The number of vehicle-miles traveled on all roads in the United States decreased by some 1.55 percent to approximately 3.17 trillion in 2022. Records for 2019 reported the highest annual level on record, at just under 3.3 trillion vehicle-miles traveled.

Graph and download economic data for Vehicle Miles Traveled (TRFVOLUSM227SFWA) from Jan 2000 to Jan 2025 about miles, travel, vehicles, and USA.

In the United States, vehicle miles traveled annually by registered passenger cars in the United States generally increased between 1975 and 2019, from just over one trillion miles to just under 1.4 trillion miles. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among those under the age of 55 in the United States.

Graph and download economic data for Moving 12-Month Total Vehicle Miles Traveled from Dec 2000 to Jan 2025 about miles, 1-year, travel, vehicles, and USA.

This graph shows vehicle miles traveled (VMT) per vehicle and per capita in the United States in 2015. The average vehicle on U.S. roads traveled around 12,700 miles per year. That year, this figure came to around three trillion vehicle miles of travel for all vehicles combined.

Daily Miles Traveled (T14)

FULL MEASURE NAME
Total vehicle miles traveled

LAST UPDATED
August 2022

DESCRIPTION
Daily miles traveled, commonly referred to as vehicle miles traveled (VMT), reflects the total and per-person number of miles traveled in personal vehicles on a typical weekday. The dataset includes metropolitan area, regional and county tables for total vehicle miles traveled.

DATA SOURCE
California Department of Transportation: California Public Road Data/Highway Performance Monitoring System - http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/tsip/hpms/datalibrary.php
2001-2020

Federal Highway Administration: Highway Statistics - https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2020/hm71.cfm
2020

California Department of Finance: E-4 Historical Population Estimates for Cities, Counties, and the State - https://dof.ca.gov/forecasting/demographics/estimates/
2001-2020

US Census Population and Housing Unit Estimates - https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html
2020

CONTACT INFORMATION
vitalsigns.info@mtc.ca.gov

METHODOLOGY NOTES (across all datasets for this indicator)
Vehicle miles traveled (VMT) reflects the mileage accrued within the county and not necessarily the residents of that county; even though most trips are due to local residents, additional VMT can be accrued by through-trips. City data was thus discarded due to this limitation and the analysis only examines county and regional data, where through-trips are generally less common.

The metropolitan area comparison was performed by summing all of the urbanized areas for which the majority of its population falls within a given metropolitan area (9-county region for the San Francisco Bay Area and the primary metropolitan statistical area (MSA) for all others). For the metro analysis, no VMT data is available in rural areas; it is only available for intraregional analysis purposes. VMT per capita is calculated by dividing VMT by an estimate of the traveling population.

description: VMT is an estimate of travel based on traffic counts taken along the roads in New York State. Each year travel is estimated as part of the annual report to the Federal Highway Administration through the Highway Performance Monitoring System software application. The VMT estimate is stratified by the roadway Functional Classification of Principal Arterials, Minor Arterials, Collectors, and Local Roads & Street. The VMT data from 1985 through the current year is available.; abstract: VMT is an estimate of travel based on traffic counts taken along the roads in New York State. Each year travel is estimated as part of the annual report to the Federal Highway Administration through the Highway Performance Monitoring System software application. The VMT estimate is stratified by the roadway Functional Classification of Principal Arterials, Minor Arterials, Collectors, and Local Roads & Street. The VMT data from 1985 through the current year is available.

United States - Moving 12-Month Total Vehicle Miles Traveled was 3282698.00000 Mil. of Miles in January of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Moving 12-Month Total Vehicle Miles Traveled reached a record high of 3291734.00000 in November of 2024 and a record low of 2748656.00000 in December of 2000. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Moving 12-Month Total Vehicle Miles Traveled - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on March of 2025.

This data set represents the number of vehicle miles traveled annually by trucks in the United States in 2016, with a breakdown by network and state. In 2016, trucks traveled some 13 billion miles on rural road networks in Texas.

Graph and download economic data for Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) from Jan 2000 to Jan 2025 about miles, travel, vehicles, and USA.

The sample geographic areas for VMT are based on the 'Census Defined Urban Areas' and change every 10 years, as the census data changes. These 'Census Defined Urban Areas' differ from the city boundaries. It is important to note that there is a time lag between when the census data was collected and the implementation of the new 'Census Defined Urban Area or Boundary'. In the above graph, the implementation of the 1990 Census boundary does not appear until 1993 for Portland, OR only (noted by the uptick in the curve in 1993). The use of the new 2000 Census Boundary did not occur until 2004, for Portland, OR only; note a similar increase upward in the graph in 2004. However, the data shown above for 2010 is based on the 2010 Census population and the updated Defined Urban Area or Boundary. The 2011-18 figures likewise use the updated 2010 Census information and were adjusted for population changes in 2011-18.

2009-2018 Data Sources: The data for Portland, OR was received from the ODOT, Oregon Highway Performance Monitoring System (HPMS) office in Salem, Oregon. The information for Vancouver, WA was received from the Washington State DOT, HPMS office in Olympia, Washington. These data were the official state's submittals to the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Office in Washington, D.C. The 2010-2013 data are based on the 2010 Census and updates.

1990-2008 Urban Areas & National Average Data Sources: The data is from information published by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in Washington, D.C. The DVMT/ Person can be located in the FHWA's publication 'Highway Statistics'; 4.4.5 Urbanized Area Summaries, Section 4.4.5.2, Selected Characteristics, Table HM-72. The website for the 'Highway Statistics' series is located at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm The 2008 data is located at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2008/hm72.cfm The 2008 and earlier National Average of DVMT/ Person, are calculated by dividing the 'Total DVMT' for all Federal-Aid Urban Areas, by total 'Estimated Population' as it appears on Sheet 9 of Table HM-72, which lists all the Federal-Aid Urbanized Areas in the U.S.

2009-2018 Urban Areas & National Average Data Sources: Figures were not published for 2009 by the FHWA. 2010 urban area data was published in Table HM-71, at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2010/hm71.cfm However; the data was based on the year 2000 population, it was not adjusted for 2010, and not useful in calculations. The FHWA did publish Table HM-71 in February 2013, with updated 2011 urban area data, located: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2011/hm71.cfm The population and travel agree with information received from Oregon's and Washington's HPMS offices. In order to show a continuous graph line for 2009-10, the 2008 National DVMT/person information was averaged with the 2011 data. The 2011 national figure is the average for all 498 urbanized areas listed in the Table HM-71. 2012 urban area data was published in Table HM-71, at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2012/hm71.cfm However, since the data was based on the year 2000 population (i.e., identical issue with FHWA 2010 data), it was not in included in these DVMT calculations. 2013 urban area data was published in Tables HM-72, at: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2013/hm72.cfm 2014 urban area data was published in Tables HM-72, at: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2014/hm72.cfm 2015 urban area data was published in Tables HM-72, at: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2015/hm72.cfm 2016 urban area data was published in Tables HM-72, at: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2016/hm72.cfm 2017 urban area data was published in Tables HM-72, at: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2017/hm72.cfm 2018 urban area data was published in Tables HM-72, at: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2018/hm72.cfm

"A Federal-Aid Urbanized Area is an area with 50,000 or more persons that, at a minimum, encompasses the land area delineated as the urbanized area by the Bureau of the Census." (from Sheet 8, in Table HM-71, as noted above). Portland-Vancouver, OR-WA is a Federal-Aid Urbanized Area (UZA-27). The geographic area for each component (the Oregon and Washington portions of the Portland-Vancouver data set) are uniquely defined by the FHWA.

Motor vehicles traveled about 3.26 trillion vehicle-miles on U.S. roads in 2023. That year, traffic volume increased by approximately 2.1 percent on the previous year's level: around 3.20 trillion vehicle-miles traveled.

United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: 3 Licensed Drivers data was reported at 37,700.000 Mile in 2009. This records a decrease from the previous number of 37,900.000 Mile for 2001. United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: 3 Licensed Drivers data is updated yearly, averaging 37,700.000 Mile from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2009, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 37,900.000 Mile in 2001 and a record low of 29,400.000 Mile in 1991. United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: 3 Licensed Drivers data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Center for Transportation Analysis. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.TA005: Vehicles Miles Traveled per Household.

United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: 3 Persons data was reported at 27,900.000 Mile in 2009. This records a decrease from the previous number of 28,400.000 Mile for 2001. United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: 3 Persons data is updated yearly, averaging 27,900.000 Mile from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2009, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 28,400.000 Mile in 2001 and a record low of 23,700.000 Mile in 1991. United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: 3 Persons data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Center for Transportation Analysis. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.TA005: Vehicles Miles Traveled per Household.

United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: Urban data was reported at 17,600.000 Mile in 2009. This records a decrease from the previous number of 19,300.000 Mile for 2001. United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: Urban data is updated yearly, averaging 19,000.000 Mile from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2009, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 19,300.000 Mile in 2001 and a record low of 17,600.000 Mile in 2009. United States Ave Vehicle Miles Traveled per Household: Urban data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Center for Transportation Analysis. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.TA005: Vehicles Miles Traveled per Household.

Annual Vehicle Miles of Travel (AVMT) represents the estimated number of miles driven on Maryland's public highways for a given year. There are two components used to estimate AVMT - traffic count data and highway mileage. Traffic count data is summarized and reported as Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT).

AADTs are calculated from short-term (48-hour) traffic counts performed on all publicly maintained roads in Maryland (including county and municipal). These counts are factored to account for seasonal variation in traffic patterns and represent an “Average Day”.

For planning purposes, AADT's are assigned to highway segments in order to provide a picture of traffic patterns is on the highway system on an average day. Highway mileage statistics are complied annually based on mileage reports from the local jurisdictions and SHA and MDTA offices. Any mileage changes are field verified by SHA's data collections crews.

AVMT is calculated by multiplying the AADT on a road segment by the segment length. Because AADT represents Daily traffic, the result is multiplied by 365 to represent Annual Vehicle Miles of Travel. (AVMT = AADT X SECTION LENGTH X365)

Daily Miles Traveled (T14)

FULL MEASURE NAME
Total vehicle miles traveled

LAST UPDATED
August 2022

DESCRIPTION
Daily miles traveled, commonly referred to as vehicle miles traveled (VMT), reflects the total and per-person number of miles traveled in personal vehicles on a typical weekday. The dataset includes metropolitan area, regional and county tables for total vehicle miles traveled.

DATA SOURCE
California Department of Transportation: California Public Road Data/Highway Performance Monitoring System - http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/tsip/hpms/datalibrary.php
2001-2020

Federal Highway Administration: Highway Statistics - https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2020/hm71.cfm
2020

California Department of Finance: E-4 Historical Population Estimates for Cities, Counties, and the State - https://dof.ca.gov/forecasting/demographics/estimates/
2001-2020

US Census Population and Housing Unit Estimates - https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html
2020

CONTACT INFORMATION
vitalsigns.info@mtc.ca.gov

METHODOLOGY NOTES (across all datasets for this indicator)
Vehicle miles traveled (VMT) reflects the mileage accrued within the county and not necessarily the residents of that county; even though most trips are due to local residents, additional VMT can be accrued by through-trips. City data was thus discarded due to this limitation and the analysis only examines county and regional data, where through-trips are generally less common.

The metropolitan area comparison was performed by summing all of the urbanized areas for which the majority of its population falls within a given metropolitan area (9-county region for the San Francisco Bay Area and the primary metropolitan statistical area (MSA) for all others). For the metro analysis, no VMT data is available in rural areas; it is only available for intraregional analysis purposes. VMT per capita is calculated by dividing VMT by an estimate of the traveling population.

Vehicle Miles Traveled data was reported at 262,998.000 Mile mn in Dec 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 261,116.000 Mile mn for Nov 2024. Vehicle Miles Traveled data is updated monthly, averaging 268,884.500 Mile mn from Jan 2019 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 72 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 293,308.000 Mile mn in Aug 2019 and a record low of 167,617.000 Mile mn in Apr 2020. Vehicle Miles Traveled data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.TA007: Vehicle Miles Traveled.

This timeline shows the traffic-related fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in the United States from 2010 to 2020. In 2020, there were 1.34 traffic-related fatalities per 100 million VMT in the United States.

This table contains data on the annual miles traveled by place of occurrence and by mode of transportation (vehicle, pedestrian, bicycle), for California, its regions, counties, and cities/towns. The ratio uses data from the California Department of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the U.S. Census Bureau. The table is part of a series of indicators in the Healthy Communities Data and Indicators Project of the Office of Health Equity. Miles traveled by individuals and their choice of mode – car, truck, public transit, walking or bicycling – have a major impact on mobility and population health. Miles traveled by automobile offers extraordinary personal mobility and independence, but it is also associated with air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions linked to global warming, road traffic injuries, and sedentary lifestyles. Active modes of transport – bicycling and walking alone and in combination with public transit – offer opportunities for physical activity, which has many documented health benefits. More information about the data table and a data dictionary can be found in the About/Attachments section.