Workers in Canyon Lake, Texas have some of the longest commutes in the country

June 29, 2022

1 2 minutes read

Samuel Stebbins, 24/7 Wall St. | The Center Square

The share of Americans working from home skyrocketed during the pandemic. A recent Gallup study found that 45% of full-time workers in the United States – and two-thirds of white-collar workers – were doing their job remotely at least some of the time.

The shift is proving to be a positive development for millions of Americans. Gallup reports that over 90% of remote workers hope that the trend continues after the pandemic, citing the lack of commute time as the chief benefit.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average commute time in the United States is 26.9 minutes. For those who travel to and from work every Monday through Friday, this translates to about 4.5 hours per week, or nearly 10 days a year.

Of course, commute times vary from person to person, but in some parts of the country, workers are far more likely to have longer commutes than in others. Canyon Lake, Texas, for example, has one of the longest average commute times in the country.

Workers in the area spend an average of 38.9 minutes getting to work each day, well above the national average. Of the 9,800 workers in the city who commute, 38.1% spend 45 minutes or more commuting one way compared to just 17.6% of commuters nationwide.

Long commute times add up in Canyon Lake. Based on average commute times, those working five days a week spend 6.5 hours a week and about 14 days a year commuting.

Average commute times are five-year estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 American Community Survey. We reviewed all census places with populations of at least 25,000 and 1,000 or more commuters ages 16 and up.

Rank	City	Avg. commute time (minutes)	Commuters traveling 45+ min. (%)
1	Temescal Valley, California	47.7	55.2%
2	Antioch, California	46.4	49.7%
3	Waldorf, Maryland	46.1	52.2%
4	Poinciana, Florida	45.7	51.2%
5	Brentwood, California	45.1	47.5%
6	Tracy, California	44.5	47.5%
7	Los Banos, California	44.5	47.4%
8	Graham, Washington	43.6	43.2%
9	Richmond West, Florida	43.5	47.1%
10	Cutler Bay, Florida	43.3	47.2%
11	Oakley, California	43.2	46.7%
12	Princeton, Florida	43.0	42.7%
13	Lake Elsinore, California	42.9	41.6%
14	Menifee, California	42.9	39.3%
15	Lake Ridge, Virginia	42.5	49.5%
16	Long Beach, New York	42.3	45.3%
17	Palmdale, California	42.0	44.3%
18	Pittsburg, California	42.0	39.7%
19	Valley Stream, New York	41.9	41.4%
20	Linton Hall, Virginia	41.8	46.8%
21	Hercules, California	41.7	45.1%
22	Adelanto, California	41.7	43.7%
23	Hesperia, California	41.7	42.7%
24	New York, New York	41.4	43.2%
25	Maple Valley, Washington	41.1	41.8%
26	Dublin, California	41.0	44.0%
27	French Valley, California	40.9	38.8%
28	Elmont, New York	40.5	37.6%
29	Clinton, Maryland	40.3	43.3%
30	Dale City, Virginia	40.2	45.0%
31	Homestead, Florida	40.1	37.9%
32	Old Bridge, New Jersey	40.1	35.9%
33	Kendall West, Florida	40.0	35.8%
34	Manteca, California	39.8	33.5%
35	South Miami Heights, Florida	39.6	37.1%
36	San Jacinto, California	39.6	36.8%
37	Eastvale, California	39.5	38.8%
38	Victorville, California	39.3	37.6%
39	Hoboken, New Jersey	39.0	43.3%
40	Canyon Lake, Texas	38.9	38.1%
41	Chino Hills, California	38.8	38.1%
42	Clarksburg, Maryland	38.8	35.3%
43	South Riding, Virginia	38.7	37.3%
44	Ridgewood, New Jersey	38.5	37.8%
45	Westfield, New Jersey	38.5	37.6%
46	Woodbridge, Virginia	38.4	44.5%
47	San Ramon, California	38.4	39.3%
48	Wildomar, California	38.4	32.2%
49	Bay Point, California	38.3	33.7%
50	Kyle, Texas	38.1	41.0%