Traffic, Commute, and Transportation

Planes, trains and automobiles!  This page will help you understand how easy it is to get around once you are here and your options for how to get to other parts of the US and the world when you need to travel. We recommend January and February if you like a break from winter.

Automobiles

We talk to people every week who live in major cities and think nothing of a 90-minute commute each way to work. We also hear from newcomers who are quite concerned if their commute is longer than 10 minutes. Preferences for commute times depend on your perspective. You'll be happy to hear that most people here have a less than 30-minute commute which puts our region near the top of the list for cities with the least time lost sitting in rush hour traffic for a region our size.

Each year INRIX, the consulting firm that analyzes transportation and congestion around the world, comes up with a list of American cities with the most congested traffic. If you live in one of those spots chances are Cleveland will be a breeze for you.

Rush Hour in Cleveland and Akron are usually quite easy to navigate. It lasts from about 7:15 - 8:30 AM and in the afternoons is typically cleared out by 6:00 PM.

Three major east/west freeways:

1. I-80 - aka The Ohio Turnpike

2. I-480 - voted hands down by our staff as the most congested freeway so we recommend avoiding neighborhoods where you would rely on this freeway to get to work every day if timing is an issue

3. I-90 - along the shores of Lake Erie for most of its route

Three major north/south freeways:

1. I-71 - from Cleveland to Columbus to Cincinnati

2. I-77 - from Cleveland to Columbia, S.C.

3. I-271 - serves the east side suburbs connecting I-90 to I-71 and I-77

The map here shows drive times from Cleveland. Easy spots for an overnight or weekend getaway less than 3 hours away include Pittsburgh, Columbus, Buffalo, and Detroit. Cities less than 7 hours away include Washington DC, New York City, Chicago, Toronto, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and east coast beaches.

Air Travel

Cleveland Hopkins International Airport While Ohio's busiest airport is not a hub for major carriers, there are nonstop flights to more than 50 markets. Half a dozen direct flights to the Caribbean and Mexico are available with additional flights added in December-March for vacationers heading south during the winter.

Click Here to see direct flights from Cleveland Hopkins Akron-Canton Regional Airport Located 50 minutes south of Cleveland and 15 minutes south of Akron, a throwback to an easier time of travel, often with parking only 50' from the terminal door.

Regional Airports

If the company you are joining has their own corporate jets that take off from regional airports or if you're a pilot and want to be able to access smaller airports in the region, here are some of your best bets:

1. Burke Lakefront Airport ("Burke") - Cleveland (in downtown)

2. Cuyahoga County Airport ("County") - Richmond Heights (30 min. east of downtown Cleveland)

3. Lost Nation Airport - Willoughby (40 min. east of downtown Cleveland)

4. Geauga County Airport - Middlefield (45 min. east of downtown Cleveland)

5. Lorain County Regional Airport - Elyria (45 min. west of downtown Cleveland)

Public Transportation

While we wouldn't say that our region makes it easy to rely solely on public transportation, depending on the neighborhood you choose, you could easily rely on the bus or light rail for most activities. The best bets for that are the Cleveland neighborhoods of Downtown, Ohio City, Tremont, Detroit/Shoreway and Shaker Square or the inner ring suburbs of Lakewood, Cleveland Heights and Shaker Heights.

1. Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) - With buses and light-rail trains it serves Cleveland and 59 surrounding municipalities including the airport

2. Akron Metro RTA - Summit County's bus service provides 38 routes, neighborhood circulator routes, grocery bus service and two Northcoast Express routes to downtown Cleveland.

3. Laketran - Provides three types of bus services: local routes, demand response Dial-a-Ride and Park-n-Ride for Cleveland commuters

4. Lorain County Transit - Provides four bus routes, demand response Dial-a-Ride and transit alternatives

5. Medina County Transit -  Bus service provides loop routes for Medina City and Brunswick and on-demand fares

Bus Travel

1. Greyhound Cleveland

2. Greyhound Akron

Ride Share

While there are taxis available at the major airports, they are not easily spotted throughout the city streets.  Ride share programs including Uber and Lyft are quite popular and readily available, even in the suburbs.

Train Travel

Amtrak - Station is near the Browns stadium and Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame in downtown Cleveland. It makes a stop in Elyria (40 min. west of Cleveland headed west on the Capitol Limited to Chicago and east to New York City and Boston on the Lakeshore Limited.

Bicycles / Scooters

If you are bicyclist, you will find dozens of miles of protected bike lanes in our region. Bike Cleveland has a plethora of information on their website that can connect you to the best bike shops, cycling events, routes, etc.  If you just enjoy an occasional bike ride check out the scooter and bike share programs.

Photo Credits Preview modal-

Photo Credits

1. RTA Rapid Transit courtesy of RTA

2. Innerbelt bridge, river, barge, skyline courtesy of ODOT

3. Drive Times from Cleveland courtesy of City of Cleveland Economic Development

4. CLE Route Map courtesy of Cleveland Hopkins International Airport

5. CAK Route Map courtesy of Akron-Canton Airport

6. Greyhound Bus Station by Alex Toney (CC BY 2.0)

7. Megabus Cleveland-Chicago by Eugene Kim (CC BY 2.0)

8. Bike lane photo courtesy of bikecleveland.org