Embedded Dataset Excel:

Dataset Excel:

Notes:

Total system mileage may differ when categorized by ownership and functional system due to rounding at different levels of aggregation. Additionally, total system mileage categorized by surface type is based on sampling and is not comparable to the totals based on the other categorizations.

Motor vehicle injury and crash data in this profile come from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's General Estimates System (GES). The data from GES, which began operation in 1988, are obtained from a nationally representative probability sample selected from all police-reported crashes, and the GES sample includes only crashes where a police accident report was completed and the crash resulted in property damage, injury, or death. The resulting figures do not take into account crashes which were not reported to the police or which did not result in at least property damage.

Earlier editions of NTS, particularly the 1993 Historical Compendium, used crash and injury figures estimated by the National Safety Council, which employed a different set of methods to arrive at its figures. Thus, the injury and crash figures in this edition of NTS may not be comparable with those found in earlier editions.

In 1998, FHWA instituted a new method of creating mileage based tables derived from the Highway Performance Monitoring System (HPMS).  See Chapter 1 accuracy profiles for more information about the HPMS.

Description:

KEY:  N = data do not exist; R = revised; U = data are not available.

^a The Federal Highway Trust Fund was created with the enactment of the Highway Revenue Act of 1956. The total receipts shown for 1995 are overstated by approximately $1.59 billion due to a fiscal year (FY) 1994 error by the Treasury Department in reconciling estimated deposits to the actual tax revenue. The correction was made after the close of FY1994 and is shown in FY1995 receipts.

^b Figures obtained by addition/subtraction and may not appear directly in data source.

^c Gross amounts collected by state governments from highway users. Does not include tolls. Not all revenues are allocated to highway expenditures.

^d Includes distributor and dealer licenses, inspection fees, fines and penalties, and miscellaneous receipts.

^e Includes driver licenses, title fees, special title taxes, fines and penalties; estimated service charges and local collections. From 2012, includes only driver license fees, fines and penalties, and certificate of title fees. 

^f Includes carrier gross receipt taxes; mileage, ton-mile and passenger-mile taxes; special license fees and franchise taxes; and certificate or permit fees. From 2012, includes only dealer licenses and permits, oversized and overweight permits, and motor carrier taxes. 

^g From 2012 data is no longer reported. 

^h Mileage in federal parks, forests, and reservations that are not a part of the state and local highway system. 

ⁱ Prior to 1999, mileage for municipal roads is included with the "other local roads" jurisdiction. Mileage for municipal roads is included in "Town, Township and Municipal Road" jurisdiction after 1999.

^j From 2009 data includes minor and major collectors.

^k Due to a change in the reference period, from October to March, the October 1996 Annual Survey of Government Employment and Payroll was not conducted. 

^m Data for years 1994 and later are based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).  Prior to 1994, data are based on the Standard Industrial Classification System (SIC).  

ⁿ Highway category classifications changed several times before 1980. Actual 1960 data categories were: Main Rural Roads, Local Rural Roads and Urban Streets; 1970 data categories were: Rural Interstate, Rural Other Arterial, Other Rural, Urban Interstate and Other Urban.

Source:

Financial:

Government receipts, total and Government expenditures, total:

1960-90: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics, Summary to 1995, FHWA-PL-97-009 (Washington, DC: July 1997), table HF-210. 

1995-2021: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table HF-10, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of Jun. 21, 2023.

State highway user tax revenues:

1960-95: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics, Summary to 1995, FHWA-PL-97-009 (Washington, DC: July 1997), table MF-201 and MV-202.  

1996-2021: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table MF-1 and MV-2, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of Jun. 21, 2023.

Inventory: 

Rural / urban mileage by ownership, total:

1960-70: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics, Summary to 1985 (Washington, DC: July 1997), table M-203.

1980-95: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics, Summary to 1995, FHWA-PL-97-009 (Washington, DC: July 1997), table HM-210.

1996-2020: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table HM-10, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of May 11, 2022.

Rural / urban mileage by functional system, total:

1960-70: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics, Summary to 1995, FHWA-PL-97-009 (Washington, DC: July 1997), tables HM-212 and HM-220. 

1980-2021: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table HM-220, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of Jun. 21, 2023.

U.S. roads and streets by surface:

1960-95: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics, Summary to 1995, FHWA-PL-97-009 (Washington, DC: July 1997), table HM-212.

1996-2020: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table HM-12, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of May 11, 2022.

State and local govt. highways employees:

1960-90: U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States, (Washington, DC: Annual issues), State and Local Government Section.

1995-2021: U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau, State and Local Government Employment and Payroll Data, (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), available at https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/apes.html as of Jun. 21, 2023.

Highway, street and bridge construction employees:

U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment, Hours, and Earnings from the Current Employment Statistics survey (National) available at https://www.bls.gov/ces/ as of Jun. 21, 2023.

Performance:

Vehicle-miles of travel by functional system (millions), total:

1960-70: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics, Summary to 1985, FHWA-PL-97-009 (Washington, DC: April 1987), table VM-201.

1970-2021: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), tables VM-202, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of Jun. 21, 2023.

Motor fuel:

1960-90: 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 Aug. 14, 2020.

1994-2021: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table VM-1, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of Jun. 21, 2023.

Asphalt and road oil:

1960-80:  U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, State Energy Data Report (Washington, DC: July 1982), p. 13.

1990-2021: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, Petroleum Supply Annual: Volume 1 (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table 1, available at https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/supply/annual/volume1/ as of Jun. 21, 2023.

Safety: 

1960-80:  U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis, NRD-30, personal communication.

1990-2004: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Traffic Safety Facts (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), tables 1 and 4, available at http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Cats/listpublications.aspx?Id=E&ShowBy=DocType as of Jan. 11, 2021.

2005-2021: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality and Injury Reporting System Tool (FIRST), available at https://cdan.dot.gov/query as of Jun. 21, 2023.