%
4.3%
4.8%
1.0%
1.2%
0.6%
0.1%
0.2%
2011
87.9%
4.4%
4.4%
1.1%
1.2%
0.7%
0.0%
0.3%
2012
87.8%
4.3%
4.7%
1.1%
1.3%
0.5%
0.1%
0.3%
2013
87.9%
3.8%
4.7%
1.1%
1.6%
0.5%
0.1%
0.2%
2014
88.2%
3.5%
4.6%
1.0%
1.9%
0.4%
0.1%
0.3%
2015
88.3%
3.0%
4.9%
1.1%
1.9%
0.5%
0.1%
0.3%
2016
87.9%
3.2%
5.2%
1.1%
1.8%
0.5%
0.1%
0.2%
2017
88.5%
3.2%
4.9%
1.0%
1.7%
0.6%
0.1%
0.1%
2018
88.6%
3.3%
4.8%
0.9%
1.3%
0.7%
0.1%
0.2%
2019
88.3%
3.8%
4.6%
0.8%
1.3%
0.8%
0.1%
0.1%
2020
87.4%
5.9%
4.1%
0.8%
0.9%
0.7%
0.2%
0.1%
2021
86.3%
7.5%
3.6%
0.8%
0.9%
0.7%
0.1%
0.1%
2022
84.5%
8.7%
4.1%
0.8%
1.0%
0.6%
0.1%
0.1%
2023
82.8%
10.4%
4.1%
0.8%
1.0%
0.7%
0.1%
0.0%
2024
82.3%
11.6%
3.3%
0.8%
0.8%
0.8%
0.1%
0.1%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share peaked in 2018 at 88.6%. Overall it fell from 88.0% in 2009 to 82.3% in 2024, down 5.7 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 6 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in La Crosse County: its share of workers rose from 4.1% in 2009 to 11.6% in 2024, up 7.5 percentage points. Most of that increase, 7.8 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 5.0% to 3.3% of workers (down 1.7 percentage points).
Working from home overtook walking to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2020 release and has stayed ahead since.
Commute Start Times in La Crosse County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in La Crosse County?
The bars show when commuters in La Crosse 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 Wisconsin for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMLa Crosse County6.3%Wisconsin6.9%
6.3%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMLa Crosse County3.3%Wisconsin4.7%
3.3%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMLa Crosse County5.8%Wisconsin6.1%
5.8%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMLa Crosse County7.6%Wisconsin8.5%
7.6%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMLa Crosse County11.7%Wisconsin10.4%
11.7%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMLa Crosse County15.4%Wisconsin14.7%
15.4%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMLa Crosse County14.8%Wisconsin12.7%
14.8%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMLa Crosse County7.6%Wisconsin9.0%
7.6%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMLa Crosse County3.5%Wisconsin4.0%
3.5%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMLa Crosse County4.4%Wisconsin4.7%
4.4%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMLa Crosse County2.4%Wisconsin2.4%
2.4%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMLa Crosse County1.6%Wisconsin1.3%
1.6%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMLa Crosse County9.5%Wisconsin8.1%
9.5%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMLa Crosse County6.1%Wisconsin6.4%
6.1%
La Crosse CountyWisconsinSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in La Crosse County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 15.4% of commuters leave home, compared with 14.7% across Wisconsin. Early starts are less common than in Wisconsin: 15.4% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 17.7% there. The morning rush is more concentrated than in Wisconsin: 49.5% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 46.8% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (24.0%) 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 La Crosse 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 La Crosse 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 La Crosse County next to Wisconsin 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
La Crosse County
Wisconsin
United States
2009
7:41 AM
7:30 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:40 AM
7:30 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:40 AM
7:30 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:40 AM
7:31 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:41 AM
7:31 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:40 AM
7:30 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:42 AM
7:30 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:43 AM
7:29 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:40 AM
7:29 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:39 AM
7:28 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:38 AM
7:27 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:35 AM
7:27 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:33 AM
7:27 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:32 AM
7:27 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:31 AM
7:27 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:30 AM
7:27 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in La Crosse County were on the road by 7:30 AM, 11 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:41 AM). The shift is sharper than across Wisconsin, where the typical start moved 3 minutes earlier. Commuters in La Crosse County now leave 8 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 La Crosse County has moved 8 minutes earlier. The 2024 release is the earliest typical start for La Crosse County in the whole series.
How does La Crosse County's commute time compare?
Metric
La Crosse County
Wisconsin
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
16.4 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
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
11.6%
13.1%
15.0%
Walked
3.3%
2.6%
2.4%
Public Transit
0.8%
1.1%
3.2%
The average commute time in La Crosse County is 16.4 minutes, shorter than the 18.8 minutes in Wisconsin.
0.8% commute by public transit, lower than the 1.1% in Wisconsin. 3.3% commute by walking, higher than the 2.6% in Wisconsin.
La Crosse County, WI Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
La Crosse County, WI is the largest of the 6 counties compared here, 120,486 residents against a local median of 28,321. Where La Crosse County, WI breaks from the counties next to it is one-way commute, sitting 23% below the local median of 21.3 min at 16.4 min. That is the better end of the local range on this measure.
The counties themselves spread 4.8 min on one-way commute, so La Crosse County, WI sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. La Crosse County, WI has the lowest one-way commute of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in La Crosse County, Wisconsin.
Is commuting expensive in La Crosse County, Wisconsin?
Commuters here spend an estimated 137 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $4,243 at a typical national wage. That's 12% less than the typical Wisconsin commuter spends.
What time should you leave for work to avoid traffic in La Crosse County, Wisconsin?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in La Crosse County, Wisconsin. 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.
Which counties in Wisconsin have the fastest and slowest commutes?
Among counties in Wisconsin, the shortest average commutes are in Ashland County (12.8 min), Door County (13.6 min), Eau Claire County (15.3 min). The longest are in Oconto County (26.4 min), St. Croix County (25.3 min), Waushara County (23.9 min).