Photo: The original uploader was Redjar at English Wikipedia. · CC BY-SA 2.0With 0.1 jobs for every working resident, most of Athens works elsewhere
The average commute takes 36 minutes each way, where Vermont has 24 and the U.S. 26. Athens has 17 jobs, and 159 of its residents work somewhere. Hardly any work in Athens; the top destination outside it is Brattleboro (15%, 18 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Athens on a workday afternoon
On a workday 159 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 17 people come in from elsewhere.
About 250 people are in Athens on a workday afternoon, 37% 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 2023, primary jobs.
Commuting out of Athens: the destinations
Where Athens clocks in
15% of workers
13% of workers
8% 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.
Mostly health care, schools and offices in Athens
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Athens, 2013 → 2023: 5 → 17. 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 Athens’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A commute of about 36 minutes in Athens
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Athens workers work from home, vs 17% across Vermont. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 192 commuters (the 19% who work from home are left out). Across Vermont: 82% 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 distance from Athens to work
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.
Work next door: 16% of Athens’ workers
The biggest share goes to Townshend (13%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Athens workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Athens | – | — | — | 36 min | $68,438 |
| Grafton | 3% | — | — | 24 min | — |
| Westminster | under 3% | C+ | A− | 24 min | $71,491 |
| Townshend | 13% | C+ | B+ | 25 min | $78,750 |
Same-state neighbors only. Grafton: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Athens’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 Athens: questions
What is the median household income in Athens?
$68,438 (±$30,472) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $81,203 across Vermont and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Athens?
12.1%, against 10.1% across Vermont and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Athens?
36 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Vermont and 26 nationally. 19% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Athens work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Brattleboro (15%, 18 mi), Townshend (13%, 6 mi), Springfield (8%, 13 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Athens without a car?
4% of commuters take transit and 14% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Athens, from the people who make the trip.
More of Athens
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.