ACS 2024 5-YEAR ESTIMATES↗ DIRECTIONAL CHANGE FROM 2021UPDATED JAN 29, 2026
COMMUTESHIFTHow America gets to work
PLACE · OR · GEOID 41649002024 5-YEAR

COMMUTE PROFILE

Salem, Oregon

Mean one-way trip22.0 min±1.0 min MOE
Worked from home15.8%±1.4 pp MOE
Drove alone65.3%±1.6 pp MOE
60+ minute trip6.9%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 commute22.7 min → 22.0 min▼ 0.7 min

Average for workers who did not work from home.

Work from home10.5% → 15.8%▲ 5.3 pp

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

Public transit2.2% → 1.6%▼ 0.6 pp

Public transportation excluding taxi.

Drive alone71.7% → 65.3%▼ 6.4 pp

Car, truck, or van—drove alone.

02 / MODE SHARE

How residents usually get to work

Drive alone65.3% ±1.6 pp
Carpool11.4% ±1.3 pp
Public transit1.6% ±0.6 pp
Walk3.3% ±0.5 pp
Bicycle1.0% ±0.4 pp
Work from home15.8% ±1.4 pp

Each share uses 81,657 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.

32thMean commute percentile

Mean commute time is lower than about 68% of covered places in the 100k–500k population band.

66thWork-from-home percentile

The work-from-home share is higher than about 66% of covered places in the 100k–500k population band.

60thTransit percentile

The public-transit share is higher than about 60% of covered places in the 100k–500k population band.

59th60+ minute percentile

The 60+ minute share is higher than about 59% of covered places in the 100k–500k population band.

04 / ESTIMATE BASE

The counts behind the shares

Population estimate178,865± 60 MOE
Workers age 16+81,657± 1,505 MOE
Workers with travel time68,735± 1,616 MOE
Estimated home workers12,922± 1,204 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.