Work & commute · Altavista

Work & commute in Altavista, VA

Most working residents leave Altavista for work: only 19% work in town. The top destinations are Lynchburg (19%), Rustburg (5%) and Forest (3%). Half commute less than 19 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

19%

259 of 1,389 working residents

Typical commute

19 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

23 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 1,130 Altavista residents head out of town to work, 259 work right here, and 2,807 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Altavista.

1,130live here, work elsewhere

259live and work here

2,807work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Altavista goes to work

Altavista (in town)right here

19%259

Lynchburg19.6 mi away

19%259

Rustburg14.4 mi away

5%73

Forest17.4 mi away

3%41

Timberlake13.5 mi away

3%35

Chatham22.5 mi away

2%29

Roanoke38.7 mi away

2%29

Bedford19.6 mi away

2%21

Richmond103.2 mi away

1%17

Gretna12.8 mi away

1%15

Everywhere elseother towns and states

44%611

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

How far

How far Altavista commutes

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

26%

43%

11%

20%

26%Under 10 mi

43%10–24 mi

11%25–50 mi

20%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Altavista is a job hub

2.21jobs per working resident

A job hub

2.2 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Altavista are

3,066 jobs are based in Altavista. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Altavista’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Altavista

3,066 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)41%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)38%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month35%

Over $3,333 a month50%

Jobs Altavista residents hold

1,389 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)25%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)58%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month37%

Over $3,333 a month46%

−4%

Jobs based in Altavista, 2013 → 2023: 3,199 → 3,066. 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.