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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

Introduction

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

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 1980 2003
Resident population (thous.) 226,542 290,810
Total area (thous. sq. mi.)a 3,619 3,794 (2000)
Total civilian labor force (thous.) 106,940 146,510
Real gross domestic productb R$5.2 trillion $10.4 trillion
Median household incomeb,d $34,007 $41,055
Average household incomeb,d $40,445 $55,982
Average household expendituresb,c,d $33,915 (1984) $39,283
Number of households (thous.) 80,776 111,278
Life expectancy at birth (years) 73.7 P77.2 (2001)

a 1980 data include inland water. Since 1990, the data include inland water, coastal water, and Great Lakes, but exclude territorial water. The Census Bureau tabulates area data for the decennial census years only.

b 2000 chained dollars (see Glossary for definition).

c Earliest year available is 1984.

d BTS computations, November 2004.

Key: P = preliminary data; R = revised.

Sources: Area-U.S. Department of Commerce (USDOC), U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2003, available at www.census.gov, as of Nov. 2004. GDP-USDOC, Bureau of Economic Analysis, available at www.bea.gov, as of Nov. 2004. Population, number of households, median and average household income-USDOC, Census, available at www.census.gov, as of Nov. 2004. Average household expenditures, labor force-U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, available at www.bls.gov, as of Nov. 2004. Life expectancy-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, available at www.cdc.gov, as of Oct. 2003.