Most of Luther commutes out: there are 0.1 jobs for every working resident
The average commute takes 33 minutes each way (Michigan 24, U.S. 26). 14 jobs are based in Luther for 100 working residents. Only 1% work in Luther itself; outside it, Cadillac draws the most (14%, 19 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The daily flow of workers through Luther
On a workday 99 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 13 people come in from elsewhere.
About 240 people are in Luther on a workday afternoon, 26% 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 2021, primary jobs.
Where Luther’s working residents head each day
Where Luther clocks in
4% 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.
In Luther, services account for most jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Luther, 2011 → 2021: 2 → 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 2021.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Luther’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A commute of about 33 minutes in Luther
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Luther workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 99 commuters (the 13% who work from home are left out). Across Michigan: 86% 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.
How far Luther’s workers travel
About 46% 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 2021.
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 2021, 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 Luther: questions
What is the median household income in Luther?
$54,167 (±$14,930) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Luther?
32.3%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Luther?
33 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Luther work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Cadillac (14%, 19 mi), Reed City (11%, 14 mi), Big Rapids (4%, 26 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Can you get around Luther without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Luther, from the people who make the trip.
More of Luther
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, 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.