The FHWA reports that Americans have returned to the road en masse this summer—beware obvious political motivations and a failure to compare VMT trends to population growth.
"New estimates released today by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) show that American driving between July 2013 and June 2014 is at levels not seen since 2008," reports an FHWA press release. That news has prompted the FHWA to call for "greater investment in highways that must bear growing volumes of traffic." Specifically, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx is quoted in the press release calling for Congress to pass the $302-billion GROW AMERICA Act.
"According to FHWA's 'Traffic Volume Trends' report – a monthly estimate of American travel – drivers in June 2014 logged 261.7 billion vehicle-miles traveled (VMT), the highest level for any June since 2010 and the biggest single-month gain this year. It is the nation's fourth consecutive month of VMT growth."
The VMT numbers are not compared to population, so take them with that fairly large grain of salt, but the FHWA is certainly making the case that Americans are driving more, especially in recent months.
FULL STORY: New Data Show U.S. Driving at Highest Level in Six Years [pdf]
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