BTS Home > Publications > Transportation Statistics Annual Report > 2005

Appendix A: Glossary

0-9 | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

0-9

14 CFR 121 (air): Code of Federal Regulations, Title 14, part 121. Prescribes rules governing the operation of domestic, flag, and supplemental air carriers and commercial operators of large aircraft.

14 CFR 135 (air): Code of Federal Regulations, Title 14, part 135. Prescribes rules governing the operations of commuter air carriers (scheduled) and on-demand air taxi (unscheduled).

A

ACCIDENT (aircraft): As defined by the National Transportation Safety Board, an occurrence incidental to flight in which, as a result of the operation of an aircraft, any person (occupant or nonoccupant) receives fatal or serious injury or any aircraft receives substantial damage.

ACCIDENT (automobile): See Crash (highway).

ACCIDENT (gas): 1) An event that involves the release of gas from a pipeline or of liquefied natural gas (LNG) or other gas from an LNG facility resulting in personal injury necessitating in-patient hospitalization or a death; or estimated property damage of $50,000 or more to the operator or others, or both, including the value of the gas that escaped during the accident; 2) an event that results in an emergency shutdown of an LNG facility; or 3) an event that is significant in the judgment of the operator even though it did not meet the criteria of (1) or (2).

ACCIDENT (hazardous liquid or gas): Release of hazardous liquid or carbon dioxide while being transported, resulting in any of the following: 1) an explosion or fire not intentionally set by the operator; 2) loss of 50 or more barrels of hazardous liquid or carbon dioxide; 3) release to the atmosphere of more than 5 barrels a day of highly volatile liquids; 4) death of any person; 5) bodily harm resulting in one or more of the following—a) the loss of consciousness, b) the necessity of carrying a person from the scene, c) the necessity for medical treatment, d) disability that prevents the discharge of normal duties; and 6) estimated damage to the property of the operators and/or others exceeding $50,000.

ACCIDENT (highway-rail grade-crossing): An impact between on-track railroad equipment and an automobile, bus, truck, motorcycle, bicycle, farm vehicle, or pedestrian or other highway user at a designated crossing site. Sidewalks, pathways, shoulders, and ditches associated with the crossing are considered to be part of the crossing site.

ACCIDENT (rail): A collision, derailment, fire, explosion, act of God, or other event involving operation of railroad on-track equipment (standing or moving) that results in railroad damage exceeding an established dollar threshold.

ACCIDENT (recreational boating): An occurrence involving a vessel or its equipment that results in 1) a death; 2) an injury that requires medical treatment beyond first aid; 3) damage to a vessel and other property, totaling more than $500 or resulting in the complete loss of a vessel; or 4) the disappearance of the vessel under circumstances that indicate death or injury. Federal regulations (33 CFR 173–4) require the operator of any vessel that is numbered or used for recreational purposes to submit an accident report.

ACCIDENT (transit): An incident involving a moving vehicle, including another vehicle, an object, or person (except suicides), or a derailment/left roadway.

AIR CARRIER: The commercial system of air transportation comprising large certificated air carriers, small certificated air carriers, commuter air carriers, on-demand air taxis, supplemental air carriers, and air travel clubs.

AIR TAXI: An aircraft operator who conducts operations for hire or compensation in accordance with 14 CFR 135 (for safety purposes) or FAR Part 135 (for economic regulations or reporting purposes) in an aircraft with 30 or fewer passenger seats and a payload capacity of 7,500 pounds or less. An air taxi operates on an on-demand basis and does not meet the flight schedule qualifications of a commuter air carrier (see below).

AIRPORT: A landing area regularly used by aircraft for receiving or discharging passengers or cargo.

ALTERNATIVE FUELS: The Energy Policy Act of 1992 defines alternative fuels as methanol, denatured ethanol, and other alcohol; mixtures containing 85 percent or more (but not less than 70 percent as determined by the Secretary of Energy by rule to provide for requirements relating to cold start, safety, or vehicle functions) by volume of methanol, denatured ethanol, and other alcohols with gasoline or other fuels. Includes compressed natural gas, liquid petroleum gas, hydrogen, coal-derived liquid fuels, fuels other than alcohols derived from biological materials, electricity, or any other fuel the Secretary of Energy determines by rule is substantially not petroleum and would yield substantial energy security and environmental benefits.

AMTRAK: Operated by the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, this rail system was created by the Rail Passenger Service Act of 1970 (Public Law 91-518, 84 Stat. 1327) and given the responsibility for the operation of intercity, as distinct from suburban, passenger trains between points designated by the Secretary of Transportation.

ARTERIAL HIGHWAY: A major highway used primarily for through traffic.

ASPHALT: A dark brown to black cement-like material containing bitumen as the predominant constituent. The definition includes crude asphalt and finished products such as cements, fluxes, the asphalt content of emulsions, and petroleum distillates blended with asphalt to make cutback asphalt. Asphalt is obtained by petroleum ­processing.

AVAILABLE SEAT-MILES (air carrier): The ­aircraft-miles flown in each interairport hop multiplied by the number of seats available on that hop for revenue passenger service.

AVERAGE HAUL: The average distance, in miles, one ton is carried. It is computed by dividing ton-miles by tons of freight originated.

AVERAGE PASSENGER TRIP LENGTH (bus/rail): Calculated by dividing revenue passenger-miles by the number of revenue passengers.

AVIATION GASOLINE (general aviation): All special grades of gasoline used in aviation reciprocating engines, as specified by American Society of Testing Materials Specification D910 and Military Specification MIL-G5572. Includes refinery products within the gasoline range marketed as or blended to constitute aviation ­gasoline.

B

BARREL (oil): A unit of volume equal to 42 U.S. gallons.

BRITISH THERMAL UNIT (Btu): The quantity of heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 pound (approximately 1 pint) of water by 1 °F at or near 39.2 °F.

BULK CARRIER (water): A ship with specialized holds for carrying dry or liquid commodities, such as oil, grain, ore, and coal, in unpackaged bulk form. Bulk carriers may be designed to carry a single bulk product (crude oil tanker) or accommodate several bulk product types (ore/bulk/oil carrier) on the same voyage or on a subsequent voyage after holds are cleaned.

BUS: Large motor vehicle used to carry more than 10 passengers, including school buses, intercity buses, and transit buses.

C

CAR-MILE (rail): The movement of a railroad car a distance of one mile. An empty or loaded car-mile refers to a mile run by a freight car with or without a load. In the case of intermodal movements, the designation of empty or loaded refers to whether the trailers or containers are moved with or without a waybill.

CERTIFICATE OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND NECESSITY (air carrier): A certificate issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation to an air carrier under Section 401 of the Federal Aviation Act authorizing the carrier to engage in air transportation.

CERTIFICATED AIR CARRIER: An air carrier holding a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation to conduct scheduled services interstate. These carriers may also conduct nonscheduled or charter operations. Certificated air carriers operate large aircraft (30 seats or more or a maximum load of 7,500 pounds or more) in accordance with FAR Part 121. See also Large Certificated Air Carrier.

CERTIFICATED AIRPORTS: Airports that service air carrier operations with aircraft seating more than 30 passengers.

CHAINED DOLLARS: A measure used to express real prices, defined as prices that are adjusted to remove the effect of changes in the purchasing power of the dollar. Real prices usually reflect buying power relative to a reference year. The “chained-dollar” measure is based on the average weights of goods and services in successive pairs of years. It is “chained” because the second year in each pair, with its weights, becomes the first year of the next pair. Prior to 1996, real prices were expressed in constant dollars, a weighted measure of goods and services in a single year. See also Constant Dollars and Current Dollars.

CLASS I RAILROAD: A carrier that has an annual operating revenue of $250 million or more after applying the railroad revenue deflator formula, which is based on the Railroad Freight Price Index developed by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. The formula is the current year’s revenues multiplied by the 1991 average index or current year’s average index.

COASTWISE TRAFFIC (water): Domestic traffic receiving a carriage over the ocean or the Gulf of Mexico (e.g., between New Orleans and Baltimore, New York and Puerto Rico, San Francisco and Hawaii, Alaska and Hawaii). Traffic between Great Lakes ports and seacoast ports, when having a carriage over the ocean, is also considered coastwise.

COLLECTOR (highway): In rural areas, routes that serve intracounty rather than statewide travel. In urban areas, streets that provide direct access to neighborhoods and arterials.

COMBINATION TRUCK: A power unit (truck tractor) and one or more trailing units (a semitrailer or trailer).

COMMERCIAL BUS: Any bus used to carry passengers at rates specified in tariffs; charges may be computed per passenger (as in regular route service) or per vehicle (as in charter service).

COMMERCIAL SERVICE AIRPORT: Airport receiving scheduled passenger service and having 2,500 or more enplaned passengers per year.

COMMUTER AIR CARRIER: Different definitions are used for safety purposes and for economic regulations and reporting. For safety analysis, commuter carriers are defined as air carriers operating under 14 CFR 135 that carry passengers for hire or compensation on at least five round trips per week on at least one route between two or more points according to published flight schedules, which specify the times, days of the week, and points of service. On March 20, 1997, the size of the aircraft subject to 14 CFR 135 was reduced from 30 to fewer than 10 passenger seats. (Larger aircraft are subject to the more stringent regulations of 14 CFR 121.) Helicopters carrying passengers or cargo for hire, however, are regulated under CFR 135 whatever their size. Although, in practice, most commuter air carriers operate aircraft that are regulated for safety purposes under 14 CFR 135 and most aircraft that are regulated under 14 CFR 135 are operated by commuter air carriers, this is not necessarily the case.

For economic regulations and reporting requirements, commuter air carriers are those carriers that operate aircraft of 60 or fewer seats or a maximum payload capacity of 18,000 pounds or less. These carriers hold a certificate issued under section 298C of the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, as amended.

COMMUTER RAIL (transit): Urban passenger train service for short-distance travel between a central city and adjacent suburb. Does not include rapid rail transit or light rail service.

CONSTANT DOLLARS: Dollar value adjusted for changes in the average price level by dividing a current dollar amount by a price index. See also Chained Dollars and Current Dollars.

CRASH (highway): An event that produces injury and/or property damage, involves a motor vehicle in transport, and occurs on a trafficway or while the vehicle is still in motion after running off the trafficway.

CRUDE OIL: A mixture of hydrocarbons that exists in the liquid phase in natural underground reservoirs and remains liquid at atmospheric pressure after passing through surface-separating facilities.

CURRENT DOLLARS: Dollar value of a good or service in terms of prices current at the time the good or service is sold. See also Chained Dollars and Constant Dollars.

D

DEADWEIGHT TONNAGE (water): The carrying capacity of a vessel in long tons (2,240 pounds). It is the difference between the number of tons of water a vessel displaces “light” and the number of tons it displaces when submerged to the “load line.”

DEMAND-RESPONSE VEHICLE (transit): A nonfixed-route, nonfixed-schedule vehicle that operates in response to calls from passengers or their agents to the transit operator or ­dispatcher.

DIESEL FUEL: A complex mixture of hydrocarbons with a boiling range between approximately 350 and 650 °F. Diesel fuel is composed primarily of paraffins and naphthenic compounds that auto-ignite from the heat of compression in a diesel engine. Diesel is used primarily by heavy-duty road vehicles, construction equipment, locomotives, and by marine and stationary engines.

DOMESTIC FREIGHT (water): All waterborne commercial movement between points in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, excluding traffic with the Panama Canal Zone. Cargo moved for the military in commercial vessels is reported as ordinary commercial cargo; military cargo moved in military vessels is omitted.

DOMESTIC OPERATIONS (air carrier): All air carrier operations having destinations within the 50 United States , the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

DOMESTIC PASSENGER (water): Any person traveling on a public conveyance by water between points in the United States , Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

DRY CARGO BARGES (water): Large flat-­bottomed, nonself-propelled vessels used to transport dry-bulk materials such as coal and ore.

E

ENERGY EFFICIENCY: The ratio of energy inputs to outputs from a process, for example, miles traveled per gallon of fuel (mpg).

ENPLANED PASSENGERS (air carrier): See Revenue Passenger Enplanements.

F

FATAL CRASH (highway): A police-reported crash involving a motor vehicle in transport on a trafficway in which at least 1 person dies within 30 days of the crash as a result of that crash.

FATAL INJURY (air): Any injury that results in death within 30 days of the accident.

FATALITY: For purposes of statistical reporting on transportation safety, a fatality is considered a death due to injuries in a transportation crash, accident, or incident that occurs within 30 days of that occurrence.

FATALITY (rail): 1) Death of any person from an injury within 30 days of the accident or incident (may include nontrain accidents or incidents); or 2) death of a railroad employee from an occupational illness within 365 days after the occupational illness was diagnosed by a physician.

FATALITY (recreational boating): All deaths (other than deaths by natural causes) and missing persons resulting from an occurrence that involves a vessel or its equipment.

FATALITY (transit): A transit-caused death confirmed within 30 days of a transit incident. Incidents include collisions, derailments, personal casualties, and fires associated with transit agency revenue vehicles, transit facilities on transit property, service vehicles, maintenance areas, and rights-of-way.

FATALITY (water): All deaths and missing persons resulting from a vessel casualty.

FERRYBOAT (transit): Vessels that carry passengers and/or vehicles over a body of water. Generally steam or diesel-powered, ferryboats may also be hovercraft, hydrofoil, and other high-speed vessels. The vessel is limited in its use to the carriage of deck passengers or vehicles or both, operates on a short run on a frequent schedule between two points over the most direct water routes other than in ocean or coastwise service, and is offered as a public service of a type normally attributed to a bridge or tunnel.

FOSSIL FUELS: Any naturally occurring organic fuel formed in the Earth’s crust, such as petroleum, coal, and natural gas.

FREIGHT REVENUE (rail): Revenue from the transportation of freight and from the exercise of transit, stopoff, diversion, and reconsignment privileges as provided for in tariffs.

FREIGHTERS (water): General cargo carriers, full containerships, partial containerships, roll-on/rolloff ships, and barge carriers.

G

GAS TRANSMISSION PIPELINES: Pipelines installed for the purpose of transmitting gas from a source or sources of supply to one or more distribution centers, or to one or more large volume customers; or a pipeline installed to interconnect sources of supply. Typically, transmission lines differ from gas mains in that they operate at higher pressures and the distance between connections is greater.

GASOLINE: A complex mixture of relatively volatile hydrocarbons, with or without small quantities of additives, that have been blended to produce a fuel suitable for use in spark ignition engines. Motor gasoline includes both leaded or unleaded grades of finished motor gasoline, blending components, and gasohol. Leaded gasoline is no longer used in highway motor vehicles in the United States .

GENERAL AVIATION: 1) All civil aviation operations other than scheduled air services and nonscheduled air transport operations for taxis, commuter air carriers, and air travel clubs that do not hold Certificates of Public Convenience and Necessity. 2) All civil aviation activity except that of air carriers certificated in accordance with Federal Aviation Regulations, Parts 121, 123, 127, and 135. The types of aircraft used in general aviation range from corporate multiengine jet aircraft piloted by professional crews to amateur-built single-engine piston-­driven acrobatic planes to balloons and dirigibles.

GENERAL ESTIMATES SYSTEM (highway): A data-collection system that uses a nationally representative probability sample selected from all police-reported highway crashes. It began operation in 1988.

GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT ( U.S. ): The total output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States , valued at market prices. As long as the labor and property are located in the United States , the suppliers (workers and owners) may be either U.S. residents or residents of foreign countries.

GROSS VEHICLE WEIGHT RATING (truck): The maximum rated capacity of a vehicle, including the weight of the base vehicle, all added equipment, driver and passengers, and all cargo.

H

HAZARDOUS MATERIAL: Any toxic substance or explosive, corrosive, combustible, poisonous, or radioactive material that poses a risk to the public’s health, safety, or property, particularly when transported in commerce.

HEAVY RAIL (transit): An electric railway with the capacity to transport a heavy volume of passenger traffic and characterized by exclusive rights-of-way, multicar trains, high speed, rapid acceleration, sophisticated signaling, and high-platform loading. Also known as “subway,” “elevated (railway),” or “metropolitan railway (metro).”

HIGHWAY-RAIL GRADE CROSSING (rail): A location where one or more railroad tracks are crossed by a public highway, road, street, or a private roadway at grade, including sidewalks and pathways at or associated with the ­crossing.

HIGHWAY TRUST FUND: A grant-in-aid type fund administered by the U.S. Department of Trans­portation, Federal Highway Administration. Most funds for highway improvements are apportioned to states according to formulas that give weight to population, area, and mileage.

HIGHWAY-USER TAX: A charge levied on persons or organizations based on their use of public roads. Funds collected are usually applied toward highway construction, reconstruction, and maintenance.

I

INCIDENT (hazardous materials): Any unintentional release of hazardous material while in transit or storage.

INCIDENT (train): Any event involving the movement of a train or railcars on track equipment that results in a death, a reportable injury, or illness, but in which railroad property damage does not exceed the reporting threshold.

INCIDENT (transit): Collisions, derailments, personal casualties, fires, and property damage in excess of $1,000 associated with transit agency revenue vehicles; all other facilities on the transit property; and service vehicles, maintenance areas, and rights-of-way.

INJURY (air): See Serious Injury (air carrier/general aviation).

INJURY (gas): Described in U.S. Department of Transportation Forms 7100.1 or 7100.2 as an injury requiring “in-patient hospitalization” (admission and confinement in a hospital beyond treatment administered in an emergency room or out-patient clinic in which confinement does not occur).

INJURY (hazardous liquid pipeline): An injury resulting from a hazardous liquid pipeline accident that results in one or more of the following: 1) loss of consciousness, 2) a need to be carried from the scene, 3) a need for medical treatment, and/or 4) a disability that prevents the discharge of normal duties or the pursuit of normal duties beyond the day of the accident.

INJURY (highway): Police-reported highway injuries are classified as follows:

Incapacitating Injury: Any injury, other than a fatal injury, that prevents the injured person from walking, driving, or normally continuing the activities the person was capable of performing before the injury occurred. Includes severe lacerations, broken or distorted limbs, skull or chest injuries, abdominal injuries, unconsciousness at or when taken from the accident scene, and inability to leave the accident scene without assistance. Exclusions include momentary ­un­con­sciousness.

Nonincapacitating Evident Injury: Any injury, other than a fatal injury or an incapacitating injury, evident to observers at the scene of the accident. Includes lumps on head, abrasions, bruises, minor lacerations, and others. Excludes limping.

Possible Injury: Any injury reported or claimed that is not evident. Includes, among others, momentary unconsciousness, claim of injuries not obvious, limping, complaint of pain, nausea, and hysteria.

INJURY (highway-rail grade crossing): 1) An injury to one or more persons other than railroad employees that requires medical treatment; 2) an injury to one or more employees that requires medical treatment or that results in restriction of work or motion for one or more days, or one or more lost work days, transfer to another job, termination of employment, or loss of consciousness; 3) any occupational illness affecting one or more railroad employees that is diagnosed by a physician.

INJURY (rail): 1) Injury to any person other than a railroad employee that requires medical treatment, or 2) injury to a railroad employee that requires medical treatment or results in restriction of work or motion for one or more workdays, one or more lost workdays, termination of employment, transfer to another job, loss of consciousness, or any occupational illness of a railroad employee diagnosed by a physician.

INJURY (recreational boating): Injury requiring medical treatment beyond first aid as a result of an occurrence that involves a vessel or its ­equipment.

INJURY (transit): Any physical damage or harm to a person requiring medical treatment or any physical damage or harm to a person reported at the time and place of occurrence. For employees, an injury includes incidents resulting in time lost from duty or any definition consistent with a transit agency’s current employee injury reporting practice.

INJURY (water): All personal injuries resulting from a vessel casualty that require medical treatment beyond first aid.

INLAND AND COASTAL CHANNELS: Includes the Atlantic Coast Waterways, the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, the New York State Barge Canal System, the Gulf Coast Waterways, the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, the Mississippi River System (including the Illinois Waterway), the Pacific Coast Waterways, the Great Lakes, and all other channels (waterways) of the United States, exclusive of Alaska, that are usable for commercial navigation.

INTERCITY CLASS I BUS: As defined by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, an interstate motor carrier of passengers with an average annual gross revenue of at least $1 million.

INTERCITY TRUCK: A truck that carries freight beyond local areas and commercial zones.

INTERNAL TRAFFIC (water): Vessel movements (origin and destination) that take place solely on inland waterways located within the boundaries of the contiguous 48 states or within the state of Alaska. Internal traffic also applies to carriage on both inland waterways and the water on the Great Lakes; carriage between offshore areas and inland waterways; and carriage occurring within the Delaware Bay, Chesapeake Bay, Puget Sound, and the San Francisco Bay, which are considered internal bodies of water rather than arms of the ocean.

INTERSTATE HIGHWAY: Limited access, divided highway of at least four lanes designated by the Federal Highway Administration as part of the Interstate System.

J

JET FUEL: Includes kerosene-type jet fuel (used primarily for commercial turbojet and turboprop aircraft engines) and naphtha-type jet fuel (used primarily for military turbojet and turboprop aircraft engines).

L

LAKEWISE OR GREAT LAKES TRAFFIC: Waterborne traffic between U.S. ports on the Great Lakes system. The Great Lakes system is treated as a separate waterways system rather than as a part of the inland system.

LARGE CERTIFICATED AIR CARRIER: An air carrier holding a certificate issued under section 401 of the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, as amended, that: 1) operates aircraft designed to have a maximum passenger capacity of more than 60 seats or a maximum payload capacity of more than 18,000 pounds, or 2) conducts operations where one or both terminals of a flight stage are outside the 50 states of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Large certificated air carriers are grouped by annual operating revenues: 1) majors (more than $1 billion in annual operating revenues), 2) nationals (between $100 million and $1 billion in annual operating revenues), 3) large regionals (between $20 million and $99,999,999 in annual operating revenues), and 4) medium regionals (less than $20 million in annual operating revenues).

LARGE REGIONALS (air): Air carrier groups with annual operating revenues between $20 million and $99,999,999.

LARGE TRUCK: Trucks over 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight rating, including single-unit trucks and truck tractors.

LIGHT-DUTY VEHICLE: A vehicle category that combines light automobiles and trucks.

LIGHT RAIL: A streetcar-type vehicle operated on city streets, semi-exclusive rights-of-way, or exclusive rights-of-way. Service may be provided by step-entry vehicles or by level boarding.

LIGHT TRUCK: Trucks of 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight rating or less, including pickups, vans, truck-based station wagons, and sport utility vehicles.

LOCOMOTIVE: Railroad vehicle equipped with flanged wheels for use on railroad tracks, powered directly by electricity, steam, or fossil fuel, and used to move other railroad rolling equipment.

M

MAJORS (air): Air carrier groups with annual operating revenues exceeding $1 billion.

MEDIUM REGIONALS (air): Air carrier groups with annual operating revenues less than $20 million.

MERCHANDISE TRADE EXPORTS: Merchandise transported out of the United States to foreign countries whether such merchandise is exported from within the U.S. Customs Service territory, from a U.S. Customs bonded warehouse, or from a U.S. Foreign Trade Zone. (Foreign Trade Zones are areas, operated as public utilities, under the control of U.S. Customs with facilities for handling, storing, manipulating, manufacturing, and exhibiting goods.)

MERCHANDISE TRADE IMPORTS: Commodities of foreign origin entering the United States , as well as goods of domestic origin returned to the United States with no change in condition or after having been processed and/or assembled in other countries. Puerto Rico is a Customs district within the U.S. Customs territory, and its trade with foreign countries is included in U.S. import statistics. U.S. import statistics also include merchandise trade between the U.S. Virgin Islands and foreign countries even though the Islands are not officially a part of the U.S. Customs ­territory.

METHYL-TERTIARY-BUTYL-ETHER (MTBE): A colorless, flammable, liquid oxygenated hydrocarbon that contains 18.15 percent oxygen. It is a fuel oxygenate produced by reacting methanol with isobutylene.

MINOR ARTERIALS (highway): Roads linking cities and larger towns in rural areas. In urban areas, roads that link but do not penetrate neighborhoods within a community.

MOTORBUS (transit): A rubber-tired, self-propelled, manually steered bus with a fuel supply onboard the vehicle. Motorbus types include intercity, school, and transit.

MOTORCYCLE: A two- or three-wheeled motor vehicle designed to transport one or two people, including motor scooters, minibikes, and mo­peds.

N

NATIONALS (air): Air carrier groups with annual operating revenues between $100 million and $1 billion.

NATURAL GAS: A naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbon and nonhydrocarbon gases found in porous geologic formations beneath the Earth’s surface, often in association with petro­leum. The principal constituent is methane.

NONOCCUPANT (Automobile): Any person who is not an occupant of a motor vehicle in transport (e.g., bystanders, pedestrians, pedalcyclists, or an occupant of a parked motor ­vehicle).

NONSCHEDULED SERVICE (air): Revenue flights not operated as regular scheduled service, such as charter flights, and all nonrevenue flights incident to such flights.

NONSELF-PROPELLED VESSEL (water): A vessel without the means for self-propulsion. Includes dry cargo barges and tanker barges.

NONTRAIN INCIDENT: An event that results in a reportable casualty, but does not involve the movement of ontrack equipment and does not cause reportable damage above the threshold established for train accidents.

NONTRESPASSERS (rail): A person lawfully on any part of railroad property used in railroad operations or a person adjacent to railroad premises when injured as the result of railroad operations.

NONVESSEL-CASUALTY-RELATED DEATH (water): A death that occurs onboard a commercial vessel but not as a result of a vessel casualty, such as a collision, fire, or explosion.

O

OCCUPANT (highway): Any person in or on a motor vehicle in transport. Includes the driver, passengers, and persons riding on the exterior of a motor vehicle (e.g., a skateboard rider holding onto a moving vehicle). Excludes occupants of parked cars unless they are double parked or motionless on the roadway.

OCCUPATIONAL FATALITY: Death resulting from a job-related injury.

OPERATING EXPENSES (air): Expenses incurred in the performance of air transportation, based on overall operating revenues and expenses. Does not include nonoperating income and expenses, nonrecurring items, or income taxes.

OPERATING EXPENSES (rail): Expenses of furnishing transportation services, including maintenance and depreciation of the plant used in the service.

OPERATING EXPENSES (transit): The total of all expenses associated with operation of an individual mode by a given operator. Includes distributions of “joint expenses” to individual modes and excludes “reconciling items,” such as interest expenses and depreciation. Should not be confused with “vehicle operating expenses.”

OPERATING EXPENSES (truck): Includes expenditures for equipment maintenance, supervision, wages, fuel, equipment rental, terminal operations, insurance, safety, and administrative and general functions.

OPERATING REVENUES (air): Revenues from the performance of air transportation and re­lated incidental services. Includes 1) transportation revenues from the carriage of all classes of traffic in scheduled and nonscheduled services, and 2) nontransportation revenues consisting of federal subsidies (where applicable) and services related to air transportation.

OTHER FREEWAYS AND EXPRESSWAYS (highway): All urban principal arterials with limited access but not part of the Interstate system.

OTHER PRINCIPAL ARTERIALS (highway): Major streets or highways, many of multi-lane or freeway design, serving high-volume traffic corridor movements that connect major generators of travel.

OTHER RAIL REVENUE: Includes revenues from miscellaneous operations (i.e., dining- and bar-car services), income from the lease of road and equipment, miscellaneous rental income, income from nonoperating property, profit from separately operated properties, dividend income, interest income, income from sinking and other reserve funds, release or premium on funded debt, contributions from other companies, and other miscellaneous income.

OTHER REVENUE VEHICLES (transit): Other revenue-generating modes of transit service, such as cable cars, personal rapid transit systems, monorail vehicles, inclined and railway cars, not covered otherwise.

OTHER 2-AXLE 4-TIRE VEHICLES (truck): Includes vans, pickup trucks, and sport utility vehicles.

P

PASSENGER CAR: A motor vehicle designed primarily for carrying passengers on ordinary roads, includes convertibles, sedans, and stations wagons.

PASSENGER-MILE: 1) Air: One passenger transported 1 mile; passenger-miles for 1 interairport flight are calculated by multiplying aircraft-miles flown by the number of passengers carried on the flight. The total passenger-miles for all flights is the sum of passenger-miles for all interairport flights. 2) Auto: One passenger traveling 1 mile; e.g., 1 car transporting 2 passengers 4 miles results in 8 passenger-miles. 3) Transit: The total number of miles traveled by transit passengers; e.g., 1 bus transporting 5 passengers 3 miles results in 15 passenger-miles.

PASSENGER REVENUE: 1) Rail: Revenue from the sale of tickets. 2) Air: Revenues from the transport of passengers by air. 3) Transit: Fares, transfer, zone, and park-and-ride parking charges paid by transit passengers. Prior to 1984, fare revenues collected by contractors operating transit services were not included.

PASSENGER VESSELS (water): A vessel designed for the commercial transport of passengers.

PEDALCYCLIST: A person on a vehicle that is powered solely by pedals.

PEDESTRIAN: Any person not in or on a motor vehicle or other vehicle. Excludes people in buildings or sitting at a sidewalk cafe. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also uses an “other pedestrian” category to refer to pedestrians using conveyances and people in buildings. Examples of pedestrian conveyances include skateboards, nonmotorized wheelchairs, rollerskates, sleds, and transport devices used as equipment.

PERSON-MILES: An estimate of the aggregate distances traveled by all persons on a given trip based on the estimated transportation-network-miles traveled on that trip.

PERSON TRIP: A trip taken by an individual. For example, if three persons from the same household travel together, the trip is counted as one household trip and three person trips.

PERSONAL CASUALTY (transit): 1) An incident in which a person is hurt while getting on or off a transit vehicle (e.g., falls or door incidents), but not as a result of a collision, derailment/left roadway, or fire. 2) An incident in which a person is hurt while using a lift to get on or off a transit vehicle, but not as a result of a collision, derailment/left roadway, or fire. 3) An incident in which a person is injured on a transit vehicle, but not as a result of a collision, derailment/left roadway, or fire. 4) An incident in which a person is hurt while using a transit facility. This includes anyone on transit property (e.g., patrons, transit employees, trespassers), but does not include incidents resulting from illness or criminal activity.

PETROLEUM (oil): A generic term applied to oil and oil products in all forms, such as crude oil, lease condensate, unfinished oils, petroleum products, natural gas plant liquids, and nonhydrocarbon compounds blended into finished petroleum products.

PROPERTY DAMAGE (transit): The dollar amount required to repair or replace transit property (including stations, right-of-way, bus stops, and maintenance facilities) damaged during an incident.

PUBLIC ROAD: Any road under the jurisdiction of and maintained by a public authority (federal, state, county, town or township, local government, or instrumentality thereof) and open to public travel.

R

RAPID RAIL TRANSIT: Transit service using railcars driven by electricity usually drawn from a third rail, configured for passenger traffic, and usually operated on exclusive rights-of-way. It generally uses longer trains and has longer station spacing than light rail.

REVENUE: Remuneration received by carriers for transportation activities.

REVENUE PASSENGER: 1) Air: Person receiving air transportation from an air carrier for which remuneration is received by the carrier. Air carrier employees or others, except ministers of religion, elderly individuals, and handicapped individuals, receiving reduced rate charges (less than the applicable tariff) are considered nonrevenue passengers. Infants, for whom a token fare is charged, are not counted as passengers. 2) Transit: Single-vehicle transit rides by initial-board (first-ride) transit passengers only. Excludes all transfer rides and all nonrevenue rides. 3) Rail: Number of one-way trips made by persons holding tickets.

REVENUE PASSENGER ENPLANEMENTS (air): The total number of passengers boarding aircraft. Includes both originating and connecting passengers.

REVENUE PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR (air): Revenue passenger-miles as a percentage of available seat-miles in revenue passenger ser­vices. The term is used to represent the proportion of aircraft seating capacity that is actually sold and utilized.

REVENUE PASSENGER-MILE: One revenue passenger transported one mile.

REVENUE PASSENGER TON-MILE (air): One ton of revenue passenger weight (including all baggage) transported one mile. The passenger weight standard for both domestic and international operations is 200 pounds.

REVENUE TON-MILE: One short ton of freight transported one mile.

REVENUE VEHICLE-MILES (transit): One vehicle (bus, trolley bus, or streetcar) traveling one mile, while revenue passengers are on board, generates one revenue vehicle-mile. Revenue vehicle-miles reported represent the total mileage traveled by vehicles in scheduled or unscheduled revenue-producing services.

ROLL ON/ROLL OFF VESSEL (water): Ships that are designed to carry wheeled containers or other wheeled cargo and use the roll on/roll off method for loading and unloading.

RURAL HIGHWAY: Any highway, road, or street that is not an urban highway.

RURAL MILEAGE (highway): Roads outside city, municipal district, or urban boundaries.

S

SCHEDULED SERVICE (air): Transport service operated on published flight schedules.

SCHOOL BUS: A passenger motor vehicle that is designed or used to carry more than 10 passengers, in addition to the driver, and, as determined by the Secretary of Transportation, is likely to be significantly used for the purpose of transporting pre-primary, primary, or secondary school students between home and school.

SCHOOL BUS-RELATED CRASH: Any crash in which a vehicle, regardless of body design and used as a school bus, is directly or indirectly involved, such as a crash involving school children alighting from a vehicle.

SELF-PROPELLED VESSEL: A vessel that has its own means of propulsion. Includes tankers, containerships, dry bulk cargo ships, and general cargo vessels.

SERIOUS INJURY (air carrier/general aviation): An injury that requires hospitalization for more than 48 hours, commencing within 7 days from the date when the injury was received; results in a bone fracture (except simple fractures of fingers, toes, or nose); involves lacerations that cause severe hemorrhages, or nerve, muscle, or tendon damage; involves injury to any internal organ; or involves second- or third-degree burns or any burns affecting more than 5 percent of the body surface.

SMALL CERTIFICATED AIR CARRIER: An air carrier holding a certificate issued under section 401 of the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, as amended, that operates aircraft designed to have a maximum seating capacity of 60 seats or fewer or a maximum payload of 18,000 pounds or less.

STATE AND LOCAL HIGHWAY EXPENDITURES: Disbursements for capital outlays, maintenance and traffic surfaces, administration and research, highway law enforcement and safety, and interest on debt.

SUPPLEMENTAL AIR CARRIER: An air carrier authorized to perform passenger and cargo charter services.

T

TANKER: An oceangoing ship designed to haul liquid bulk cargo in world trade.

TON-MILE (truck): The movement of one ton of cargo the distance of one mile. Ton-miles are calculated by multiplying the weight in tons of each shipment transported by the miles hauled.

TON-MILE (water): The movement of one ton of cargo the distance of one statute mile. Domestic ton-miles are calculated by multiplying tons moved by the number of statute miles moved on the water (e.g., 50 short tons moving 200 miles on a waterway would yield 10,000 ton-miles for that waterway). Ton-miles are not computed for ports. For coastwise traffic, the shortest route that safe navigation permits between the port of origin and destination is used to calculate ­ton-miles.

TRAIN LINE MILEAGE: The aggregate length of all line-haul railroads. It does not include the mileage of yard tracks or sidings, nor does it reflect the fact that a mile of railroad may include two or more parallel tracks. Jointly-used track is counted only once.

TRAIN-MILE: The movement of a train, which can consist of many cars, the distance of one mile. A train-mile differs from a vehicle-mile, which is the movement of one car (vehicle) the distance of one mile. A 10-car (vehicle) train traveling 1 mile is measured as 1 train-mile and 10 vehicle-miles. Caution should be used when comparing train-miles to vehicle-miles.

TRANSIT VEHICLE: Includes light, heavy, and commuter rail; motorbus; trolley bus; van pools; automated guideway; and demand responsive vehicles.

TRANSSHIPMENTS: Shipments that enter or exit the United States by way of a U.S. Customs port on the northern or southern border, but whose origin or destination is a country other than Canada or Mexico .

TRESPASSER (rail): Any person whose presence on railroad property used in railroad operations is prohibited, forbidden, or unlawful.

TROLLEY BUS: Rubber-tired electric transit vehicle, manually steered and propelled by a motor drawing current, normally through overhead wires, from a central power source.

TRUST FUNDS: Accounts that are designated by law to carry out specific purposes and programs. Trust Funds are usually financed with earmarked tax collections.

TUG BOAT: A powered vessel designed for towing or pushing ships, dumb barges, pushed-towed barges, and rafts, but not for the carriage of goods.

U

U.S.-FLAG CARRIER OR AMERICAN FLAG CARRIER (air): One of a class of air carriers holding a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity, issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation and approved by the President, authorizing scheduled operations over specified routes between the United States (and/or its territories) and one or more foreign countries.

UNLEADED GASOLINE: See Gasoline.

UNLINKED PASSENGER TRIPS (transit): The number of passengers boarding public transportation vehicles. A passenger is counted each time he/she boards a vehicle even if the boarding is part of the same journey from origin to ­destination.

URBAN HIGHWAY: Any road or street within the boundaries of an urban area. An urban area is an area including and adjacent to a municipality or urban place with a population of 5,000 or more. The boundaries of urban areas are fixed by state highway departments, subject to the approval of the Federal Highway Administration, for purposes of the Federal-Aid Highway Program.

V

VANPOOL (transit): Public-sponsored commuter service operating under prearranged schedules for previously formed groups of riders in 8- to 18-seat vehicles. Drivers are also commuters who receive little or no compensation besides the free ride.

VEHICLE MAINTENANCE (transit): All activities associated with revenue and nonrevenue (service) vehicle maintenance, including administration, inspection and maintenance, and servicing (e.g., cleaning and fueling) vehicles. In addition, it includes repairs due to vandalism or to revenue vehicle accidents.

VEHICLE-MILES (highway): Miles of travel by all types of motor vehicles as determined by the states on the basis of actual traffic counts and established estimating procedures.

VEHICLE-MILES (transit): The total number of miles traveled by transit vehicles. Commuter rail, heavy rail, and light rail report individual car-miles, rather than train-miles for vehicle-miles.

VEHICLE OPERATIONS (transit): All activities associated with transportation administration, including the control of revenue vehicle movements, scheduling, ticketing and fare collection, system security, and revenue vehicle operation.

VESSEL CASUALTY (water): An occurrence involving commercial vessels that results in 1) actual physical damage to property in excess of $25,000; 2) material damage affecting the ­seaworthiness or efficiency of a vessel; 3) stranding or grounding; 4) loss of life; or 5) injury causing any person to remain incapacitated for a period in excess of 72 hours, except injury to harbor workers not resulting in death and not resulting from vessel casualty or vessel equipment casualty.

VESSEL-CASUALTY-RELATED DEATH (water): Fatality that occurs as a result of an incident that involves a vessel or its equipment, such as a collision, fire, or explosion. Includes drowning deaths.

W

WATERBORNE TRANSPORTATION: Transport of freight and/or people by commercial vessels under U.S. Coast Guard jurisdiction.