ACS 2024 5-YEAR ESTIMATES↗ DIRECTIONAL CHANGE FROM 2021UPDATED JAN 29, 2026
COMMUTESHIFTHow America gets to work
PLACE · IN · GEOID 18110622024 5-YEAR

COMMUTE PROFILE

Cedar Lake, Indiana

Mean one-way trip31.7 min±3.3 min MOE
Worked from home7.0%±2.1 pp MOE
Drove alone81.1%±2.9 pp MOE
60+ minute trip15.0%among commuters

U.S. Census Bureau ACS estimates for residents age 16+ who work. Commute time excludes people working from home.

01 / THE SHIFT

What changed in the published estimate?

These periods overlap: 2021 covers 2017–2021 and 2024 covers 2020–2024. Changes are directional comparisons, not independent annual measurements.

Mean commute35.0 min → 31.7 min▼ 3.3 min

Average for workers who did not work from home.

Work from home4.4% → 7.0%▲ 2.6 pp

Share of workers age 16+ who usually worked from home.

Public transit1.1% → 0.3%▼ 0.7 pp

Public transportation excluding taxi.

Drive alone83.5% → 81.1%▼ 2.4 pp

Car, truck, or van—drove alone.

02 / MODE SHARE

How residents usually get to work

Drive alone81.1% ±2.9 pp
Carpool7.2% ±2.5 pp
Public transit0.3% ±0.5 pp
Walk0.7% ±0.7 pp
Bicycle0.0% ±0.3 pp
Work from home7.0% ±2.1 pp

Each share uses 7,762 estimated workers as its denominator. Categories shown here do not include every ACS mode.

03 / PEER CONTEXT

Compared with similar-size places

Percentiles are single-metric context, never a “good commute” score.

83thMean commute percentile

Mean commute time is higher than about 83% of covered places in the under 25k population band.

25thWork-from-home percentile

The work-from-home share is lower than about 75% of covered places in the under 25k population band.

50thTransit percentile

The public-transit share is lower than about 50% of covered places in the under 25k population band.

87th60+ minute percentile

The 60+ minute share is higher than about 87% of covered places in the under 25k population band.

04 / ESTIMATE BASE

The counts behind the shares

Population estimate15,295± 177 MOE
Workers age 16+7,762± 457 MOE
Workers with travel time7,219± 439 MOE
Estimated home workers543± 167 MOE
Why the ± matters

ACS values are survey estimates. The margin of error is the 90% confidence interval published by the Census Bureau or calculated for a share from published component margins. Small differences can be sampling noise.