Best Time to Drive from Chinatown to Hempstead

None of this drive is measured by working traffic sensors right now. The rest is estimated from nearby sensors, typical speeds and street traffic, so times can be off. Why so few sensors work.

Typical drive time by departure time

Minutes from Chinatown to Hempstead by day and time you leave (local time)
Leave	5am	6am	7am	8am	9am	10am	11am	12pm	1pm	2pm	3pm	4pm	5pm	6pm	7pm	8pm	9pm
Mon	52	57	70	78	74	71	57	77	79	98	119	135	129	115	93	74	71
Tue	57	59	75	85	80	94	72	76	83	101	124	134	128	117	107	89	77
Wed	59	61	74	87	82	84	88	86	90	108	124	138	131	118	102	79	73
Thu	63	59	74	84	87	102	101	92	93	113	129	139	138	123	112	99	88
Fri	62	61	96	89	86	91	81	84	84	110	121	122	87	75	69	62	56
Sat	45	41	42	52	61	67	73	81	84	88	94	94	101	101	95	80	80
Sun	73	61	54	55	58	58	61	74	78	82	88	98	94	97	89	85	84

About this drive

On weekdays the 26-mile drive from Chinatown to Hempstead (via I-495 East and Cross Island Pkwy South) usually takes as little as 52 minutes and up to 141 minutes, when leaving around 4:30 pm on Thursdays. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 88 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 5:30 pm on Saturdays (103 minutes).

About 16 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 10 miles surface streets (23 to 68 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from central Chinatown to central Hempstead along the route on the map. Starting or ending elsewhere in a big city can add or save several minutes.

Simulated from typical freeway speeds at each point of the drive for the time you would reach it, from every 5-minute reading we have recorded. We don't have sensors on surface streets yet, so the time on them is estimated from how congested the freeways around each end of the drive are at that time, in both directions: streets jam when the freeways do.

Questions

What is the best time to drive from Chinatown to Hempstead?

On weekdays, leave early in the morning or late in the evening. The drive usually takes about 52 minutes then, versus up to 141 minutes at the worst times.

How long does it take to drive from Chinatown to Hempstead?

The 26-mile drive usually takes 52 to 141 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 88 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from Chinatown to Hempstead?

Leaving around 4:30 pm on Thursdays is usually slowest, about 141 minutes.

More drives

Hempstead to Chinatown (return trip) · Chinatown to Staten Island · Chinatown to Stamford · Chinatown to East Harlem · Chinatown to Edison · Chinatown to Norwalk · Chinatown to Clifton · Chinatown to East Norwalk · Chinatown to New Rochelle · Chinatown to Bayside · Chinatown to Parkchester

Open the live traffic map →

Leave	5am	6am	7am	8am	9am	10am	11am	12pm	1pm	2pm	3pm	4pm	5pm	6pm	7pm	8pm	9pm
Mon	52	57	70	78	74	71	57	77	79	98	119	135	129	115	93	74	71
Tue	57	59	75	85	80	94	72	76	83	101	124	134	128	117	107	89	77
Wed	59	61	74	87	82	84	88	86	90	108	124	138	131	118	102	79	73
Thu	63	59	74	84	87	102	101	92	93	113	129	139	138	123	112	99	88
Fri	62	61	96	89	86	91	81	84	84	110	121	122	87	75	69	62	56
Sat	45	41	42	52	61	67	73	81	84	88	94	94	101	101	95	80	80
Sun	73	61	54	55	58	58	61	74	78	82	88	98	94	97	89	85	84

Leave	5am	6am	7am	8am	9am	10am	11am	12pm	1pm	2pm	3pm	4pm	5pm	6pm	7pm	8pm	9pm
Mon	52	57	70	78	74	71	57	77	79	98	119	135	129	115	93	74	71
Tue	57	59	75	85	80	94	72	76	83	101	124	134	128	117	107	89	77
Wed	59	61	74	87	82	84	88	86	90	108	124	138	131	118	102	79	73
Thu	63	59	74	84	87	102	101	92	93	113	129	139	138	123	112	99	88
Fri	62	61	96	89	86	91	81	84	84	110	121	122	87	75	69	62	56
Sat	45	41	42	52	61	67	73	81	84	88	94	94	101	101	95	80	80
Sun	73	61	54	55	58	58	61	74	78	82	88	98	94	97	89	85	84

Leave	5am	6am	7am	8am	9am	10am	11am	12pm	1pm	2pm	3pm	4pm	5pm	6pm	7pm	8pm	9pm
Mon	52	57	70	78	74	71	57	77	79	98	119	135	129	115	93	74	71
Tue	57	59	75	85	80	94	72	76	83	101	124	134	128	117	107	89	77
Wed	59	61	74	87	82	84	88	86	90	108	124	138	131	118	102	79	73
Thu	63	59	74	84	87	102	101	92	93	113	129	139	138	123	112	99	88
Fri	62	61	96	89	86	91	81	84	84	110	121	122	87	75	69	62	56
Sat	45	41	42	52	61	67	73	81	84	88	94	94	101	101	95	80	80
Sun	73	61	54	55	58	58	61	74	78	82	88	98	94	97	89	85	84