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U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Oil Pipeline Profile

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Oil Pipeline Profile

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Financial 1960 1970 1980 1990 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Operating revenues ($ millions)                    
FERC-regulated 4 770 4 1,188 4 6,340 4 7,164 4 7,353 7,751 7,310 4 7,278 4 7,212 4 7,645
Nonregulated 125 208 1,208 1,342 1,323 1,326 1,327 1,354 1,367 1,422
Total 895 1,396 7,548 8,506 8,676 9,077 8,637 8,632 8,579 9,067

 

Inventory 1960 1970 1980 1990 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Number of FERC-regulated companies 5 87 5 101 5 130 5 150 5 158 5 161 5 160 U U 12 184
Number of employees, pipeline companies a 6 23,100 6 17,600 6 21,300 10 18,500 10 17,100 11 15,100 11 14,500 11 14,200 11 13,800 13 13,060
Miles of pipeline (statute miles) b                    
Crude lines 1 141,085 146,275 129,831 118,805 103,277 97,029 92,610 91,523 87,663 86,369
Product lines 49,859 72,396 88,562 89,947 87,073 84,883 84,925 88,350 90,985 91,094
All lines 190,944 218,671 218,393 208,752 190,350 181,912 177,535 179,873 178,648 177,463

 

Performance 1960 1970 1980 1990 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Intercity ton-miles (millions)                    
Crude oil 2 N N 362,600 334,800 322,600 335,900 338,300 337,400 334,100 336,200
Petroleum products N N 225,600 249,300 268,800 265,200 280,900 279,100 285,700 286,800
Total 7 229,000 7 431,000 588,200 584,100 591,400 601,100 619,200 616,500 619,800 623,000
Tons transported (millions) 2 468.0 2 790.2 921.0 1,057.4 1,063.6 1,080.6 1,114.1 1,108.0 1,116.3 1,125.2
Average length of haul (statute miles)                    
Crude oil 8 325 8 300 9 871 9 812 9 778 9 797 9 779 9 781 9 767 9 766
Petroleum products 269 357 414 387 414 402 413 413 420 418

 

Safety 1960 1970 1980 1990 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Fatalities 3 N 4 4 3 1 3 5 0 2 4
Injured persons N 21 15 7 c 7 11 13 5 6 20
Incidents N 351 246 180 245 188 194 171 153 168

KEY: FERC = Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; N = data do not exist; U = data are not available.

a Includes companies whose pipelines carry crude petroleum, petroleum products, and nonpetroleum pipeline liquids.

b Regulated plus unregulated mileage of crude oil trunk and gathering lines, plus refined oil trunk lines.

c Does not include the 1,851 injuries that required medical treatment, caused by severe flooding near Houston, Texas, reported for October, 1994.

NOTE

The Interstate Commerce Committee regulated oil pipelines in the 1960s and 1970s.

SOURCES

Unless otherwise noted, refer to chapter tables for sources.

1 Eno Transportation Foundation, Inc., Transportation In America 2000, with historical compendium 1939-1999 (Washington, DC: 2000), p. 44.

2 Ibid., pp. 28 and 29.

3 U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Special Programs Administration, Office of Pipeline Safety, available at Internet site http://ops.dot.gov/stats/lq sum.htm as of May 31, 2002.

4 Eno Transportation Foundation, Inc., Transportation In America 2000, with historical compendium 1939-1999 (Washington, DC: 2000), pp. 4-7.

5 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, personal communication.

6 U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment, Hours and Earnings, United States, 1909-94 (Washington, DC: September 1994), SIC 46.

7 Eno Transportation Foundation, Inc., Transportation in America, 1998 (Washington, DC: 1998), p. 44 and Transportation in America, Supplement, 1999 (Washington, DC: 1999).

8 Ibid., p. 71.

9 Ibid.,Transportation In America 2000, with historical compendium 1939-1999 (Washington, DC: 2000), p. 51.

10 U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment, Hours and Earnings, United States, 1988-1996 (Washington, DC: July 1996), SIC 46.

11 Ibid., Internet site www.bls.gov as of Apr. 19, 1999.

12 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Internet site www.ferc.fed.us/oil/oil list.htm as of June 21, 2001.

13 U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Internet site http://www.bls.gov/oes/1999/oesi2 46.htm as of July 3, 2001.