Photo: Nyttend · Public domainMost of Olmsted commutes out: there are 0.2 jobs for every working resident
The average commute takes 31 minutes each way, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. Employers in Olmsted report 17 jobs; 106 of its residents have a job. Hardly any work in Olmsted itself; outside it, Carbondale draws the most (6%, 38 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The daily flow of workers through Olmsted
On a workday 106 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 17 people come in from elsewhere.
About 180 people are in Olmsted on a workday afternoon, 34% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Where Olmsted’s working residents head each day
Where Olmsted clocks in
6% of workers
5% of workers
5% 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.
Services make up most of the work in Olmsted
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Olmsted, 2013 → 2023: 151 → 17. 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 Olmsted’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from Olmsted: about 31 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Olmsted workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 65 commuters (the 13% who work from home are left out). Across Illinois: 78% drive alone, 7% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
How many miles Olmsted commutes
About 30% 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.
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 Olmsted: questions
What is the median household income in Olmsted?
$32,656 (±$12,979) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Olmsted?
23.7%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Olmsted?
31 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Olmsted work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Carbondale (6%, 38 mi), Mound City (5%, 8 mi), Metropolis (5%, 22 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Olmsted without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 13% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Olmsted, from the people who make the trip.
More of Olmsted
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.