Ramsay-Fox Round Barn and Farm · Photo: Nyttend · Public domainUnemployment in West Township (0.9%) is lower than in 95% of U.S. towns
Only 3% work in West Township itself; outside it, Plymouth draws the most (29%, 5 miles). For jobs and income West Township is better than 75% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 24% of U.S. towns (C−). Commuters spend 26 minutes getting to work on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set West Township apart
West Township makes and builds things
57% of the jobs based in West Township are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs West Township residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 33%. The jobs ↓
West Township and Plymouth trade workers both ways
Plymouth is the top workplace for West Township residents (29%) and also where the most people who work in West Township come from (18% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
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.
Why West Township gets the Jobs & income grade it does
Unemployment holds West Township’s grade up; job access by car pulls it down. It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, West Township could be anywhere from B to A.
West Township makes things: 57% of its jobs are in goods
625 jobs are based in West Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Township, 2013 → 2023: 531 → 625. 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 West Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Where West Township’s working residents head each day
Where West Township clocks in
6% 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.
The workday shuffle in and out of West Township
On a workday 1,591 residents head out to work, 45 work right here, and 580 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,800 people are in West Township on a workday afternoon, 27% fewer than live here.
0.38 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute 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.
Each way, about 26 minutes from West Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of West Township workers work from home, vs 11% across Indiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,713 commuters (the 6% who work from home are left out). Across Indiana: 85% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The commute from West Township, by distance
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.
In West Township, most people drive to work
How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 2.5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.3% across Indiana, on an EPA index of 4.0.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,831 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 5.4% of West Township households have no vehicle (Indiana 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of West Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, West Township is 1,054th among 4,430 U.S. towns of 2,600 to 5,100
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 85 | Clark Township IN | 3,026 | $138K | 5.2% | 0.0% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 96 | Milan Township IN | 4,066 | $120K | 1.3% | 0.0% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 137 | Georgetown IN | 3,855 | $113K | 2.1% | 1.4% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,052 | Saville Township PA | 2,650 | $83K | 4.5% | 0.8% | 6% | A− |
| 1,053 | New Hope MS | 3,952 | $80K | 2.9% | 1.2% | 2% | A− |
| 1,054 | West Township IN | 3,773 | $89K | 5.6% | 0.9% | 3% | A− |
| 1,055 | North Hopewell Township PA | 2,805 | $109K | 3.6% | 4.9% | 1% | A− |
| 1,056 | Monroe Township PA | 4,229 | $90K | 2.9% | 3.6% | 9% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,430 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of West Township, the top three, the last and three more from Indiana.
How West Township compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Union Township (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Township | – | A− | C− | 26 min | $88,935 |
| Polk Township | under 3% | B− | D− | 26 min | $75,827 |
| Union Township | 2% | C− | A− | 21 min | $56,477 |
| Center Township | 2% | B− | B− | 22 min | $67,867 |
| Oregon Township | under 3% | C+ | C+ | 41 min | $71,094 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of West 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 West Township: questions
What is the median household income in West Township?
$88,935 (±$10,565) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,957 across Indiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Township?
5.6%, against 12.3% across Indiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Township?
26 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Township work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Plymouth (29%, 5 mi), South Bend (6%, 25 mi), Mishawaka (5%, 27 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is West Township walkable?
West Township is more walkable than 24% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 4.0 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around West Township without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from West Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of West 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. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.