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Jobs & commute in Riverdale

With 0.3 jobs for every working resident, most of Riverdale works elsewhere

Commuters spend 19 minutes getting to work on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 27 jobs are based in Riverdale for 100 working residents. Only 2% stay in Riverdale for work; outside it, Alma is the main destination (18%, 10 miles).

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

27 jobs based here
Poverty
40.3%
Michigan 13.2%
Unemployment
12.5%
Michigan 5.7% · U.S. 5.2%
Time each way
19 min
Michigan 24 · U.S. 26
Work in town
2%
2 of 100 working residents
Work from home
9%
Michigan 14% · U.S. 15%
Day and night

Riverdale by day and by night

On a workday 98 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 25 people come in from elsewhere.

98live here, work elsewhere
2live and work here
25work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night220
Workday140
220live here− 98head out to work+ 25come in to work= 140on a workday

About 140 people are in Riverdale on a workday afternoon, 34% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.27jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2021, primary jobs.

The commute map

The places Riverdale commutes to

St. Louis: 5 residents work here (5%)Ithaca: 8 residents work here (8%)Alma: 18 residents work here (18%)Mount Pleasant: 3 residents work here (3%)Midland: 3 residents work here (3%)Essex TownshipSumner Township: 3 residents work here (3%)Seville Township: 4 residents work here (4%)Richland Township: 3 residents work here (3%)Chippewa TownshipCoe TownshipLincoln TownshipFremont Township: 3 residents work here (3%)Pine River Township: 5 residents work here (5%)Chippewa TownshipFork TownshipRiverdaleElm HallAlmaIthacaSt. LouisPine River TownshipSeville TownshipMount PleasantRiverdale
1
Alma9.5 mi away
18%18
2
Ithaca13.8 mi away
8%8
3
St. Louis11.7 mi away
5%5
4
Pine River Township9 mi away
5%5
5
Seville Township4.1 mi away
4%4
6
Mount Pleasant15.2 mi away
3%3
7
Midland34.8 mi away
3%3
8
Sumner Township4.3 mi away
3%3
9
Richland Township3.6 mi away
3%3
10
Fremont Township9.1 mi away
3%3
Everywhere elseother towns and states
45%45
The top trips

Where Riverdale clocks in

18% of workers
9.5 mi awayAlma18 Riverdale residents work here · Jobs & commute →
8%Ithaca
8% of workers
13.8 mi awayIthaca8 Riverdale residents work here · Jobs & commute →
5% of workers
11.7 mi awaySt. Louis5 Riverdale residents work here · Jobs & commute →

Lines 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 jobs

Jobs in Riverdale: what the 27 are

Jobs based in RiverdaleJobs Riverdale residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms26%22%
Trade, transport & utilities44%17%
Services: health, schools, offices30%61%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less30%13%
$1,251–$3,333 a month33%35%
Over $3,333 a month37%52%

Who does it

29 or younger22%30%
30 to 5433%41%
55 and older44%29%
+80%

Jobs based in Riverdale, 2011 → 2021: 15 → 27. 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 Riverdale’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Time on the road

Time on the road from Riverdale: about 19 minutes

A year of commuting
142 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.9 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Riverdale19 min
Michigan24 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
9%

of Riverdale workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.

About 1 in 10
How Riverdale gets to work
69%Drive alone
18%Carpool
13%Walk

Share of the 78 commuters (the 9% 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

How far Riverdale goes to work

10 mi25 mi40 miAlma: 18% · 9.5 miIthaca: 8% · 13.8 miSt. Louis: 5% · 11.7 miPine River Township: 5% · 9 miSeville Township: 4% · 4.1 miMount Pleasant: 3% · 15.2 miMidland: 3% · 34.8 miSumner Township: 3% · 4.3 miRichland Township: 3% · 3.6 miFremont Township: 3% · 9.1 miAlma 18%Ithaca 8%St. Louis 5%Seville Township 4%Riverdale
RiverdaleTop destinations (size = commuters)
36%Under 10 mi36 residents
29%10–24 mi29 residents
18%25–50 mi18 residents
17%Over 50 mi17 residents

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 2021.

Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

Next door

Next door to Riverdale

Elm Hall: few work hereElm HallRiverdale
10%+5–9%2–4%1%Under 1%
Elm Hallunder 3% of Riverdale

Jobs & commute next door

TownRiverdale workers thereJobs & incomeWalkabilityCommuteHousehold income
Riverdale–——19 min—
Elm Hallunder 3%——63 min—

Same-state neighbors only. Elm Hall: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.

Darker towns draw more of Riverdale’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.

How to read these numbers

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.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in Riverdale: questions

What is the poverty rate in Riverdale?

40.3%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Riverdale?

19 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Riverdale work?

2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Alma (18%, 10 mi), Ithaca (8%, 14 mi), St. Louis (5%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).

Can you get around Riverdale 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 Riverdale, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Riverdale

Riverdale home →
$189Ktypical home
HousingLive where you work?Home values, rent & the market in Riverdale
19min commute
HandbookGetting around RiverdaleRoads, buses, parking and the basics
shortest commutes
RankingsTop towns in MIShortest commutes, work from home & more

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.