Photo: Ammodramus · Public domainWork and commuting in Pawnee City
366 jobs are based in Pawnee City, and 332 of its residents work somewhere. About one in seven stay in Pawnee City for work; outside it, Lincoln is the main destination (14%, 56 miles). A typical one-way commute from Pawnee City lasts 11 minutes (Nebraska 19, U.S. 26).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Pawnee City: the figures worth knowing
Pawnee City’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Pawnee City is Lincoln, 56 miles away as the crow flies. 14% of working residents (46) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
A big share show a job far from home
38% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Commutes from Pawnee City are quick
The average trip to work takes 11 minutes, against 19 across Nebraska. That’s about 61 hours a year less on the road than the typical Nebraska worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 332 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Where in the region Pawnee City works
About 38% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Pawnee City’s commute takes about 11 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 3.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Pawnee City workers work from home, vs 11% across Nebraska. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 256 commuters (the 11% who work from home are left out). Across Nebraska: 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.
Who leaves, who stays, who comes in
On a workday 284 residents head out to work, 48 work right here, and 318 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.10 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Where Pawnee City goes to work
Where Pawnee City clocks in
14% of workers
6% 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.
What Pawnee City’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Pawnee City, 2014 → 2024: 405 → 366. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Pawnee City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2024, 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 Pawnee City: questions
What is the median household income in Pawnee City?
$45,096 (±$12,929) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $76,475 across Nebraska and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Pawnee City?
17.6%, against 10.6% across Nebraska and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Pawnee City?
11 minutes each way on average, against 19 across Nebraska and 26 nationally. 11% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Pawnee City work?
14% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Lincoln (14%, 56 mi), Beatrice (7%, 33 mi), Omaha (6%, 80 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Pawnee City without a car?
0% 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 Pawnee City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Pawnee City
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.