Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.0More than half of Blende’s working residents commute to Pueblo
A typical one-way commute lasts 20 minutes; Colorado averages 25, the U.S. 26. 7% of workers have no commute at all, next to 21% for Colorado as a whole. Only 3% work in Blende; the top destination outside it is Pueblo (53%, 3 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Blende: the gist
Blende is where the jobs are
Blende has 794 jobs, 2.4 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 1,100 people are in town, 75% more than the 620 who live here. Day and night ↓
Most Blende residents work close to home
68% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. How far ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 327 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Where Blende’s workforce comes from
Where Blende clocks in
53% of workers
8% of workers
3% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Blende nearly doubles on a workday
On a workday 316 residents head out to work, 11 work right here, and 783 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,100 people are in Blende on a workday afternoon, 75% more than live here.
2.4 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Blende
About 17% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Goods jobs make up 40% of work in Blende
794 jobs are based in Blende.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Blende, 2013 → 2023: 478 → 794. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Blende’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A commute of about 20 minutes in Blende
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Blende workers work from home, vs 21% across Colorado. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 221 commuters (the 7% who work from home are left out). Across Colorado: 82% drive alone, 2% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Work in the towns next to Blende
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Blende workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blende | – | — | — | 20 min | $52,667 |
| Salt Creek | under 1% | — | — | 16 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Salt Creek: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Blende’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Blende: questions
What is the median household income in Blende?
$52,667 (±$11,003) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $95,470 across Colorado and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Blende?
18.0%, against 9.4% across Colorado and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Blende?
20 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Colorado and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Blende work?
3% work in town.
Can you get around Blende without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Blende, from the people who make the trip.
More of Blende
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer.