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Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) - Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) - United States Department of Transportation (USDOT, US DOT or DOT)

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BTS Home > Publications > Pocket Guide to Transportation > 2002

Introduction

America's transportation system has changed along with the nation's society and economy. The following table puts those changes in perspective:

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Characteristic	1970	2000
Resident population (thousands)	203,984	281,422
Total area (thousands of square miles)^a	3,619	3,718 (1990)
Total civilian labor force (thousands)	82,771	140,863
Real gross domestic product^b	$3.4 trillion	$9.2 trillion
Median household income^b	$29,600	$39,200
Average household expenditures^b	N	$35,384
Number of households (thousands)	63,401	104,705
Average life expectancy (years)	71	76.7 (1998)
Labor force participation by women	46%	60%

^a 1990 data include the Great Lakes and inland and coastal water. Estimate for 2000 not yet available. 1970 data include inland water only. The Census Bureau tabulates area data for the decennial census years only.

^b Expressed in 1996 chained dollars (see Glossary for definition).

Key: N = data do not exist. Note: All dollar amounts are 1996 chained dollars.

Sources: Population, area, number of households-U.S. Department of Commerce (USDOC), Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of United States: 2000, available at www.census.gov; GDP-USDOC, BEA; median household income-USDOC, Census Bureau, available at www.census.gov/hhes/www/income00.html; expenditures, employment-U.S. Department of Labor, BLS; life expectancy-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, available at www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats.htm.