Work & commute · Central

Work & commute in Central, IL

About one in 3 of Central’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Greenville (30%), Springfield (4%) and Highland (4%). Half commute less than 29 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

31%

818 of 2,630 working residents

Typical commute

29 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

21 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 1,812 Central residents head out of town to work, 818 work right here, and 2,737 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Central.

1,812live here, work elsewhere

818live and work here

2,737work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Central goes to work

Greenville2.7 mi away

30%800

Springfield64.7 mi away

4%105

Highland15.2 mi away

4%96

Vandalia18.8 mi away

2%64

Chicago224.8 mi away

2%54

Edwardsville30.4 mi away

2%50

Mattoon71.1 mi away

2%48

Decatur73.2 mi away

2%42

Mulberry Grove9.7 mi away

1%29

Lafayette74.2 mi away

1%28

Everywhere elseother towns and states

50%1,314

Lines run between town centers; a thicker line means more commuters. The top 10 towns each way.

How far

How far Central commutes

Straight-line distance from home to work, for every working resident. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

34%

14%

18%

34%

34%Under 10 mi

14%10–24 mi

18%25–50 mi

34%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Central is balanced between jobs and homes

1.35jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.35 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Central are

3,555 jobs are based in Central. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Central’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Central

3,555 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)22%

Trade, transport & utilities25%

Services (health, schools, offices…)53%

$1,250 a month or less19%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month54%

Jobs Central residents hold

2,630 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)60%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month34%

Over $3,333 a month48%

−7%

Jobs based in Central, 2013 → 2023: 3,822 → 3,555. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.

About these numbers

How to read this page

Every worker, home to workThe 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 saysA 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 surveysFlows, distances and jobs: LEHD 2023. Commute time and working from home: the Census American Community Survey.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs; American Community Survey 5-year estimates.