This Central Florida community has the worst community in the country, a study finds
'I've gotten stuck in traffic for about three hours once,' said Emmy Torres, who was a long-time resident of Poinciana until she moved to Championsgate in late 2024. 'Traffic was a major problem for me.'
Torres now doesn't have to deal with the congestion every day, but because her family still lives there, she has to drive to Poinciana – and it takes her about 40 minutes to go from her home to her father's home, just a few miles away.
'This is because we took the connector; if we hadn't, we would be there for about 1 h 15 min,' Torres said as she arrived at her father's house.
Traffic along Poinciana Boulevard and its intersections, such as Pleasant Hill Road, at any time of the day is tricky - some drivers say they get stuck here for hours every week.
A new study conducted by Finance Buzz found out Poinciana residents have the worst commute in the country, taking on average 51 minutes each way to do things like go to work or school – a total of more than 8h every single week.
There is a silver lining - the widening of Poinciana Boulevard is already underway and should be finished by the end of next year, according to Osceola County.
Back in April, the Florida Department of Transportation also announced they should start working on their project, called Poinciana Connector - later this year. FDot plans to add one congestion relief lane in each direction toward I-4. The project is expected to be complete by the second half of 2026.
Worst commutes in the country, by Finance Buzz:
Poinciana, Florida – Residents spend an average of 51 minutes commuting, the longest in the nation. This is likely due to workers traveling to Orlando, located about an hour away.
Brentwood, California – Commuters here average 46.4 minutes one-way, making it the longest in California.
East Orange, New Jersey – With an average one-way commute of 41.7 minutes, it's the longest in New Jersey.
Temescal Valley, California – Residents spend an average of 47.7 minutes commuting, with 55.2% of commuters traveling 45 minutes or more each way.
Antioch, California – Commuters in Antioch average 46.4 minutes one-way, with 49.7% of them spending 45 minutes or more commuting each wayBoulevard
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