Best Time to Drive from Manhattan 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 Manhattan 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	49	63	73	94	92	78	71	62	72	78	80	109	108	91	76	59	56
Tue	47	56	73	84	72	71	81	74	71	76	88	108	110	94	71	57	55
Wed	48	53	72	84	75	79	75	69	68	76	93	107	113	98	72	67	55
Thu	57	78	80	84	72	83	84	86	68	83	94	128	125	114	96	80	62
Fri	47	51	65	81	76	71	85	75	68	73	96	109	105	95	98	89	76
Sat	46	46	50	53	55	67	68	65	78	82	102	104	99	89	90	75	76
Sun	46	45	48	48	61	54	59	64	76	92	97	102	97	90	80	83	80

About this drive

On weekdays the 29-mile drive from Manhattan to Hempstead (via I-95 East and I-295 South) usually takes as little as 47 minutes and up to 128 minutes, when leaving around 4 pm on Thursdays. The fastest times to leave are before 6 am. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 74 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 3:30 pm on Saturdays (106 minutes).

About 21 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 8 miles surface streets (16 to 50 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from central Manhattan 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 Manhattan to Hempstead?

On weekdays, leave before 6 am. The drive usually takes about 47 minutes then, versus up to 128 minutes at the worst times.

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

The 29-mile drive usually takes 47 to 128 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 74 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from Manhattan to Hempstead?

Leaving around 4 pm on Thursdays is usually slowest, about 128 minutes.

More drives

Manhattan to Brooklyn · Manhattan to Staten Island · Manhattan to Newark · Manhattan to East Flatbush · Manhattan to Elizabeth · Manhattan to Bushwick · Manhattan to Gravesend · Manhattan to Fordham · Manhattan to Flatbush · Manhattan to Clifton · Manhattan to New Rochelle · Manhattan to Passaic

Open the live traffic map →

Leave	5am	6am	7am	8am	9am	10am	11am	12pm	1pm	2pm	3pm	4pm	5pm	6pm	7pm	8pm	9pm
Mon	49	63	73	94	92	78	71	62	72	78	80	109	108	91	76	59	56
Tue	47	56	73	84	72	71	81	74	71	76	88	108	110	94	71	57	55
Wed	48	53	72	84	75	79	75	69	68	76	93	107	113	98	72	67	55
Thu	57	78	80	84	72	83	84	86	68	83	94	128	125	114	96	80	62
Fri	47	51	65	81	76	71	85	75	68	73	96	109	105	95	98	89	76
Sat	46	46	50	53	55	67	68	65	78	82	102	104	99	89	90	75	76
Sun	46	45	48	48	61	54	59	64	76	92	97	102	97	90	80	83	80

Leave	5am	6am	7am	8am	9am	10am	11am	12pm	1pm	2pm	3pm	4pm	5pm	6pm	7pm	8pm	9pm
Mon	49	63	73	94	92	78	71	62	72	78	80	109	108	91	76	59	56
Tue	47	56	73	84	72	71	81	74	71	76	88	108	110	94	71	57	55
Wed	48	53	72	84	75	79	75	69	68	76	93	107	113	98	72	67	55
Thu	57	78	80	84	72	83	84	86	68	83	94	128	125	114	96	80	62
Fri	47	51	65	81	76	71	85	75	68	73	96	109	105	95	98	89	76
Sat	46	46	50	53	55	67	68	65	78	82	102	104	99	89	90	75	76
Sun	46	45	48	48	61	54	59	64	76	92	97	102	97	90	80	83	80

Leave	5am	6am	7am	8am	9am	10am	11am	12pm	1pm	2pm	3pm	4pm	5pm	6pm	7pm	8pm	9pm
Mon	49	63	73	94	92	78	71	62	72	78	80	109	108	91	76	59	56
Tue	47	56	73	84	72	71	81	74	71	76	88	108	110	94	71	57	55
Wed	48	53	72	84	75	79	75	69	68	76	93	107	113	98	72	67	55
Thu	57	78	80	84	72	83	84	86	68	83	94	128	125	114	96	80	62
Fri	47	51	65	81	76	71	85	75	68	73	96	109	105	95	98	89	76
Sat	46	46	50	53	55	67	68	65	78	82	102	104	99	89	90	75	76
Sun	46	45	48	48	61	54	59	64	76	92	97	102	97	90	80	83	80