They can also prevent new projects from being pushed to the urban fringe, where it’s difficult to reach key destinations without driving. Infill development and transit-oriented development (TOD) promote more compact, walkable urban communities available for everyone’s use. Smart growth development strategies can help remedy this disconnect by co-locating residential density with popular destinations. Many vehicle trips originate from the simple fact that where people live rarely coincides with where they work, shop, and recreate. In many ways, solving the issue of high VMT begins with land use. Several key interventions, from reforming harmful land use practices to implementing novel policy incentives in the transportation space, demonstrate potential to deliver impact quickly in this decisive decade for climate action. Admittedly, individual citizens often have little agency to combat this car-dominated model of transportation.įortunately, at the systemic level, policymakers and city planners do have a number of powerful tools in their arsenal to combat high VMT figures, should they choose to prioritize the issue. Significantly reducing VMT on a national scale will be no small feat, considering the sprawl that has been deeply baked into our cities and highways over the past century and our shared cultural norms surrounding driving.
This is an especially timely consideration as Congress continues a pivotal deliberation over the future of the nation’s infrastructure. RMI analysis indicates that the United States must reduce VMT by 20 percent before the end of the decade to limit warming to 1.5☌-and this remains true even under ambitious EV adoption scenarios.Īccomplishing this and other lofty climate goals requires elevating the importance of land use and transportation policies to help reduce overall vehicle travel. To avoid perpetuating the unsustainable “business-as-usual” approach to transportation in this country, elected officials and transportation professionals must start seriously considering strategies that can reduce the amount of driving that takes place to begin with. To compound all of these issues, the nation’s infrastructure has been in a state of general disrepair for decades. Our highway system has served to segregate populations, heightening long-standing injustices, while high costs of living and limited housing options continue to facilitate sprawl away from city centers.Īs citizens contend with long commutes and frequent traffic jams in their daily trips, VMT figures continue to rise and place additional strain on the transportation system. These include inequitable access to destinations, disconnected communities, and the nearly universal frustration of congestion. This is not merely personal preference many residents have little choice but to drive in order to reach everyday destinations such as offices, grocery stores, retail centers, and schools on account of sprawling land use patterns.īeyond the climate consequences resulting from transportation emissions, this high baseline of driving has given rise to a range of societal ills in American cities. Americans’ reliance on personal vehicles helps rack up a staggering three trillion vehicle miles traveled (VMT) each year, totaling over 14,000 miles for each licensed driver. A majority of these emissions, unsurprisingly, come from passenger vehicles.
Transportation accounts for 29 percent of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, the most of any sector. While the Office of Highway Policy Information of FHWA is responsible for preparation of this publication, a number of the statistical summaries are prepared by other units within the FHWA Federal Legislationįederal legislation and policy has required this data from the States for FHWA to assess the health of the highway system for Congress, and other interested entities including a host of other users such as State and local governments, the private sector, the media, and the general public.As the United States grapples with meaningful action on climate change, much emphasis has been placed on the transportation sector, and with good reason. Each State's data is analyzed for completeness, reasonableness, consistency, and compliance with data reporting instructions contained in " A Guide to Reporting Highway Statistics". Most highway data are submitted by the States directly to FHWA. It has been published annually since 1945. These information are presented in tables as well as selected charts.
#VMT BY STATE DRIVER#
The Highway Statistics Series consists of annual reports containing analyzed statistical information on motor fuel, motor vehicle registrations, driver licenses, highway user taxation, highway mileage, travel, and highway finance.
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