Skip to main content

Has motorisation in the US peaked?

A new study by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute analysed recent changes in the United States in both the ownership of light-duty vehicles (cars, pickup trucks, SUVs and vans) and the corresponding distance driven. The study looked at the rates per person and per household over the period 1984 to 2015. The main findings were: The vehicle-ownership rates per person and per household both reached their maxima in 2006. The two rates for 2015 are down, on average, 4.4 per cent f
February 15, 2017 Read time: 1 min
A new study by the 5647 University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute analysed recent changes in the United States in both the ownership of light-duty vehicles (cars, pickup trucks, SUVs and vans) and the corresponding distance driven. The study looked at the rates per person and per household over the period 1984 to 2015.

The main findings were:

The vehicle-ownership rates per person and per household both reached their maxima in 2006. The two rates for 2015 are down, on average, 4.4 per cent from their maxima, although they have rebounded, on average, 1.4 per cent from the post-maximum minima reached in 2012 and 2013.

The distance-driven rates per person and per household both reached their maxima in 2004.

The two rates for 2015 are down, on average, 7.8 per cent from their maxima, although they have rebounded, on average, 2.1 per cent from the post-maximum minima reached in 2013.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Study finds red-light cameras reduce crashes
    July 3, 2013
    A study carried out by Baton Rouge, Louisiana’s Department of Public Works shows drops in both traffic crashes and violations at selected intersections in the five years since the city launched a traffic light camera program. The study evaluated intersections where traffic cameras were installed in 2008 and 2009 by comparing the average number of crashes in the years before and after the cameras took effect, and showed a sharp decline in right-angle crashes - considered the most dangerous type of collisions
  • New York to pilot cordon-based congestion charging
    March 16, 2012
    From 2009, if all goes to plan, New York will run a three-year cordon-based congestion charging pilot - the first in the US. Upon accession, US Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters signalled her intention to continue her predecessor Norman Mineta's initiative to specifically target road congestion. And, with initiatives such as the US Department of Transportation's (USDOT's) Urban Partnership Program actively promoting tolling as a part of a compound solution to the problem, the way was opened for the co
  • New York to pilot cordon-based congestion charging
    March 16, 2012
    From 2009, if all goes to plan, New York will run a three-year cordon-based congestion charging pilot - the first in the US. Upon accession, US Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters signalled her intention to continue her predecessor Norman Mineta's initiative to specifically target road congestion. And, with initiatives such as the US Department of Transportation's (USDOT's) Urban Partnership Program actively promoting tolling as a part of a compound solution to the problem, the way was opened for the co
  • 8-bit MCUs for dashboard applications
    June 19, 2012
    NEC Electronics has announced the availability of 14 new All Flash microcontrollers (MCUs). The 78K0/Dx2 product series includes a wide range of peripherals with either 80 or 64 pins and memory capacity ranging from 60 down to 24kb. The company says it is offering these new products to support manufacturers of small cars and motorcycles as they capture accelerating consumer demand. Samples of the new MCUs are currently available. Mass production of these new products is scheduled to begin in October 2010 a