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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

Fuel Consumption by Mode of Transportation

Embedded Dataset Excel:

Dataset Excel:

table_04_05M_4.xlsx (439.75 KB)

Notes:

The following conversion rates were used:

1 gallon = 3.785412 liters.

1 cubic foot = 0.028317 cubic meters.

Description:

KEY: kWh = kilowatt-hour; N = data do not exist; R = revised; U = data are not available.

(a) Domestic operations only.

(b) Includes fuel used in air taxi operations, but not commuter operations. Data for 1996 are estimated using new information on no respondents and are therefore not comparable to earlier years. See the accuracy statement in the appendix for more detailed information.

(c) Data for 2007-2013 were calculated using a new methodology developed by FHWA. Data for these years are based on new categories and are not comparable to previous years. The new category Light duty vehicle, short wheel base includes passenger cars, light trucks, vans and sport utility vehicles with a wheelbase (WB) equal to or less than 121 inches. The new category Light duty vehicle, long wheel base includes large passenger cars, vans, pickup trucks, and sport/utility vehicles with wheelbases (WB) larger than 121 inches. In addition, this edition of table 4-05M is not comparable to previous editions.

(d) 1965 data includes other 2-axle 4-tire vehicles.

(e) Data from 1997-2013 are not comparable to data before 1997 due to different sources. Prior to 1984, excludes commuter rail, automated guideway, ferryboat, demand responsive vehicles, and most rural and small systems.

(f) Diesel includes Diesel and Bio-Diesel.

(g) Gasoline and all other no diesel fuels include Gasoline, Liquefied Petroleum Gas, Liquefied Natural Gas, Methane, Ethanol, Bunker Fuel, Kerosene, Grain Additive, and Other Fuel.

Source:

Air:

Certificated air carriers:

1960-2016:  U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Office of Airline Information, Fuel Cost and Consumption, available at http://www.transtats.bts.gov/fuel.asp as of Jun. 11, 2018.

General aviation:

1960-70: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, FAA Statistical Handbook of Aviation - 1972 edition (Washington, DC:  1973), table 9.12.

1975-93: Ibid., General Aviation and Air Taxi Activity Survey (Washington, DC:  Annual Issues), table 5.1, and similar tables in earlier editions.

1994-2016: Ibid., FAA Aerospace Forecasts Fiscal Years 2017-2037 (Washington, DC: 2016), tables 23, and similar tables in earlier editions, available at http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/apl/aviation_forecasts/ as of Jun. 11, 2018.

Highway:

1960-94: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics, Summary to 1995, FHWA-PL-97-009 (Washington, DC:  July 1997), table VM-201A, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policy/ohpi/hss/hsspubs.cfm as of Jun. 29, 2010.

1995-2016: Ibid., Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table VM-1, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of Jun. 11, 2018.

Transit:

Electricity / motor fuel / compressed natural gas:

1960-96: American Public Transportation Association, 2009 Public Transportation Fact Book (Washington, DC: June 2009), tables 26, 27, 28 and similar tables in earlier editions.

1997-2014: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration, National Transportation Database, table 17 and similar tables in previous years, available at www.ntdprogram.gov as of Mar. 24, 2016.

2015-16: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration, National Transportation Database, Annual Database Energy Consumption, available at https://www.transit.dot.gov/ntd/ntd-data as of Jun. 11, 2018.

Rail:

1960-2016: Association of American Railroads, Railroad Facts (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), p. 45 and similar tables in previous issues.

Amtrak:

1975-2016: National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak), Energy Management Department and Government Affairs Department, personal communications, Apr. 27, 2011, May 8, 2013,  Aug. 20. 2014, Sept. 11, 2015, Jun. 21, 2016 and Aug. 8, 2017.

Water:

Residual and distillate / diesel fuel oil:

1960-80: American Petroleum Institute, Basic Petroleum Data Book (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), tables 10, 10a, 12, and 12a.

1985-2016: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, Fuel Oil and Kerosene Sales (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), available at https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/fueloilkerosene/ as of Jun. 11, 2018.

Gasoline:

1970-2016: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table MF-24 and similar tables in earlier editions, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policy/ohpi/hss/hsspubs.cfm as of Jun. 11, 2018.

Pipeline:

1960-2016: U.S. Department of Energy, Natural Gas Annual, DOE/EIA-0131(04) (Washington, DC), table 15 and similar tables in earlier editions, available at https://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/annual/ as of Jun. 11, 2018.