Drive Time Map
Enter a location and time — see how far you can travel by car, foot, or bike.
How to Use This Drive Time Map
Enter Location
Type an address or click on the map
Select Mode
Choose Drive, Walk, or Cycle
Set Time
Select 5 to 120 minutes
Generate
Click to calculate the area
Export
Save as PNG or share link
What Is a Drive Time Map?
A drive time map — also called an isochrone map — shows the area you can reach from a location within a specific time by car, foot, or bicycle. Unlike a radius circle which draws a perfect circle based on straight-line distance, a drive time map follows actual roads and paths to create a realistic boundary.
The word “isochrone” comes from Greek: iso (equal) + chronos (time). Every point on the boundary of an isochrone represents the same travel time from the center.
A 30-minute drive time area from a city center is not a circle. It extends further along highways and shorter in areas with few roads, hills, or one-way streets. The resulting shape reveals the real-world accessibility of a location — something a simple radius cannot show.
Drive Time vs. Straight-Line Radius
Drive Time (Isochrone)
- ✓Follows actual roads and paths
- ✓Accounts for road speed limits
- ✓Considers one-way streets
- ✓Shows realistic travel coverage
- ~Irregular shape (accurate)
Radius Circle
- ✓Perfect geometric circle
- ✓Easy to understand and measure
- ✓Great for compliance/regulations
- ~Ignores terrain and roads
- ~May include unreachable areas
When to Use Drive Time vs. Radius
| Scenario | Drive Time | Radius |
|---|---|---|
| “How far can I drive in 30 minutes?” | ✓ Best | |
| “What's within 10 miles of this address?” | ✓ Best | |
| “Is this apartment close enough to work?” | ✓ Best | |
| “Define a rough service coverage zone” | ✓ Best | |
| “Plan a delivery area based on drive time” | ✓ Best | |
| “Estimate area for insurance or compliance” | ✓ Best | |
| “Find customers reachable in under an hour” | ✓ Best | |
| “Emergency response coverage planning” | ✓ Best |
Rule of thumb: If your question involves time (“how long to get there?”), use drive time. If it involves distance (“how far is it?”), use a radius circle.
How to Read an Isochrone Map
The colored area on the map represents everywhere you can reach within your specified time. The boundary edge is the furthest you can travel in that time.
- 1Highway corridors extend the shape. The isochrone stretches along major highways because you can cover more distance at highway speeds.
- 2Dense urban areas shrink the shape. Traffic lights, one-way streets, and lower speed limits mean less distance per minute.
- 3Natural barriers cut off access. Rivers, mountains, and bodies of water create sharp boundaries.
- 4Sparse road networks limit reach. Rural areas with few roads may show smaller isochrones despite highway access.
Drive Time Distance Reference
Average Speeds by Road Type
Speeds based on typical US road conditions. Actual speeds vary by location, traffic, and time of day.
Distance by Time and Travel Mode
| Time | Highway Drive | Mixed Drive | Urban Drive | Cycling | Walking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 min | 5.4 mi | 3.3 mi | 1.3 mi | 1.0 mi | 0.25 mi |
| 10 min | 10.8 mi | 6.7 mi | 2.5 mi | 2.0 mi | 0.5 mi |
| 15 min | 16.3 mi | 10.0 mi | 3.8 mi | 3.0 mi | 0.75 mi |
| 20 min | 21.7 mi | 13.3 mi | 5.0 mi | 4.0 mi | 1.0 mi |
| 30 min | 32.5 mi | 20.0 mi | 7.5 mi | 6.0 mi | 1.5 mi |
| 45 min | 48.8 mi | 30.0 mi | 11.3 mi | 9.0 mi | 2.25 mi |
| 60 min | 65.0 mi | 40.0 mi | 15.0 mi | 12.0 mi | 3.0 mi |
| 90 min | 97.5 mi | 60.0 mi | 22.5 mi | 18.0 mi | 4.5 mi |
| 120 min | 130.0 mi | 80.0 mi | 30.0 mi | 24.0 mi | 6.0 mi |
Highway: 65 mph average. Mixed: 40 mph average. Urban: 15 mph with stops. Cycling: 12 mph. Walking: 3 mph.
Traffic Impact on Drive Time
Real-World Examples
Food Delivery Zone Planning — Chicago Restaurant
Marco owns an Italian restaurant in Chicago's Lincoln Park and wants to define his delivery area. He needs to ensure food arrives hot within 30 minutes of leaving the kitchen.
Setup: Location at 2450 N Clark St, Chicago. Travel mode: Drive. Time: 20 minutes (allowing 10 minutes buffer for parking and handoff).
Result: The 20-minute drive time isochrone covers approximately 5.2 square miles, reaching Wrigleyville to the north, Old Town to the south, and Bucktown to the west. The eastern boundary extends to Lake Shore Drive. Marco uses this map on his website to show customers the delivery zone, reducing complaints about delivery availability.
Retail Site Selection — Denver Franchise
A fitness franchise wants to open a new location in Denver. Their market research shows members typically won't drive more than 15 minutes to reach a gym during rush hour.
Setup: Three potential sites evaluated with 15-minute drive time isochrones. Sites at Cherry Creek, Highlands, and Stapleton.
Result: The Cherry Creek site shows the best coverage, with its 15-minute isochrone capturing 187,000 residents in the target demographic. The Highlands location, while trendy, has significant overlap with an existing location. Stapleton provides access to underserved markets but with 40% less population density. The franchise selects Cherry Creek.
Sales Territory Planning — Medical Device Company
A medical device sales rep based in Atlanta needs to plan her territory. The company policy requires reps to be able to reach any hospital within 1 hour for emergency support calls.
Setup: Home base in Midtown Atlanta. Travel mode: Drive. Time: 60 minutes.
Result: The 60-minute isochrone extends significantly along I-85 and I-75 corridors, reaching Gainesville to the north and Newnan to the south. However, hospitals in Athens (despite being only 65 miles away) fall outside the 1-hour boundary due to the lack of highway access. The rep identifies 47 hospitals within her reachable zone and flags 3 accounts that need to be transferred to the Augusta-based colleague.
Emergency Response Coverage — Houston Fire District
Houston Fire Department Station 51 needs to verify their response coverage meets the 4-minute National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standard for first-alarm responses.
Setup: Station location at 1818 Dallas St. Travel mode: Drive. Time: 4 minutes.
Result: The 4-minute isochrone covers 1.2 square miles around Midtown Houston. The analysis reveals coverage gaps in the Montrose area due to one-way street patterns and railroad crossings. The department identifies that a new station at the intersection of Westheimer and Montrose would eliminate 87% of the current response gap. The visualization helps secure budget approval by clearly showing the problem and solution.
Home Search Commute Planning — Phoenix Couple
Sarah and James are relocating to Phoenix. Sarah works in downtown Phoenix, James works at the Intel campus in Chandler. They want to find neighborhoods where both commutes are under 30 minutes.
Setup: Two 30-minute isochrones generated: one from Downtown Phoenix (1 N Central Ave) and one from Intel Chandler (5000 W Chandler Blvd). Looking for overlap areas.
Result: The overlap zone covers Tempe, Ahwatukee, and south Phoenix. Tempe offers the best balance with 22 minutes to downtown and 18 minutes to Intel. Ahwatukee provides more space but adds 8 minutes to the downtown commute. The couple focuses their home search on Tempe near the I-10/US-60 interchange, ultimately finding a home that keeps both commutes under 25 minutes.
30-Minute Drive Coverage by City Type
| City Type | Typical 30-min Area | Max Distance | Key Factors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rural / Small Town | 100-200 sq mi | 25-30 mi | Open highways, minimal traffic |
| Suburban | 50-100 sq mi | 15-25 mi | Highway access, some lights |
| Mid-Size City | 25-50 sq mi | 10-18 mi | Mixed roads, moderate traffic |
| Major Metro | 10-25 sq mi | 8-15 mi | Congestion, complex routing |
| Dense Urban Core | 3-10 sq mi | 3-8 mi | Traffic, one-ways, parking |
Relative Area Coverage (30 minutes)
How This Tool Works
The drive time map is powered by open-source routing technology using OpenStreetMap road data. When you set a location and time:
- The tool sends your coordinates and time limit to a routing engine.
- The engine calculates how far you can travel along every road from that point.
- It returns a polygon boundary connecting the furthest reachable points.
- The polygon is rendered on the Leaflet map as a colored area.
The routing considers road type (highway, residential, path), one-way restrictions, and turn restrictions. It does not currently factor in real-time traffic or road closures.