Guest, Sign inJoin
Work & commute in New Jerusalem · A commuter town

99% of New Jerusalem’s working residents leave town for work

Most working residents leave New Jerusalem for work: only 1% work in town. The top destinations are Maxatawny (9%), Reading (5%) and Allentown (4%). Half commute less than 13 miles.

Work in town
1%
2 of 307 working residents
Typical commute
13 mi
half travel less, straight-line
Time each way
40 min
More than PA (26 min)
Work from home
24%
More than PA (16%)
Jobs based here
47
A commuter town

What kind of work town is New Jerusalem?

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

★ What stands out · The commute map

9% of working residents work in Maxatawny

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

New YorkHulmevilleTopton: 7 residents work here (2%)FleetwoodChalfontReading: 14 residents work here (5%)Allentown: 13 residents work here (4%)Philadelphia: 7 residents work here (2%)BernRichmondOley: 7 residents work here (2%)Upper Macungie: 11 residents work here (4%)Maidencreek: 8 residents work here (3%)Muhlenberg: 7 residents work here (2%)Lower Macungie: 12 residents work here (4%)Maxatawny: 28 residents work here (9%)RuscombmanorRocklandDryvilleNew JerusalemMaxatawnyReadingAllentownLower MacungieUpper MacungieMaidencreekNew Jerusalem
1
Maxatawny5.9 mi away
9%28
2
Reading11.3 mi away
5%14
3
Allentown18.1 mi away
4%13
4
Lower Macungie11.9 mi away
4%12
5
Upper Macungie11.3 mi away
4%11
6
Maidencreek7 mi away
3%8
7
Topton5.2 mi away
2%7
8
Philadelphia44.5 mi away
2%7
9
Oley5.2 mi away
2%7
10
Muhlenberg9.3 mi away
2%7
Everywhere elseother towns and states
63%193
The top trips

Where New Jerusalem clocks in

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

Time on the road

About 40 minutes each way, longer than most of Pennsylvania

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

A year of commuting
306 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 12.8 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

New Jerusalem40 min
Pennsylvania26 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
24%

of New Jerusalem workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.

About 2 in 10
Day and night

New Jerusalem quiets down on a workday

On a workday 305 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 45 people come in from elsewhere.

305live here, work elsewhere
2live and work here
45work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night650
Workday390
650live here− 310head out to work+ 45come in to work= 390on a workday

About 390 people are in New Jerusalem on a workday afternoon, 40% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.15jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

0.15 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 New Jerusalem commutes less than 13 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 miMaxatawny: 9% · 5.9 miReading: 5% · 11.3 miAllentown: 4% · 18.1 miLower Macungie: 4% · 11.9 miUpper Macungie: 4% · 11.3 miMaidencreek: 3% · 7 miTopton: 2% · 5.2 miPhiladelphia: 2% · 44.5 miOley: 2% · 5.2 miMuhlenberg: 2% · 9.3 miMaxatawny 9%Reading 5%Allentown 4%Lower Macungie 4%New Jerusalem
New JerusalemTop destinations (size = commuters)
30%Under 10 mi92 residents
45%10–24 mi138 residents
15%25–50 mi47 residents
10%Over 50 mi30 residents

Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.

The jobs

New Jerusalem makes things: 32% of its jobs are in goods

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

Jobs based in New JerusalemJobs New Jerusalem residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms32%30%
Trade, transport & utilities26%20%
Services: health, schools, offices43%50%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less30%12%
$1,251–$3,333 a month40%19%
Over $3,333 a month30%69%

Who does it

29 or younger28%11%
30 to 5419%50%
55 and older53%39%
+21%

Jobs based in New Jerusalem, 2013 → 2023: 39 → 47. 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.

Next door

New Jerusalem and the towns next door

Darker towns draw more of New Jerusalem’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.

Dryville: few work hereDryvilleNew Jerusalem
10%+5–9%2–4%1%Under 1%
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 New Jerusalem

New Jerusalem home →

Commuter talk

Getting to work from New Jerusalem, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Weigh in
Is the commute from New Jerusalem 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.

Post to New Jerusalem

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in