Work & commute · West Penn

Work & commute in West Penn, PA

Most working residents leave West Penn for work: only 11% work in town. The top destinations are Upper Macungie (7%), Tamaqua (5%) and Lower Macungie (3%). Half commute less than 18 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

11%

193 of 1,779 working residents

Typical commute

18 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

32 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 1,586 West Penn residents head out of town to work, 193 work right here, and 770 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in West Penn.

1,586live here, work elsewhere

193live and work here

770work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where West Penn goes to work

West Penn (in town)right here

11%193

Upper Macungie17.5 mi away

7%129

Tamaqua5.3 mi away

5%82

Lower Macungie21.4 mi away

3%51

Philadelphia63.7 mi away

2%44

Reading28 mi away

2%35

Pottsville18.4 mi away

2%33

Orwigsburg13.8 mi away

2%31

Hazle16.8 mi away

2%31

Mahoning7.1 mi away

2%31

Everywhere elseother towns and states

63%1,119

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

How far

How far West Penn commutes

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

23%

43%

15%

19%

23%Under 10 mi

43%10–24 mi

15%25–50 mi

19%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

West Penn is a commuter town

0.54jobs per working resident

A commuter town

0.54 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.

The jobs

What the jobs in West Penn are

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

Jobs based in West Penn

963 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)35%

Trade, transport & utilities25%

Services (health, schools, offices…)39%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month53%

Jobs West Penn residents hold

1,779 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)29%

Trade, transport & utilities24%

Services (health, schools, offices…)47%

$1,250 a month or less13%

$1,251–$3,333 a month22%

Over $3,333 a month65%

+57%

Jobs based in West Penn, 2013 → 2023: 614 → 963. 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.

Work & commute in West Penn, PA

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

Where West Penn goes to work

How far West Penn commutes

West Penn is a commuter town

What the jobs in West Penn are

Jobs based in West Penn

Jobs West Penn residents hold

How to read this page

Where to, neighbor?

Matches

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