Is your Wichita commute to work getting longer? Here’s what the data shows

If you feel like your Wichita commute drags on and on, you may be surprised to find it’s shorter, on average, than that of the nation.

The average commute to work in the city is about 10 minutes shorter than the national average, according to recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2024 American Community Survey.

A Wichita worker drives an average 17.3 minutes to work every day, for a total daily commute of 35.6 minutes. Meanwhile, the average American drives 27.2 minutes each way, making for a daily commute of 54.4 minutes.

For Kansas, the statewide average is 20 minutes, according to the same data set.

In Wichita, the average commute is getting shorter, however. Data from 2014 shows the city’s average commute was just about a minute longer a decade ago, at 18.2 minutes. Statewide, however, commute time is largely stagnant, at an average 19.2 minutes in 2014.

Meanwhile, working from home has become more common following the surge in remote positions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. As of the 2024 data, more than 22 million Americans work from home, 13,237 of which resided in Wichita. The agency reports more than 153,000 people statewide work from home as of 2024.

The growth of remote work could be coming to an end, however, with many companies recalling workers to the office in recent months. The desire for work-from-home jobs remains, with 60% of applicants on LinkedIn applying for remote positions, which account for 20% of the website’s listings, according to NBC.

How do Wichita workers travel to work?

In 2024, the census reported nearly 1.5 million workers ages 16 years and older live in Kansas. Of those, 198,842 reside in Wichita.

The most common way to travel to work, nationally and at the state level, is solo via private vehicle, the data shows. Public transportation was the least common method in Kansas and in Wichita.

Here’s a look at how Wichita workers traveled to work in 2024, according to the American Community Survey:

Traveled via vehicle alone: 155,104

Carpooled via vehicle: 22,482

Traveled via public transportation: 1,498

Walked to work: 2,282

Used other means: 4,149

Here’s a look at the Kansaswide data:

Traveled via vehicle alone: 1,136,484

Carpooled via vehicle: 140,560

Used public transportation: 5,225

Walked to work: 34,679

Used other means: 24,180

This story was originally published November 19, 2025 at 5:00 AM.

Lindsay Smith

The Wichita Eagle

Lindsay Smith is a suburban news reporter for the Wichita Eagle, covering the communities of Andover, Bel Aire, Derby, Haysville and Kechi. She has been on The Eagle staff since 2022 and was the service journalism reporter for three years. She has a degree in communications with an emphasis in journalism from Wichita State, where she was editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, The Sunflower, for two years. You can reach her via email at lsmith@wichitaeagle.com.