Mountain View Stock Farm · Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0Most of Benson commutes out: there are 0.3 jobs for every working resident
A typical one-way commute lasts 32 minutes; Vermont averages 24, the U.S. 26. 152 jobs are based in Benson for 484 working residents. Only 3% stay in Benson for work; outside it, Rutland is the main destination (19%, 18 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Benson: the gist
Time on the road from Benson: about 32 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Benson workers work from home, vs 17% across Vermont. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 285 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.
How a workday changes Benson
On a workday 468 residents head out to work, 16 work right here, and 136 people come in from elsewhere.
About 630 people are in Benson on a workday afternoon, 35% 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.
Where Benson’s working residents head each day
Where Benson clocks in
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.
The kinds of work in Benson
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Benson, 2013 → 2023: 104 → 152. 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 Benson’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Benson’s workers travel
About 20% 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.
Next door is work for 11% of Benson
The biggest share goes to Fair Haven (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Benson workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benson | – | — | — | 32 min | $78,625 |
| Orwell | under 2% | C− | B− | 27 min | $70,417 |
| West Haven | under 2% | — | — | 25 min | — |
| Fair Haven | 6% | C | A− | 31 min | $62,404 |
| Castleton | 5% | C | A | 19 min | $73,854 |
Same-state neighbors only. West Haven: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Benson’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 Benson: questions
What is the median household income in Benson?
$78,625 (±$8,146) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $81,203 across Vermont and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Benson?
5.4%, against 10.1% across Vermont and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Benson?
32 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Vermont and 26 nationally. 19% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Benson work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Rutland (19%, 18 mi), Middlebury (8%, 22 mi), Rutland (7%, 18 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Benson without a car?
1% 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 Benson, from the people who make the trip.
More of Benson
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.