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Jobs & commute in Bostic

Work and commuting in Bostic

The average commute takes 26 minutes each way, against 25 across North Carolina and 26 nationally. Home is the office for 3% of workers; North Carolina has 16%. Hardly any work in Bostic; the top destination outside it is Forest City (14%, 3 miles).

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

Day and night

The daily flow of workers through Bostic

On a workday 143 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 92 people come in from elsewhere.

143live here, work elsewhere
0live and work here
92work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night360
Workday310
360live here− 140head out to work+ 92come in to work= 310on a workday

About 310 people are in Bostic on a workday afternoon, 14% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.64jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

0.64 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.

The commute map

Where Bostic’s working residents head each day

BosticEllenboroColumbus: 3 residents work here (2%)Rutherfordton: 14 residents work here (10%)Weaverville: 2 residents work here (1%)Spindale: 7 residents work here (5%)MarionLincolnton: 3 residents work here (2%)Forest City: 20 residents work here (14%)Lake Lure: 3 residents work here (2%)SalisburyShelby: 6 residents work here (4%)Asheville: 3 residents work here (2%)Charlotte: 14 residents work here (10%)ReidvilleMartinsburgForest CityRutherfordtonCharlotteSpindaleShelbyColumbusBostic
1
Forest City2.7 mi away
14%20
2
Rutherfordton7.1 mi away
10%14
3
Charlotte57.7 mi away
10%14
4
Spindale4.9 mi away
5%7
5
Shelby17.1 mi away
4%6
6
Columbus22.4 mi away
2%3
7
Lincolnton34.5 mi away
2%3
8
Lake Lure21.4 mi away
2%3
9
Asheville42.8 mi away
2%3
10
Weaverville46.7 mi away
1%2
Everywhere elseother towns and states
48%68
The top trips

Where Bostic clocks in

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

In Bostic, services account for most jobs

92 jobs are based in Bostic.

Jobs based in BosticJobs Bostic residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms4%28%
Trade, transport & utilities7%20%
Services: health, schools, offices89%52%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less15%12%
$1,251–$3,333 a month45%29%
Over $3,333 a month40%59%

Who does it

29 or younger17%27%
30 to 5449%52%
55 and older34%20%
−5%

Jobs based in Bostic, 2013 → 2023: 97 → 92. 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 Bostic’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Time on the road

About 26 minutes each way, about the NC average

A year of commuting
198 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Bostic26 min
North Carolina25 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
3%

of Bostic workers work from home, vs 16% across North Carolina. Their commute is the hallway.

About 0 in 10
How Bostic gets to work
87%Drive alone
13%Carpool

Share of the 188 commuters (the 3% who work from home are left out). Across North Carolina: 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.

How far

Miles to work from Bostic

10 mi25 mi50 mi65 miForest City: 14% · 2.7 miRutherfordton: 10% · 7.1 miCharlotte: 10% · 57.7 miSpindale: 5% · 4.9 miShelby: 4% · 17.1 miColumbus: 2% · 22.4 miLincolnton: 2% · 34.5 miLake Lure: 2% · 21.4 miAsheville: 2% · 42.8 miWeaverville: 1% · 46.7 miForest City 14%Rutherfordton 10%Charlotte 10%Spindale 5%Shelby 4%Bostic
BosticTop destinations (size = commuters)
40%Under 10 mi53 residents
16%10–24 mi22 residents
23%25–50 mi31 residents
21%Over 50 mi28 residents

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.

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 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.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in Bostic: questions

What is the median household income in Bostic?

$57,813 (±$33,557) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,388 across North Carolina and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Bostic?

17.8%, against 13.0% across North Carolina and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Bostic?

26 minutes each way on average, against 25 across North Carolina and 26 nationally. 3% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Bostic work?

0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Forest City (14%, 3 mi), Rutherfordton (10%, 7 mi), Charlotte (10%, 58 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Can you get around Bostic without a car?

0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

Getting to work from Bostic, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Bostic

Bostic home →

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.