Best Time to Drive from Worcester to Merrimack

Right now (9:51 pm EDT): about 80 minutes via I-495 North, usually 70 at this time.

Only 61% 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.

About this drive

On weekdays the 60-mile drive from Worcester to Merrimack (via I-495 North) usually takes as little as 67 minutes and up to 96 minutes, when leaving around 3:30 pm on Fridays. The fastest times to leave are before 7 am or after 6:30 pm. Midday (11 am to 2 pm) it takes about 72 minutes. On weekends it is slowest around 1 pm on Saturdays (75 minutes).

About 48 miles of it is freeway, where times follow typical and live traffic from our sensors, and about 11 miles surface streets (14 to 16 minutes on weekdays), estimated from how jammed the freeways around them are at that time. Drive times are measured from central Worcester to central Merrimack 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 Worcester to Merrimack?

On weekdays, leave before 7 am or after 6:30 pm. The drive usually takes about 67 minutes then, versus up to 96 minutes at the worst times.

How long does it take to drive from Worcester to Merrimack?

The 60-mile drive usually takes 67 to 96 minutes on weekdays, depending on when you leave, and about 72 minutes midday.

When is traffic worst from Worcester to Merrimack?

Leaving around 3:30 pm on Fridays is usually slowest, about 96 minutes.

Freeways on this drive

I-495 North in Boston (35 miles) · I-290 East in Boston (9 miles) · I-290 West in Boston (4 miles)

Boston traffic right now · Boston traffic tomorrow

More drives

Merrimack to Worcester (return trip) · Worcester to Boston · Worcester to Cambridge · Worcester to Quincy · Worcester to Newton · Worcester to Waltham · Worcester to Framingham · Worcester to Lowell · Worcester to Burlington MA · Worcester to Woburn · Worcester to Braintree · Worcester to Dedham

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