|Energy Information Administration Residential Transportation Energy Consumption Survey Channel.  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                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            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|EIA 
        Home > Transportation 
        Home Page >**Chapter 3. Vehicle-Miles Traveled**                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
|**Chapter 3. Vehicle-Miles 
        Traveled**
            Vehicle-miles traveled--the 
              number of miles that residential vehicles are driven--is probably 
              the most important information collected by the Residential Transportation 
              Energy Consumption Survey. Using the data on vehicle-miles traveled 
              allows analysts to answer such questions as:
            "Are minivans 
              driven more than passenger cars?"
            "Do people 
              in the West drive more than people elsewhere?"
            "Do people 
              conserve their new cars by driving them less?"
            "Who drives 
              more--people in households with children, or other people?"
            "At what 
              ages do people drive the most?"
            "How does 
              growing income affect the amount of driving?"
            In addition 
              to answering those kinds of questions, analysts also use the number 
              of vehicle-miles traveled to compute estimated, on-road vehicle 
              fuel consumption, economy, and expenditures, all of which have important 
              implications for U.S. energy policy and national security (see Chapter 
              4).
            **The Number of Vehicle-Miles 
              Traveled Continued To Rise**
            In 1994, U.S. residential vehicles traveled 1,793 billion miles 
              (Figure 3.1), a distance equal to more than 70 million trips around 
              the world. The amount of travel in 1994 was 282 billion miles more 
              than in 1988. From 1988 through 1994, the average annual growth 
              in the number of miles traveled was 2.9 percent, almost 3 times 
              the rate of growth in the number of residential vehicles during 
              that period.START HERE  
            Graphic:Figure 3.1 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled by Type of Vehicles, 1988, 1991, and 1994
            Sources:****1988--Energy Information Administration 
              (EIA), *Household Vehicles Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) 
              (Washington, DC, February 1990), Table 12 1991--EIA, *Household 
              Vehicles Energy Consumption 1991*, DOE/EIA-0464(91) (Washington, 
              DC, December 1993), Table 14. 1994--Table 5.7 in this report.
            An average vehicle, 
              therefore, traveled farther in 1994 than in 1988: 11,400 miles per 
              year compared with 10,200 miles per year (Figure 3.2). Because the 
              number of vehicles per household remained steady at about 1.8 from 
              1988 through 1994, per-vehicle and per-household mileage grew at 
              about same rate. The per-household average rose from 18,600 miles 
              in 1988 to 21,100 miles in 1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.2 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household and per Vehicle by Survey Year, 1988, 1991, and 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Tables 14 and 18. 1991--EIA, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1991*, DOE/EIA-0464(91) (Washington, DC, 
              December 1993), Tables 16 and 20. 1994--Tables 5.9 and 5.15 in this 
              report.
            But while the 
              number of miles traveled and the number of residential vehicles 
              increased, the total amount of paved and unpaved roadway remained 
              at about 3.9 million miles.(1) Most 
              construction was aimed at improving, rather than extending, the 
              existing roadway system, about 40 percent of which was unpaved as 
              of 1994. In 1988, the average mile of roadway was traveled by residential 
              vehicles 1,066 times per day. In 1994, the number was 1,257, about 
              18 percent higher. (Because residential vehicles make up only about 
              four-fifths of the U.S. total fleet, there was, in fact, substantially 
              more total travel per mile of roadway.) These figures provide some 
              indication of the increase in traffic congestion over the period.
            Text Box:How Are Vehicle-Miles Traveled Measured?
            
            **Miles 
              Traveled by Light Trucks Increased the Fastest**
            Largely because 
              light trucks' share of the residential fleet increased from 1988 
              to 1994, the number of miles traveled by light trucks, rather than 
              passenger cars, accounted for most of the increase in residential 
              vehicle-miles traveled. Light trucks traveled 56 percent more miles 
              in 1994 than they had in 1988, attaining an average growth rate 
              of 7.8 percent per year. By comparison, the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled by passenger cars did not show a statistically significant 
              change.
            Light trucks' 
              share of total vehicle-miles traveled rose from one-fourth in 1988 
              to one-third in 1994. The increase was the result of two factors. 
              Light trucks comprised a larger share of the residential fleet in 
              1994. In addition, two segments of the light truck fleet--minivans 
              and sport utility-vehicles--were driven more miles per year per 
              vehicle than were passenger cars.
            **Minivans 
              Were Driven the Most**
            Minivans, which 
              are owned primarily by families with children, tend to be driven 
              more than other types of vehicles. In 1994, the average minivan 
              was driven 13,400 miles, substantially more than the number of miles 
              traveled, on average, by passenger cars, pickup trucks, and large 
              vans. In general, households with children reported a higher number 
              of vehicle-miles traveled than did other households (see section 
              on "Inside the Average U.S. Household: Who Drives Most?").
            Similarly, of 
              the two types of passenger cars, station wagons were used more on 
              average than were sedans. The average station wagon covered 12,100 
              miles in 1994, compared with 11,200 miles traveled by the average 
              sedan.
            **Vehicles 
              in the West Were Not Driven More Than in Other Regions**
            It seems reasonable 
              that people living in the "wide-open spaces" of the West 
              would drive more than people living in urban areas of the West and 
              in other regions of the country. However, the average number of 
              miles traveled per vehicle in the West, 10,900 miles, was comparable 
              to the average for the rest of the United States (Figure 3.3). That 
              average was slightly lower than the averages in the South and the 
              Midwest, but not statistically different from the average in the 
              Northeast. The national average was 11,400 miles per vehicle in 
              1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.3 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Region, 1994 (Miles in Thousands)
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            However, the 
              vehicle-miles-traveled averages may have masked significant variations 
              in State and local areas, such as the less populous States located 
              in the West. Other Energy Information Administration data sources, 
              most notably, State-level motor gasoline consumption estimates, 
              suggest wide variability in fuel use per capita. For example, motor 
              gasoline consumption in the most fuel-intensive State (Wyoming) 
              is more than twice that of consumption in the least-intensive State 
              (New York). However, even in sparsely populated States such as Wyoming, 
              most of the population lives in urban areas, so that a large part 
              of personal travel could be local. Why then would motor gasoline 
              use per capita vary so widely?
            There are good 
              reasons why per capita motor gasoline consumption may not be directly 
              correlated with per capita vehicle-miles traveled. Estimates of 
              total motor gasoline consumption could be greatly influenced by 
              tourists visiting the State in numbers that are many times the size 
              of the resident population. In addition, some western States with 
              small populations have major cross-country interstate highways passing 
              through. Vehicles traveling on such highways consume motor gasoline 
              that is then counted in that State's consumption. Tourists and through 
              traffic, largely unassociated with travel by State residents, would 
              have the greatest relative effect on per capita ratios in States 
              with large geographic areas and small populations. As an example, 
              in 1994 over 7 million people visited Wyoming with its population 
              of 476 thousand, according to the Wyoming Department of Tourism. 
              In order for tourism to have had the same relative effect in California, 
              almost everyone in the United States would have had to have visited 
              California nearly two times in 1994.
            **New 
              Vehicles Are Driven More than Older Vehicles**
            Vehicle age 
              is closely correlated with the number of miles traveled: the newer 
              the vehicle, the more miles it is driven, on average (Figure 3.4). 
              In 1994, the newest vehicles (model years 1994 and 1995(2)) 
              were driven 14,300 miles, about 1.7 times as much as were the oldest 
              vehicles (model years earlier than 1980, that is, vehicles at least 
              14 years old in 1994).
            Graphic:Figure 3.4 Redsidential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Vehicle Age, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            However, the 
              difference between the number of miles traveled by the oldest and 
              newest vehicles became much less pronounced in 1994 than it had 
              been in 1988. In 1988, the newest vehicles were driven 12,900 miles, 
              more than twice as much as were the oldest vehicles (those more 
              than 14 years old in 1988). The likely explanation for this trend 
              is that the oldest vehicles remaining in the residential fleet in 
              1994 were relatively newer, more fuel efficient, and probably more 
              reliable than were the oldest vehicles in the 1988 fleet.
            **Inside 
                the Average U.S. Household: 
                Who Drives the Most?**
            People in the 
              average U.S. household in 1994 drove their vehicles 21,100 miles, 
              far enough to travel from New York City(3) 
              to San Francisco seven times. That number, however, represents the 
              average of about 85 million U.S. households with vehicles in 1994, 
              and the average masks significant variation. For example, typical 
              householder A, an older person whose children had left home, drove 
              only 8,600 miles in 1994. That same year, people in typical household 
              B, which included teenagers of driving age, drove 29,900 miles. 
              And people in household C, which also included teenagers of driving 
              age and which had an income of $50,000 or more, drove 40,200 miles.
            By comparing 
              data on vehicle-miles traveled per household with details about 
              household size, composition, and income,(4) 
              analysts can correlate the number of miles driven per household 
              with factors such as how many people make up the household, how 
              many children live in the household, and how much money the household 
              earns. The Residential Transportation Energy Consumption Survey 
              is the only source of that information.
            **Miles 
              Driven Per Household Increased**
            As explained 
              in the previous section, in 1994, the number of vehicles per household, 
              1.8, was about the same as it had been in 1988, so that per-household 
              mileage increased at the same rate as per-vehicle mileage. In 1988, 
              the per-household average was 18,595 miles, compared with the 21,100 
              miles averaged in 1994.
            People in households 
              of all sizes drove more in 1994 than in 1988 (Figure 3.5). The difference 
              between miles traveled in 1988 versus 1994 was dwarfed by the difference 
              between miles traveled in the smallest households versus the largest. 
              Travel in single-person households averaged 11,600 miles in 1994, 
              about 800 miles more than in 1988. Travel in the typical household 
              of four averaged 26,600, about 3,300 miles more than in 1988 but 
              15,000 more than the smallest households.
            Graphic:Figure 3.5 Redsidential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Household Size and Survey Year, 1988, 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Table 7. 1994--Table 5.2 in this report.
            As would be 
              expected, the number of drivers in the household was an even more 
              important influence on the number of miles traveled than was on 
              the size of the household (Figure 3.6). Having three people in the 
              household raised the number of vehicle-miles traveled by a factor 
              of 2.2. Having three drivers in the household raised the number 
              by a factor of 2.7. People in the average household with three drivers 
              covered 33,100 vehicle-miles in 1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.6 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Number of Drivers and Survey Year, 1988 and 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Table 7. 1994--Table 5.2 in this report.
            **Teenagers 
              in the Household Boosted Miles Traveled**
            In general, 
              people in households with children drive more, and those with driving-age 
              children traveled the most vehicle-miles of any category in 1994: 
              29,900 miles (Figure 3.7). First, the presence of children of driving 
              age tends to increase the number of drivers in the household and, 
              therefore, to increase the number of vehicle-miles traveled. Secondly, 
              older children may create additional travel demands than do younger 
              children. In households with younger children, the number of vehicle-miles 
              driven is similar to the number of miles driven in households with 
              two or more adults with no children and in which the householder 
              is younger than 60. In fact, households with two adults or more 
              registered the greatest 1988-to-1994 increase in the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled.
            Graphic:Figure 3.7 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Household Composition and Survey Year, 1988 and 1994
            Note: 
              Household composition refers to the number and ages of people in 
              the household. Sources: 1988--Energy Information Administration, 
              *Household Vehicles Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) 
              (Washington, DC, February 1990), Table 14. 1994--Table 5.9 in this 
              report.
            **Older 
              Drivers Cover Fewer Miles**
            Each residential 
              vehicle has a primary driver. With the exception of 16- and 17-year-olds, 
              primary drivers older than 49 generally drive their vehicles fewer 
              miles than do primary drivers younger than 50 (Figure 3.8). After 
              age 49, the older the primary driver, the fewer were the vehicle-miles 
              traveled per year in general. As primary drivers, those 80 years 
              and older averaged 6,100 miles per vehicle per year. The 16-year-old 
              to 17-year-old age group averaged 9,600 vehicle-miles per year. 
              Among the four age groups (drivers of age 18 through 49), the differences 
              in number of vehicle-miles traveled per year were not statistically 
              significant.
            Graphic:Figure 3.8 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Age of Primary Driver, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            **Higher 
              Income Correlates with More Driving**
            In general, 
              higher income is correlated with more vehicle-miles traveled per 
              household (Figure 3.9). Annual household income of $50,000 or higher, 
              when coupled with the presence of teenagers of driving age in the 
              household, boosted average vehicle-miles traveled per household 
              to 40,200 miles in 1994. And in households with that income and 
              with two or more adults and no children, vehicle-miles traveled 
              averaged nearly 27,400. By comparison, in those households with 
              annual income below $10,000, vehicle-miles traveled averaged only 
              13,200.
            Graphic:Figure 3.9 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Annual Household Income, 1994
            Source: 
              Tables 5.2 in this report.
            Household income 
              does *not* correlate appreciably with the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled *per vehicle*. However, there is a correlation between 
              household income and the number of vehicles per household (Figure 
              3.10). High-income households tend to have more vehicles and thus 
              a higher per-household average of vehicle-miles traveled. It is 
              important to note that, in general, there is a positive correlation 
              between higher household income, older age of head of household, 
              a greater number of drivers, and an increased likelihood that the 
              household will include children of driving age--all factors associated 
              with a higher number of vehicle-miles per household. Households 
              that include children 16 or 17 years old tend to have an older head 
              of household. Older householders tend to have been in the work force 
              longer, to have a correspondingly higher income, and to have more 
              vehicles. For example, households with annual incomes of $50,000 
              or higher have nearly twice as many vehicles as do households with 
              annual incomes below $10,000.
            Graphic:Figure 3.10 Average Number of Vehicles per Household by Household Income, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.2 in this report.
            1.**1988**--Federal Highway Administration (FHA), 
              *Highway Statistics 1988*, FHWA-PL-98-003 (Washington, DC, 
              September 1989), Table DL-1B. **1994**--FHA, *Highway 
              Statistics 1994*, FHWA-PL-95-042 (Washington, DC, October 1995), 
              Table DL-1B.
            2.The 1994 residential vehicle fleet included a small number of 
              1995 model year vehicles.
            3.Energy Information Administration calculation based on mileage 
              from New York City to San Francisco of 2,946, as cited in Rand McNally 
              & Company, *Rand McNally Motor Carriers' Road Atlas 1991*, 
              p. 148.
            4.The 1993 household data used in this report are collected by 
              the Residential Energy Consumption Survey, another end-use consumption 
              survey conducted by the Energy Information Administration.
            File Last Modified: 
            February 1, 2002
            If you are having 
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              at wmaster@eia.doe.gov | **Chapter 3. Vehicle-Miles 
        Traveled**
            Vehicle-miles traveled--the 
              number of miles that residential vehicles are driven--is probably 
              the most important information collected by the Residential Transportation 
              Energy Consumption Survey. Using the data on vehicle-miles traveled 
              allows analysts to answer such questions as:
            "Are minivans 
              driven more than passenger cars?"
            "Do people 
              in the West drive more than people elsewhere?"
            "Do people 
              conserve their new cars by driving them less?"
            "Who drives 
              more--people in households with children, or other people?"
            "At what 
              ages do people drive the most?"
            "How does 
              growing income affect the amount of driving?"
            In addition 
              to answering those kinds of questions, analysts also use the number 
              of vehicle-miles traveled to compute estimated, on-road vehicle 
              fuel consumption, economy, and expenditures, all of which have important 
              implications for U.S. energy policy and national security (see Chapter 
              4).
            **The Number of Vehicle-Miles 
              Traveled Continued To Rise**
            In 1994, U.S. residential vehicles traveled 1,793 billion miles 
              (Figure 3.1), a distance equal to more than 70 million trips around 
              the world. The amount of travel in 1994 was 282 billion miles more 
              than in 1988. From 1988 through 1994, the average annual growth 
              in the number of miles traveled was 2.9 percent, almost 3 times 
              the rate of growth in the number of residential vehicles during 
              that period.START HERE  
            Graphic:Figure 3.1 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled by Type of Vehicles, 1988, 1991, and 1994
            Sources:****1988--Energy Information Administration 
              (EIA), *Household Vehicles Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) 
              (Washington, DC, February 1990), Table 12 1991--EIA, *Household 
              Vehicles Energy Consumption 1991*, DOE/EIA-0464(91) (Washington, 
              DC, December 1993), Table 14. 1994--Table 5.7 in this report.
            An average vehicle, 
              therefore, traveled farther in 1994 than in 1988: 11,400 miles per 
              year compared with 10,200 miles per year (Figure 3.2). Because the 
              number of vehicles per household remained steady at about 1.8 from 
              1988 through 1994, per-vehicle and per-household mileage grew at 
              about same rate. The per-household average rose from 18,600 miles 
              in 1988 to 21,100 miles in 1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.2 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household and per Vehicle by Survey Year, 1988, 1991, and 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Tables 14 and 18. 1991--EIA, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1991*, DOE/EIA-0464(91) (Washington, DC, 
              December 1993), Tables 16 and 20. 1994--Tables 5.9 and 5.15 in this 
              report.
            But while the 
              number of miles traveled and the number of residential vehicles 
              increased, the total amount of paved and unpaved roadway remained 
              at about 3.9 million miles.(1) Most 
              construction was aimed at improving, rather than extending, the 
              existing roadway system, about 40 percent of which was unpaved as 
              of 1994. In 1988, the average mile of roadway was traveled by residential 
              vehicles 1,066 times per day. In 1994, the number was 1,257, about 
              18 percent higher. (Because residential vehicles make up only about 
              four-fifths of the U.S. total fleet, there was, in fact, substantially 
              more total travel per mile of roadway.) These figures provide some 
              indication of the increase in traffic congestion over the period.
            Text Box:How Are Vehicle-Miles Traveled Measured?
            
            **Miles 
              Traveled by Light Trucks Increased the Fastest**
            Largely because 
              light trucks' share of the residential fleet increased from 1988 
              to 1994, the number of miles traveled by light trucks, rather than 
              passenger cars, accounted for most of the increase in residential 
              vehicle-miles traveled. Light trucks traveled 56 percent more miles 
              in 1994 than they had in 1988, attaining an average growth rate 
              of 7.8 percent per year. By comparison, the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled by passenger cars did not show a statistically significant 
              change.
            Light trucks' 
              share of total vehicle-miles traveled rose from one-fourth in 1988 
              to one-third in 1994. The increase was the result of two factors. 
              Light trucks comprised a larger share of the residential fleet in 
              1994. In addition, two segments of the light truck fleet--minivans 
              and sport utility-vehicles--were driven more miles per year per 
              vehicle than were passenger cars.
            **Minivans 
              Were Driven the Most**
            Minivans, which 
              are owned primarily by families with children, tend to be driven 
              more than other types of vehicles. In 1994, the average minivan 
              was driven 13,400 miles, substantially more than the number of miles 
              traveled, on average, by passenger cars, pickup trucks, and large 
              vans. In general, households with children reported a higher number 
              of vehicle-miles traveled than did other households (see section 
              on "Inside the Average U.S. Household: Who Drives Most?").
            Similarly, of 
              the two types of passenger cars, station wagons were used more on 
              average than were sedans. The average station wagon covered 12,100 
              miles in 1994, compared with 11,200 miles traveled by the average 
              sedan.
            **Vehicles 
              in the West Were Not Driven More Than in Other Regions**
            It seems reasonable 
              that people living in the "wide-open spaces" of the West 
              would drive more than people living in urban areas of the West and 
              in other regions of the country. However, the average number of 
              miles traveled per vehicle in the West, 10,900 miles, was comparable 
              to the average for the rest of the United States (Figure 3.3). That 
              average was slightly lower than the averages in the South and the 
              Midwest, but not statistically different from the average in the 
              Northeast. The national average was 11,400 miles per vehicle in 
              1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.3 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Region, 1994 (Miles in Thousands)
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            However, the 
              vehicle-miles-traveled averages may have masked significant variations 
              in State and local areas, such as the less populous States located 
              in the West. Other Energy Information Administration data sources, 
              most notably, State-level motor gasoline consumption estimates, 
              suggest wide variability in fuel use per capita. For example, motor 
              gasoline consumption in the most fuel-intensive State (Wyoming) 
              is more than twice that of consumption in the least-intensive State 
              (New York). However, even in sparsely populated States such as Wyoming, 
              most of the population lives in urban areas, so that a large part 
              of personal travel could be local. Why then would motor gasoline 
              use per capita vary so widely?
            There are good 
              reasons why per capita motor gasoline consumption may not be directly 
              correlated with per capita vehicle-miles traveled. Estimates of 
              total motor gasoline consumption could be greatly influenced by 
              tourists visiting the State in numbers that are many times the size 
              of the resident population. In addition, some western States with 
              small populations have major cross-country interstate highways passing 
              through. Vehicles traveling on such highways consume motor gasoline 
              that is then counted in that State's consumption. Tourists and through 
              traffic, largely unassociated with travel by State residents, would 
              have the greatest relative effect on per capita ratios in States 
              with large geographic areas and small populations. As an example, 
              in 1994 over 7 million people visited Wyoming with its population 
              of 476 thousand, according to the Wyoming Department of Tourism. 
              In order for tourism to have had the same relative effect in California, 
              almost everyone in the United States would have had to have visited 
              California nearly two times in 1994.
            **New 
              Vehicles Are Driven More than Older Vehicles**
            Vehicle age 
              is closely correlated with the number of miles traveled: the newer 
              the vehicle, the more miles it is driven, on average (Figure 3.4). 
              In 1994, the newest vehicles (model years 1994 and 1995(2)) 
              were driven 14,300 miles, about 1.7 times as much as were the oldest 
              vehicles (model years earlier than 1980, that is, vehicles at least 
              14 years old in 1994).
            Graphic:Figure 3.4 Redsidential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Vehicle Age, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            However, the 
              difference between the number of miles traveled by the oldest and 
              newest vehicles became much less pronounced in 1994 than it had 
              been in 1988. In 1988, the newest vehicles were driven 12,900 miles, 
              more than twice as much as were the oldest vehicles (those more 
              than 14 years old in 1988). The likely explanation for this trend 
              is that the oldest vehicles remaining in the residential fleet in 
              1994 were relatively newer, more fuel efficient, and probably more 
              reliable than were the oldest vehicles in the 1988 fleet.
            **Inside 
                the Average U.S. Household: 
                Who Drives the Most?**
            People in the 
              average U.S. household in 1994 drove their vehicles 21,100 miles, 
              far enough to travel from New York City(3) 
              to San Francisco seven times. That number, however, represents the 
              average of about 85 million U.S. households with vehicles in 1994, 
              and the average masks significant variation. For example, typical 
              householder A, an older person whose children had left home, drove 
              only 8,600 miles in 1994. That same year, people in typical household 
              B, which included teenagers of driving age, drove 29,900 miles. 
              And people in household C, which also included teenagers of driving 
              age and which had an income of $50,000 or more, drove 40,200 miles.
            By comparing 
              data on vehicle-miles traveled per household with details about 
              household size, composition, and income,(4) 
              analysts can correlate the number of miles driven per household 
              with factors such as how many people make up the household, how 
              many children live in the household, and how much money the household 
              earns. The Residential Transportation Energy Consumption Survey 
              is the only source of that information.
            **Miles 
              Driven Per Household Increased**
            As explained 
              in the previous section, in 1994, the number of vehicles per household, 
              1.8, was about the same as it had been in 1988, so that per-household 
              mileage increased at the same rate as per-vehicle mileage. In 1988, 
              the per-household average was 18,595 miles, compared with the 21,100 
              miles averaged in 1994.
            People in households 
              of all sizes drove more in 1994 than in 1988 (Figure 3.5). The difference 
              between miles traveled in 1988 versus 1994 was dwarfed by the difference 
              between miles traveled in the smallest households versus the largest. 
              Travel in single-person households averaged 11,600 miles in 1994, 
              about 800 miles more than in 1988. Travel in the typical household 
              of four averaged 26,600, about 3,300 miles more than in 1988 but 
              15,000 more than the smallest households.
            Graphic:Figure 3.5 Redsidential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Household Size and Survey Year, 1988, 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Table 7. 1994--Table 5.2 in this report.
            As would be 
              expected, the number of drivers in the household was an even more 
              important influence on the number of miles traveled than was on 
              the size of the household (Figure 3.6). Having three people in the 
              household raised the number of vehicle-miles traveled by a factor 
              of 2.2. Having three drivers in the household raised the number 
              by a factor of 2.7. People in the average household with three drivers 
              covered 33,100 vehicle-miles in 1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.6 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Number of Drivers and Survey Year, 1988 and 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Table 7. 1994--Table 5.2 in this report.
            **Teenagers 
              in the Household Boosted Miles Traveled**
            In general, 
              people in households with children drive more, and those with driving-age 
              children traveled the most vehicle-miles of any category in 1994: 
              29,900 miles (Figure 3.7). First, the presence of children of driving 
              age tends to increase the number of drivers in the household and, 
              therefore, to increase the number of vehicle-miles traveled. Secondly, 
              older children may create additional travel demands than do younger 
              children. In households with younger children, the number of vehicle-miles 
              driven is similar to the number of miles driven in households with 
              two or more adults with no children and in which the householder 
              is younger than 60. In fact, households with two adults or more 
              registered the greatest 1988-to-1994 increase in the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled.
            Graphic:Figure 3.7 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Household Composition and Survey Year, 1988 and 1994
            Note: 
              Household composition refers to the number and ages of people in 
              the household. Sources: 1988--Energy Information Administration, 
              *Household Vehicles Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) 
              (Washington, DC, February 1990), Table 14. 1994--Table 5.9 in this 
              report.
            **Older 
              Drivers Cover Fewer Miles**
            Each residential 
              vehicle has a primary driver. With the exception of 16- and 17-year-olds, 
              primary drivers older than 49 generally drive their vehicles fewer 
              miles than do primary drivers younger than 50 (Figure 3.8). After 
              age 49, the older the primary driver, the fewer were the vehicle-miles 
              traveled per year in general. As primary drivers, those 80 years 
              and older averaged 6,100 miles per vehicle per year. The 16-year-old 
              to 17-year-old age group averaged 9,600 vehicle-miles per year. 
              Among the four age groups (drivers of age 18 through 49), the differences 
              in number of vehicle-miles traveled per year were not statistically 
              significant.
            Graphic:Figure 3.8 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Age of Primary Driver, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            **Higher 
              Income Correlates with More Driving**
            In general, 
              higher income is correlated with more vehicle-miles traveled per 
              household (Figure 3.9). Annual household income of $50,000 or higher, 
              when coupled with the presence of teenagers of driving age in the 
              household, boosted average vehicle-miles traveled per household 
              to 40,200 miles in 1994. And in households with that income and 
              with two or more adults and no children, vehicle-miles traveled 
              averaged nearly 27,400. By comparison, in those households with 
              annual income below $10,000, vehicle-miles traveled averaged only 
              13,200.
            Graphic:Figure 3.9 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Annual Household Income, 1994
            Source: 
              Tables 5.2 in this report.
            Household income 
              does *not* correlate appreciably with the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled *per vehicle*. However, there is a correlation between 
              household income and the number of vehicles per household (Figure 
              3.10). High-income households tend to have more vehicles and thus 
              a higher per-household average of vehicle-miles traveled. It is 
              important to note that, in general, there is a positive correlation 
              between higher household income, older age of head of household, 
              a greater number of drivers, and an increased likelihood that the 
              household will include children of driving age--all factors associated 
              with a higher number of vehicle-miles per household. Households 
              that include children 16 or 17 years old tend to have an older head 
              of household. Older householders tend to have been in the work force 
              longer, to have a correspondingly higher income, and to have more 
              vehicles. For example, households with annual incomes of $50,000 
              or higher have nearly twice as many vehicles as do households with 
              annual incomes below $10,000.
            Graphic:Figure 3.10 Average Number of Vehicles per Household by Household Income, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.2 in this report.
            1.**1988**--Federal Highway Administration (FHA), 
              *Highway Statistics 1988*, FHWA-PL-98-003 (Washington, DC, 
              September 1989), Table DL-1B. **1994**--FHA, *Highway 
              Statistics 1994*, FHWA-PL-95-042 (Washington, DC, October 1995), 
              Table DL-1B.
            2.The 1994 residential vehicle fleet included a small number of 
              1995 model year vehicles.
            3.Energy Information Administration calculation based on mileage 
              from New York City to San Francisco of 2,946, as cited in Rand McNally 
              & Company, *Rand McNally Motor Carriers' Road Atlas 1991*, 
              p. 148.
            4.The 1993 household data used in this report are collected by 
              the Residential Energy Consumption Survey, another end-use consumption 
              survey conducted by the Energy Information Administration.
            File Last Modified: 
            February 1, 2002
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|**Chapter 3. Vehicle-Miles 
        Traveled**
            Vehicle-miles traveled--the 
              number of miles that residential vehicles are driven--is probably 
              the most important information collected by the Residential Transportation 
              Energy Consumption Survey. Using the data on vehicle-miles traveled 
              allows analysts to answer such questions as:
            "Are minivans 
              driven more than passenger cars?"
            "Do people 
              in the West drive more than people elsewhere?"
            "Do people 
              conserve their new cars by driving them less?"
            "Who drives 
              more--people in households with children, or other people?"
            "At what 
              ages do people drive the most?"
            "How does 
              growing income affect the amount of driving?"
            In addition 
              to answering those kinds of questions, analysts also use the number 
              of vehicle-miles traveled to compute estimated, on-road vehicle 
              fuel consumption, economy, and expenditures, all of which have important 
              implications for U.S. energy policy and national security (see Chapter 
              4).
            **The Number of Vehicle-Miles 
              Traveled Continued To Rise**
            In 1994, U.S. residential vehicles traveled 1,793 billion miles 
              (Figure 3.1), a distance equal to more than 70 million trips around 
              the world. The amount of travel in 1994 was 282 billion miles more 
              than in 1988. From 1988 through 1994, the average annual growth 
              in the number of miles traveled was 2.9 percent, almost 3 times 
              the rate of growth in the number of residential vehicles during 
              that period.START HERE  
            Graphic:Figure 3.1 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled by Type of Vehicles, 1988, 1991, and 1994
            Sources:****1988--Energy Information Administration 
              (EIA), *Household Vehicles Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) 
              (Washington, DC, February 1990), Table 12 1991--EIA, *Household 
              Vehicles Energy Consumption 1991*, DOE/EIA-0464(91) (Washington, 
              DC, December 1993), Table 14. 1994--Table 5.7 in this report.
            An average vehicle, 
              therefore, traveled farther in 1994 than in 1988: 11,400 miles per 
              year compared with 10,200 miles per year (Figure 3.2). Because the 
              number of vehicles per household remained steady at about 1.8 from 
              1988 through 1994, per-vehicle and per-household mileage grew at 
              about same rate. The per-household average rose from 18,600 miles 
              in 1988 to 21,100 miles in 1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.2 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household and per Vehicle by Survey Year, 1988, 1991, and 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Tables 14 and 18. 1991--EIA, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1991*, DOE/EIA-0464(91) (Washington, DC, 
              December 1993), Tables 16 and 20. 1994--Tables 5.9 and 5.15 in this 
              report.
            But while the 
              number of miles traveled and the number of residential vehicles 
              increased, the total amount of paved and unpaved roadway remained 
              at about 3.9 million miles.(1) Most 
              construction was aimed at improving, rather than extending, the 
              existing roadway system, about 40 percent of which was unpaved as 
              of 1994. In 1988, the average mile of roadway was traveled by residential 
              vehicles 1,066 times per day. In 1994, the number was 1,257, about 
              18 percent higher. (Because residential vehicles make up only about 
              four-fifths of the U.S. total fleet, there was, in fact, substantially 
              more total travel per mile of roadway.) These figures provide some 
              indication of the increase in traffic congestion over the period.
            Text Box:How Are Vehicle-Miles Traveled Measured?
            
            **Miles 
              Traveled by Light Trucks Increased the Fastest**
            Largely because 
              light trucks' share of the residential fleet increased from 1988 
              to 1994, the number of miles traveled by light trucks, rather than 
              passenger cars, accounted for most of the increase in residential 
              vehicle-miles traveled. Light trucks traveled 56 percent more miles 
              in 1994 than they had in 1988, attaining an average growth rate 
              of 7.8 percent per year. By comparison, the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled by passenger cars did not show a statistically significant 
              change.
            Light trucks' 
              share of total vehicle-miles traveled rose from one-fourth in 1988 
              to one-third in 1994. The increase was the result of two factors. 
              Light trucks comprised a larger share of the residential fleet in 
              1994. In addition, two segments of the light truck fleet--minivans 
              and sport utility-vehicles--were driven more miles per year per 
              vehicle than were passenger cars.
            **Minivans 
              Were Driven the Most**
            Minivans, which 
              are owned primarily by families with children, tend to be driven 
              more than other types of vehicles. In 1994, the average minivan 
              was driven 13,400 miles, substantially more than the number of miles 
              traveled, on average, by passenger cars, pickup trucks, and large 
              vans. In general, households with children reported a higher number 
              of vehicle-miles traveled than did other households (see section 
              on "Inside the Average U.S. Household: Who Drives Most?").
            Similarly, of 
              the two types of passenger cars, station wagons were used more on 
              average than were sedans. The average station wagon covered 12,100 
              miles in 1994, compared with 11,200 miles traveled by the average 
              sedan.
            **Vehicles 
              in the West Were Not Driven More Than in Other Regions**
            It seems reasonable 
              that people living in the "wide-open spaces" of the West 
              would drive more than people living in urban areas of the West and 
              in other regions of the country. However, the average number of 
              miles traveled per vehicle in the West, 10,900 miles, was comparable 
              to the average for the rest of the United States (Figure 3.3). That 
              average was slightly lower than the averages in the South and the 
              Midwest, but not statistically different from the average in the 
              Northeast. The national average was 11,400 miles per vehicle in 
              1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.3 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Region, 1994 (Miles in Thousands)
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            However, the 
              vehicle-miles-traveled averages may have masked significant variations 
              in State and local areas, such as the less populous States located 
              in the West. Other Energy Information Administration data sources, 
              most notably, State-level motor gasoline consumption estimates, 
              suggest wide variability in fuel use per capita. For example, motor 
              gasoline consumption in the most fuel-intensive State (Wyoming) 
              is more than twice that of consumption in the least-intensive State 
              (New York). However, even in sparsely populated States such as Wyoming, 
              most of the population lives in urban areas, so that a large part 
              of personal travel could be local. Why then would motor gasoline 
              use per capita vary so widely?
            There are good 
              reasons why per capita motor gasoline consumption may not be directly 
              correlated with per capita vehicle-miles traveled. Estimates of 
              total motor gasoline consumption could be greatly influenced by 
              tourists visiting the State in numbers that are many times the size 
              of the resident population. In addition, some western States with 
              small populations have major cross-country interstate highways passing 
              through. Vehicles traveling on such highways consume motor gasoline 
              that is then counted in that State's consumption. Tourists and through 
              traffic, largely unassociated with travel by State residents, would 
              have the greatest relative effect on per capita ratios in States 
              with large geographic areas and small populations. As an example, 
              in 1994 over 7 million people visited Wyoming with its population 
              of 476 thousand, according to the Wyoming Department of Tourism. 
              In order for tourism to have had the same relative effect in California, 
              almost everyone in the United States would have had to have visited 
              California nearly two times in 1994.
            **New 
              Vehicles Are Driven More than Older Vehicles**
            Vehicle age 
              is closely correlated with the number of miles traveled: the newer 
              the vehicle, the more miles it is driven, on average (Figure 3.4). 
              In 1994, the newest vehicles (model years 1994 and 1995(2)) 
              were driven 14,300 miles, about 1.7 times as much as were the oldest 
              vehicles (model years earlier than 1980, that is, vehicles at least 
              14 years old in 1994).
            Graphic:Figure 3.4 Redsidential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Vehicle Age, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            However, the 
              difference between the number of miles traveled by the oldest and 
              newest vehicles became much less pronounced in 1994 than it had 
              been in 1988. In 1988, the newest vehicles were driven 12,900 miles, 
              more than twice as much as were the oldest vehicles (those more 
              than 14 years old in 1988). The likely explanation for this trend 
              is that the oldest vehicles remaining in the residential fleet in 
              1994 were relatively newer, more fuel efficient, and probably more 
              reliable than were the oldest vehicles in the 1988 fleet.
            **Inside 
                the Average U.S. Household: 
                Who Drives the Most?**
            People in the 
              average U.S. household in 1994 drove their vehicles 21,100 miles, 
              far enough to travel from New York City(3) 
              to San Francisco seven times. That number, however, represents the 
              average of about 85 million U.S. households with vehicles in 1994, 
              and the average masks significant variation. For example, typical 
              householder A, an older person whose children had left home, drove 
              only 8,600 miles in 1994. That same year, people in typical household 
              B, which included teenagers of driving age, drove 29,900 miles. 
              And people in household C, which also included teenagers of driving 
              age and which had an income of $50,000 or more, drove 40,200 miles.
            By comparing 
              data on vehicle-miles traveled per household with details about 
              household size, composition, and income,(4) 
              analysts can correlate the number of miles driven per household 
              with factors such as how many people make up the household, how 
              many children live in the household, and how much money the household 
              earns. The Residential Transportation Energy Consumption Survey 
              is the only source of that information.
            **Miles 
              Driven Per Household Increased**
            As explained 
              in the previous section, in 1994, the number of vehicles per household, 
              1.8, was about the same as it had been in 1988, so that per-household 
              mileage increased at the same rate as per-vehicle mileage. In 1988, 
              the per-household average was 18,595 miles, compared with the 21,100 
              miles averaged in 1994.
            People in households 
              of all sizes drove more in 1994 than in 1988 (Figure 3.5). The difference 
              between miles traveled in 1988 versus 1994 was dwarfed by the difference 
              between miles traveled in the smallest households versus the largest. 
              Travel in single-person households averaged 11,600 miles in 1994, 
              about 800 miles more than in 1988. Travel in the typical household 
              of four averaged 26,600, about 3,300 miles more than in 1988 but 
              15,000 more than the smallest households.
            Graphic:Figure 3.5 Redsidential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Household Size and Survey Year, 1988, 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Table 7. 1994--Table 5.2 in this report.
            As would be 
              expected, the number of drivers in the household was an even more 
              important influence on the number of miles traveled than was on 
              the size of the household (Figure 3.6). Having three people in the 
              household raised the number of vehicle-miles traveled by a factor 
              of 2.2. Having three drivers in the household raised the number 
              by a factor of 2.7. People in the average household with three drivers 
              covered 33,100 vehicle-miles in 1994.
            Graphic:Figure 3.6 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Number of Drivers and Survey Year, 1988 and 1994
            Sources: 
              1988--Energy Information Administration, *Household Vehicles 
              Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) (Washington, DC, 
              February 1990), Table 7. 1994--Table 5.2 in this report.
            **Teenagers 
              in the Household Boosted Miles Traveled**
            In general, 
              people in households with children drive more, and those with driving-age 
              children traveled the most vehicle-miles of any category in 1994: 
              29,900 miles (Figure 3.7). First, the presence of children of driving 
              age tends to increase the number of drivers in the household and, 
              therefore, to increase the number of vehicle-miles traveled. Secondly, 
              older children may create additional travel demands than do younger 
              children. In households with younger children, the number of vehicle-miles 
              driven is similar to the number of miles driven in households with 
              two or more adults with no children and in which the householder 
              is younger than 60. In fact, households with two adults or more 
              registered the greatest 1988-to-1994 increase in the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled.
            Graphic:Figure 3.7 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Household Composition and Survey Year, 1988 and 1994
            Note: 
              Household composition refers to the number and ages of people in 
              the household. Sources: 1988--Energy Information Administration, 
              *Household Vehicles Energy Consumption 1988*, DOE/EIA-0464(88) 
              (Washington, DC, February 1990), Table 14. 1994--Table 5.9 in this 
              report.
            **Older 
              Drivers Cover Fewer Miles**
            Each residential 
              vehicle has a primary driver. With the exception of 16- and 17-year-olds, 
              primary drivers older than 49 generally drive their vehicles fewer 
              miles than do primary drivers younger than 50 (Figure 3.8). After 
              age 49, the older the primary driver, the fewer were the vehicle-miles 
              traveled per year in general. As primary drivers, those 80 years 
              and older averaged 6,100 miles per vehicle per year. The 16-year-old 
              to 17-year-old age group averaged 9,600 vehicle-miles per year. 
              Among the four age groups (drivers of age 18 through 49), the differences 
              in number of vehicle-miles traveled per year were not statistically 
              significant.
            Graphic:Figure 3.8 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Vehicle by Age of Primary Driver, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.15 in this report.
            **Higher 
              Income Correlates with More Driving**
            In general, 
              higher income is correlated with more vehicle-miles traveled per 
              household (Figure 3.9). Annual household income of $50,000 or higher, 
              when coupled with the presence of teenagers of driving age in the 
              household, boosted average vehicle-miles traveled per household 
              to 40,200 miles in 1994. And in households with that income and 
              with two or more adults and no children, vehicle-miles traveled 
              averaged nearly 27,400. By comparison, in those households with 
              annual income below $10,000, vehicle-miles traveled averaged only 
              13,200.
            Graphic:Figure 3.9 Residential Vehicle-Miles Traveled per Household by Annual Household Income, 1994
            Source: 
              Tables 5.2 in this report.
            Household income 
              does *not* correlate appreciably with the number of vehicle-miles 
              traveled *per vehicle*. However, there is a correlation between 
              household income and the number of vehicles per household (Figure 
              3.10). High-income households tend to have more vehicles and thus 
              a higher per-household average of vehicle-miles traveled. It is 
              important to note that, in general, there is a positive correlation 
              between higher household income, older age of head of household, 
              a greater number of drivers, and an increased likelihood that the 
              household will include children of driving age--all factors associated 
              with a higher number of vehicle-miles per household. Households 
              that include children 16 or 17 years old tend to have an older head 
              of household. Older householders tend to have been in the work force 
              longer, to have a correspondingly higher income, and to have more 
              vehicles. For example, households with annual incomes of $50,000 
              or higher have nearly twice as many vehicles as do households with 
              annual incomes below $10,000.
            Graphic:Figure 3.10 Average Number of Vehicles per Household by Household Income, 1994
            Source: 
              Table 5.2 in this report.
            1.**1988**--Federal Highway Administration (FHA), 
              *Highway Statistics 1988*, FHWA-PL-98-003 (Washington, DC, 
              September 1989), Table DL-1B. **1994**--FHA, *Highway 
              Statistics 1994*, FHWA-PL-95-042 (Washington, DC, October 1995), 
              Table DL-1B.
            2.The 1994 residential vehicle fleet included a small number of 
              1995 model year vehicles.
            3.Energy Information Administration calculation based on mileage 
              from New York City to San Francisco of 2,946, as cited in Rand McNally 
              & Company, *Rand McNally Motor Carriers' Road Atlas 1991*, 
              p. 148.
            4.The 1993 household data used in this report are collected by 
              the Residential Energy Consumption Survey, another end-use consumption 
              survey conducted by the Energy Information Administration.
            File Last Modified: 
            February 1, 2002
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