York, South Carolina, Workers Face Longest Commutes in Charlotte Metro as Traffic Grows

York, South Carolina, topped the list. The city claims the worst commute in the Charlotte metro area by a wide margin, according to fresh U.S. Census Bureau data analyzed by The Herald. This town sits 30 miles southwest of uptown, where 14.5% of workers spend an hour or more each way getting to their jobs — the highest rate around.

The South Carolina city holds nearly 9,000 residents. Commute times jumped more than six minutes compared to five years ago, which also ranks highest in the metro. More than a quarter of workers cross state lines.

York Mayor Mike Fuesser drove to work at the Charlotte airport for more than 30 years. His one-way trip nearly doubled to an hour by the time he retired five years ago.

"I do not miss the commute one bit," Fuesser said, per The Charlotte Observer. "I really don't even like going over there anymore."

The Herald used census sample survey data to compare 36 communities with 5,000 or more residents. All were scored on things like mean travel time, departure times, and total vehicles on the road.

Chester ranked worst in three categories among metro communities. The South Carolina city holds more than 5,200 residents and has 85.3% of workers who drive alone. About 73% have jobs paying under $50,000. Only 1.6% work from home.

Unionville had the worst commute score among North Carolina places. This Union County town sits 20 miles southeast of uptown, where 86.5% of workers leave the area for jobs. Mean travel time hits 30.9 minutes.

Charlotte scored worst for total vehicles at 297,815. Combined time on the road reached 8.6 million minutes. Clover had the highest average daily commute at 34.9 minutes.

Communities throughout the metro have grown in recent years, bringing longer trips to work. Big residential subdivisions popped up. New schools appeared along major roads, feeding and slowing traffic during rush hours.

Fuesser started in 1989 with a 35-minute drive down a two-lane road that had no traffic lights. He counted 34 traffic lights on the same route when he retired.

"Now, it's a nightmare," Fuesser said of the drive from his city to Charlotte. "It's a nightmare to go during regular business hours."

Sabrina Setaro carpools from the area to Fort Mill twice a week for an accounting job. She leaves an hour earlier to come home now than she would if traffic weren't a concern.

"That just, psychologically, makes a difference," she said.