Polk Township has 0.1 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
0% of workers work from home, where Illinois as a whole has 16%. 14 jobs are based in Polk Township; 215 of its residents have a job. Hardly any work in Polk Township; the top destination outside it is Carlinville (15%, 7 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Polk Township in brief
Polk Township is a place people come home to
There are 14 jobs based in Polk Township, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Polk Township has about 370 people in it, 35% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Polk Township and Carlinville trade workers both ways
Carlinville is the top workplace for Polk Township residents (15%) and also where the most people who work in Polk Township come from (36% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Few Polk Township workers work from home
Only 0% of workers work from home, against 16% across Illinois. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
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 215 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
A workday in Polk Township: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 215 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 14 people come in from elsewhere.
About 370 people are in Polk Township on a workday afternoon, 35% 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 the trip to work from Polk Township ends
Where Polk Township clocks in
15% of workers
7% of workers
7% 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.
The daily trip from Polk Township: about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Polk Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 218 commuters (the 0% 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.
Making and building: 71% of jobs based in Polk Township
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Polk Township, 2013 → 2023: 41 → 14. 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 Polk Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Polk Township
About 21% 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.
Polk Township and its neighbors
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Polk Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polk Township | – | — | — | 20 min | $83,864 |
| Hillyard Township | under 2% | — | — | 29 min | — |
| Chesterfield Township | under 2% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Brushy Mound Township | under 2% | — | — | 23 min | — |
| Bird Township | under 2% | — | — | 28 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Hillyard Township, Chesterfield Township, Brushy Mound Township and Bird Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Polk Township’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 Polk Township: questions
What is the median household income in Polk Township?
$83,864 (±$39,319) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Polk Township?
14.1%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Polk Township?
20 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 0% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Polk Township work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Carlinville (15%, 7 mi), Carlinville Township (7%, 8 mi), Springfield (7%, 43 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Polk Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Polk Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Polk Township
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.