Skip to main content

US driving distances seeing increase

Web Headline US driving distances seeing increase Main Site Taxonomy WH12, ITS16 Sub Taxonomy Image supplied Needs XSP WH & ITS A recent study from the University of Michigan highlights key diverging trends in the amount of urban and rural driving. The study into Sustainable Worldwide Transportation was carried out jointly by experts in the field, Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle. The focus of the study was on changes in the distances being driven in urban and rural areas of the US. This study
July 12, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
A recent study from the 5186 University of Michigan highlights key diverging trends in the amount of urban and rural driving. The study into Sustainable Worldwide Transportation was carried out jointly by experts in the field, Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle. The focus of the study was on changes in the distances being driven in urban and rural areas of the US. This study examined data estimating annual distances driven in urban and rural environments. The research also took into account whether the driving was carried out on interstate highways, arterial routes or other roads. The study covered the period from 2000 to 2016 and uncovered two key facts. The overall distance being driven/year in the US grew 15% between 2000 and 2016. In this time, the total distance driven in the urban cycle increased 33% while conversely, the total distance driven in rural areas dropped by 12%. It is clear that the growth in the overall distance driven in the US between 2000 and 2016 is broadly aligned with the increase in population during the same period. However the trends towards increases in urban driving and decreasing rural driving do not entirely match the shifts in the populations of urban and rural areas in the US and a further study may be required to explain this phenomenon.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Uruguay’s transport investment is seeing major gains
    August 1, 2017
    Uruguay’s road development programme will help deliver economic growth for the future - Gordon Feller reports. Uruguay is embarking on a new nationwide programme to rehabilitate 890km of roads, and the government intends to improve an additional 260km of dangerous highways and roads. This three-year programme aims to reduce traffic accidents, in part thanks to a US$70 million loan recently authorised by the World Bank’s board of directors. The new operation uses a special financing instrument known as “Prog
  • British Tunnelling Society conference: digging deep for data
    December 13, 2016
    Tunnelling innovation is creating mountains of data for contractors and designers, delegates to a recent British Tunnelling Society (BTS) conference heard Successful innovation in tunnelling techniques and technologies is creating more and more data, thanks to digitalisation.
  • Italian manufacturer body Unacea reveals machine exports
    October 31, 2014
    The Italian construction equipment manufacturer body Unacea has revealed comprehensive information on machine sales and exports. The data shows that construction machine sales in Italy grew 12% in the first nine months of 2014. However exports fell 7% and Unacea believes that the export performance of Italian manufacturers on the world market will have shrunk by the end of the year compared with the figures for 2013. Over the first nine months of 2014, construction equipment sold in the Italian market sto
  • Florida highway rebuild project
    May 2, 2018
    Rebuilding a congested stretch of highway in Florida will cut congestion and boost safety for commuters - Mike Woof writes. Florida’s 214km-long I-4 highway provides a key transport route between Tampa and Daytona Beach, but has an unenviable reputation for both congestion and safety, with frequent delays due to heavy traffic as well as crashes. The stretch running through the city of Orlando is particularly prone to jams at peak periods, with huge traffic volumes resulting in vehicles having to slow to a c