Work & commute · Big Chimney

Work & commute in Big Chimney, WV

Most working residents leave Big Chimney for work: only 2% work in town. The top destinations are Charleston (44%), South Charleston (8%) and Bridgeport (2%). Half commute less than 7 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

5 of 287 working residents

Typical commute

7 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

— min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

26%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 282 Big Chimney residents head out of town to work, 5 work right here, and 773 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Big Chimney.

282live here, work elsewhere

5live and work here

773work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Big Chimney goes to work

Charleston7.1 mi away

44%127

South Charleston11 mi away

8%23

Bridgeport92.6 mi away

2%6

St. Albans15.8 mi away

2%5

Beckley48.7 mi away

2%5

Big Chimney (in town)right here

2%5

Dunbar11.5 mi away

1%4

Teays Valley21.4 mi away

1%4

Pinch3 mi away

1%3

Cross Lanes13.2 mi away

1%3

Everywhere elseother towns and states

36%102

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

How far

How far Big Chimney commutes

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

65%

16%

10%

65%Under 10 mi

16%10–24 mi

8%25–50 mi

10%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Big Chimney is a job hub

2.71jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Big Chimney are

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

Jobs based in Big Chimney

778 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities5%

Services (health, schools, offices…)85%

$1,250 a month or less14%

$1,251–$3,333 a month26%

Over $3,333 a month61%

Jobs Big Chimney residents hold

287 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)8%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)75%

$1,250 a month or less12%

$1,251–$3,333 a month31%

Over $3,333 a month57%

+34%

Jobs based in Big Chimney, 2013 → 2023: 581 → 778. 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.