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Work & commute in Johnson · A commuter town

97% of Johnson’s working residents leave town for work

Most working residents leave Johnson for work: only 3% work in town. The top destinations are Buena Vista (28%), Salida (11%) and Denver (9%). Half commute less than 21 miles.

Work in town
3%
3 of 113 working residents
Typical commute
21 mi
half travel less, straight-line
Work from home
66%
More than CO (21%)
Jobs based here
41
A commuter town

What kind of work town is Johnson?

Read from the numbers below. The page puts what stands out first.

★ What stands out · Time on the road

Working from home in Johnson

From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.

Working from home
66%

of Johnson workers work from home, vs 21% across Colorado. Their commute is the hallway.

About 7 in 10
The commute map

28% of working residents work in Buena Vista

A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.

GardenaOrdwayLeadville: 2 residents work here (2%)FairplayDillon: 2 residents work here (2%)CarbondaleMonte VistaPoncha SpringsSalida: 12 residents work here (11%)Buena Vista: 32 residents work here (28%)Breckenridge: 3 residents work here (3%)Woodland ParkNorthglenn: 2 residents work here (2%)AvonAurora: 3 residents work here (3%)Colorado Springs: 2 residents work here (2%)Denver: 10 residents work here (9%)Johnson VillageBuena VistaSalidaDenverBreckenridgeAuroraLeadvilleJohnson
1
Buena Vista2.2 mi away
28%32
2
Salida20.3 mi away
11%12
3
Denver92.8 mi away
9%10
4
Breckenridge47.6 mi away
3%3
5
Aurora96.7 mi away
3%3
6
Johnson Village (in town)right here
3%3
7
Leadville31.7 mi away
2%2
8
Dillon56.5 mi away
2%2
9
Northglenn96.9 mi away
2%2
10
Colorado Springs72.6 mi away
2%2
Everywhere elseother towns and states
37%42
The top trips

Where Johnson clocks in

Lines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.

Day and night

Johnson quiets down on a workday

On a workday 110 residents head out to work, 3 work right here, and 38 people come in from elsewhere.

110live here, work elsewhere
3live and work here
38work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night130
Workday57
130live here− 110head out to work+ 38come in to work= 57on a workday

About 57 people are in Johnson on a workday afternoon, 56% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.36jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

0.36 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.

How far

Half of Johnson commutes less than 21 miles

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

10 mi25 mi50 mi80 miBuena Vista: 28% · 2.2 miSalida: 11% · 20.3 miDenver: 9% · 92.8 miBreckenridge: 3% · 47.6 miAurora: 3% · 96.7 miLeadville: 2% · 31.7 miDillon: 2% · 56.5 miNorthglenn: 2% · 96.9 miColorado Springs: 2% · 72.6 miBuena Vista 28%Salida 11%Denver 9%Breckenridge 3%Aurora 3%Johnson
JohnsonTop destinations (size = commuters)
38%Under 10 mi43 residents
14%10–24 mi16 residents
9%25–50 mi10 residents
39%Over 50 mi44 residents

About 39% 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.

The jobs

Mostly services: health care, schools and offices

41 jobs are based in Johnson. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Johnson’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in JohnsonJobs Johnson residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms2%14%
Trade, transport & utilities12%18%
Services: health, schools, offices85%68%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less34%16%
$1,251–$3,333 a month49%27%
Over $3,333 a month17%58%

Who does it

29 or younger37%19%
30 to 5449%55%
55 and older15%26%
+116%

Jobs based in Johnson, 2013 → 2023: 19 → 41. 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.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

  • Every worker, home to work. The Census links each worker’s home block to their main job’s block, for jobs covered by unemployment insurance. That’s most jobs, but not the self-employed.
  • Where the employer says. A job counts where the employer reports it. Some big employers report one address for many sites, which can make a few commutes look longer than they are.
  • Two surveys. Flows, distances and jobs: LEHD 2023. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: the Census American Community Survey.
  • Straight lines. Distances are as the crow flies between home and work. Roads, rivers and traffic make the real trip longer.
Beyond the commute

More of Johnson

Johnson home →

Commuter talk

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

Town Square →
Weigh in
Is the commute from Johnson worth it?

Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.

Ask neighbors

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.

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