Table 4-15: Bus Fuel Consumption and Travel
| 1960 | 1965 | 1970 | 1975 | 1980 | 1985 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | (R) 2007 | (R) 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number registered (thousands) | 272 | 314 | 378 | 462 | 529 | 593 | 627 | 631 | 645 | 654 | 670 | 686 | 695 | 698 | 716 | 729 | 746 | 750 | 761 | 777 | 795 | 807 | 822 | 834 | 843 | 842 | 846 |
| Vehicle-miles traveled (millions) | 4,300 | 4,700 | 4,500 | 6,100 | 6,100 | 4,500 | 5,700 | 5,800 | 5,800 | 6,100 | 6,400 | 6,400 | 6,563 | 6,842 | 7,007 | 7,662 | 7,590 | 7,077 | 6,845 | 6,783 | 6,801 | 6,980 | 6,783 | 14,516 | 14,823 | 14,387 | 13,789 |
| Fuel consumed (million gallons) | 827 | 875 | 820 | 1,053 | 1,018 | 834 | 895 | 864 | 878 | 929 | 964 | 968 | 990 | 1,027 | 1,040 | 1,148 | 1,112 | 1,026 | 1,000 | 969 | 1,360 | 1,120 | 1,148 | 2,022 | 2,057 | 1,987 | 1,924 |
| Average miles traveled per vehicle (thousands) | 15.8 | 15.0 | 11.9 | 13.2 | 11.5 | 7.6 | 9.1 | 9.2 | 9.0 | 9.3 | 9.5 | 9.3 | 9.4 | 9.8 | 9.8 | 10.5 | 10.2 | 9.4 | 9.0 | 8.7 | 8.6 | 8.6 | 8.3 | 17.4 | 17.6 | 17.1 | 16.3 |
| Average miles traveled per gallon | 5.2 | 5.4 | 5.5 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 5.4 | 6.4 | 6.7 | 6.6 | 6.6 | 6.6 | 6.6 | 6.6 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.8 | 6.9 | 6.8 | 7.0 | 5.0 | 6.2 | 5.9 | 7.2 | 7.2 | 7.2 | 7.2 |
| Average fuel consumed per vehicle (gallons) | 3,039.0 | 2,784.1 | 2,171.8 | 2,278.5 | 1,925.2 | 1,405.3 | 1,427.5 | 1,368.6 | 1,361.8 | 1,419.6 | 1,437.9 | 1,412.1 | 1,424.8 | 1,471.7 | 1,453.9 | 1,575.7 | 1,490.4 | 1,368.7 | 1,314.0 | 1,247.8 | 1,710.3 | 1,387.8 | 1,397.2 | 2,422.8 | 2,439.1 | 2,360.0 | 2,273.6 |
KEY: R = revised.
NOTE
This table Includes data for both publicly and privately owned school, transit, and other commercial buses.
Data for 2007-10 were calculated using new sources and a new methodology developed by FHWA. Data for these years are not comparable to previous years. The FHWA estimates national trends by using State reported Highway Performance and Monitoring System (HPMS) data, fuel consumption data (MF-21 and MF-27), vehicle registration data (MV-1, MV-9, and MV-10), other data such as the R. L. Polk vehicle data, and a host of modeling techniques. Starting with the 2007 VM-1, an enhanced methodology is used to provide timely indictors on both travel and travel behavior changes.
SOURCES
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 Mar. 23, 2009.
1995-2010: Ibid., Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), table VM-1, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics.cfm as of Mar. 14, 2012.