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Trip from Saint Elmo, IL to Brownstown, IL

Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 18, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

12m

Distance

6.5 mi

10 km

Drive Score

6/10

Good drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$1

one way

EV Charging

Unknown

Best Time to Leave

4 AM
0h 12m ★
6 AM
0h 13m
8 AM
0h 15m
10 AM
0h 14m
12 PM
0h 13m
3 PM
0h 14m
5 PM
0h 15m
8 PM
0h 12m ★

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

city in Fayette County, Illinois

Saint Elmo, IL

Wikimedia Commons

Downtown Brownstown, IL, IL

Brownstown, IL

Choco Kitty

Trip Overview

Saint Elmo to Brownstown is 6.5 miles and takes about 12 minutes via East Cumberland Road and North Main Street, with a fuel budget near $1 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This short trip stays within Illinois, connecting two communities in the Midwest region. Expect a local driving experience, perfect for a quick hop between towns. Given the minimal distance and duration, this route is ideal for a same-day excursion, allowing for plenty of flexibility in your schedule.

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

This 6.5-mile, 12-minute drive is perfect for a quick weekend jaunt, easily doable as a same-day round trip without feeling rushed.

Family Friendly

With only 6.5 miles and a 12-minute drive time, this route is incredibly short and manageable for families with young children.

Solo Traveler

At just 6.5 miles and 12 minutes, this route is comfortable for a solo traveler, offering a quick and uncomplicated drive.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

This route is ideal for a first-time driver, featuring a low complexity rating of 2/10 and a very short 12-minute duration with no highway driving.

Scenic Drive

Turn-heavy local drive route profile.

Drive Character

This drive is characterized as a turn-heavy local route, with a 0% highway share. Your longest uninterrupted stretch will be approximately 5.9 miles along East Cumberland Road. The journey will involve navigating through local streets, including North Main Street and 2nd Street, suggesting a pace dictated by town traffic and intersections rather than open highway speeds. Be prepared for frequent changes in direction as you make your way to Brownstown.

This route has more turning and local-road decision points than a simple highway run.
There are about 6 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
East Cumberland Road is the longest continuous segment at about 5.9 miles.

How Hard Is This Drive?

Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. Navigation is very simple - set it and forget it for most of the drive. The trickiest moment comes early in the drive near North Main Street.

Driving Effort 2/10

Very easy - short and simple to drive

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

The drive from Saint Elmo, IL to Brownstown, IL is easy. At 12m with 0% highway, most drivers will find it relaxed and low-stress.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: near the start (North Main Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.3 miles (US 40 / East Cumberland Road): Navigation decision point; at 6.2 miles (South 3rd Street): Navigation decision point.

Critical Maneuvers

3 of 3 key points

These are the spots where you need to pay the most attention. Preview them before you drive.

5
0 mi into trip | ~0m in | North Main Street

Turn left onto North Main Street

Navigation decision point

3
0.3 mi into trip | ~1m in | US 40 / East Cumberland Road

Turn right onto US 40 / East Cumberland Road

Navigation decision point

4
6.2 mi into trip | ~11m in | South 3rd Street

Turn right onto South 3rd Street

Navigation decision point

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
East Cumberland Road 5.9 mi 10m
North Main Street 0.2 mi <1m
2nd Street 0.2 mi <1m
South 3rd Street <0.1 mi <1m
East 4th Street <0.1 mi <1m
South 2nd Street

Some road-level metrics are being recalculated.

Longest stretch: East Cumberland Road — 5.9 mi, about 10m

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Saint Elmo, IL and Brownstown, IL.

1

Start on East 4th Street

145 ft · 11 sec · East 4th Street
2

Turn left onto North Main Street

0.2 mi · 55 sec · North Main Street
3

Turn right onto US 40

5.9 mi · 10 min · East Cumberland Road
4

Turn right onto South 3rd Street

244 ft · 10 sec · South 3rd Street
5

Turn slight left onto 2nd Street

0.2 mi · 54 sec · 2nd Street
6

Arrive at destination

South 2nd Street

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$1.02 one way

$2.03 round trip

$3.97/gal 25.4 MPG avg 2 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $4.36 $1.12 $2.23
premium $4.89 $1.25 $2.50
diesel $5.61 $1.44 $2.87

No toll roads detected on this route.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$1

Estimated CO2 emission: 2.3 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.

Driving Electric?

About $1 in charging · 0 stops · 50% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 2 0 $0.68 $0.31
Efficient EV 1.6 0 $0.57 $0.26
EV Truck/SUV 2.6 0 $0.91 $0.42

Gas CO2

2 kg

EV CO2

1 kg (50% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Apr 15, 2026

Origin

Saint Elmo, IL

Evening in Saint Elmo on Friday

Local time

7:20 PM

CDT

Current temp

54°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Destination

Brownstown, IL

Evening in Brownstown on Friday

Local time

7:20 PM

CDT

Current temp

75°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

21 degrees warmer at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

12m on the road

Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

Frequently Asked Questions

The drive from Saint Elmo, IL to Brownstown, IL covers 6.5 miles and takes about 12m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.

The main roads are East Cumberland Road, North Main Street, 2nd Street. Expect a mix of highway and local road driving.

This is a comfortable same-day trip.

The midpoint is about 3.2 miles from Saint Elmo, IL. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.

At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $1.02 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.

Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.

The drive from Saint Elmo, IL to Brownstown, IL is easy. At 12m with 0% highway, most drivers will find it relaxed and low-stress.

The main spots that need attention: near the start (North Main Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.3 miles (US 40 / East Cumberland Road): Navigation decision point; at 6.2 miles (South 3rd Street): Navigation decision point.

The route from Saint Elmo, IL to Brownstown, IL does not surface many named destination signs beyond the main corridor.

How this page is built

Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

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Explore more options from Saint Elmo, IL or browse trips ending in Brownstown, IL.

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