BTS | Introduction

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BTS Home > Publications > Pocket Guide to Transportation > 2008

Introduction

America’s transportation system continues to change along with the population, work force, and economy. The following table puts those changes in perspective:

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Context	1990	2006
Resident population (thousand)	248,791	299,398
Total area (thousand sq. mi.)	3,718	3,794 (2000) ^a
Total civilian labor force (thousand)	125,840	151,428
Real gross domestic product^b (trillion)	$7.1	$11.3
Median household income^b,c	$36,668	$41,350
Average household income^b,c	$39,073	$51,929
Average household expenditures^b,c	$35,257	$42,204
Number of households (thousand)	93,347	114,384
Life expectancy at birth (years)	75.4	77.8 (2004)

^a Data for 2000 include inland water, coastal water, Great Lakes, and territorial water. The Census Bureau tabulates area data for the decennial census years only.

^b Data in 2000 chained dollars (see Glossary for definition).

^c BTS computations, November 2007.

Sources: Area-U.S. Department of Commerce (USDOC), U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2002 and 2007, available at www.census.gov, as of Oct. 2007. GDP-USDOC, Bureau of Economic Analysis, available at www.bea.gov, as of Oct. 2007. Population, number of households, and median household income-USDOC, Census, available at www.census.gov, as of Oct. 2007. Average household income and expenditures, and labor force-U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, available at www.bls.gov, as of Oct. 2007. Life expectancy-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, available at www.cdc.gov, as of Oct. 2007.