Fact #429: June 19, 2006
Gross Domestic Product and Vehicle Travel: How Do They Relate?
The nation's highway vehicle miles of travel (VMT) and the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) reflect strikingly similar patterns, indicating the strong relationship between the nation's economy and its travel. Since the late 1990's, however, GDP appears to be growing at a faster rate than VMT. Many factors can affect VMT, including the price of gasoline and telecommuting trends.
Gross Domestic Product and Vehicle Miles of Travel Indexes, 1960-2005
Supporting Information
| Year | GDP in Constant 2000 Dollars, Indexed to 1996 |
VMT Indexed to 1996 |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 30.0 | 28.9 |
| 1961 | 30.7 | 29.7 |
| 1962 | 32.6 | 30.8 |
| 1963 | 34.0 | 32.4 |
| 1964 | 36.0 | 34.0 |
| 1965 | 38.3 | 35.7 |
| 1966 | 40.8 | 37.2 |
| 1967 | 41.8 | 38.8 |
| 1968 | 43.9 | 40.9 |
| 1969 | 45.2 | 42.7 |
| 1970 | 45.3 | 44.6 |
| 1971 | 46.8 | 47.4 |
| 1972 | 49.3 | 50.7 |
| 1973 | 52.1 | 52.8 |
| 1974 | 51.9 | 51.5 |
| 1975 | 51.8 | 53.4 |
| 1976 | 54.5 | 56.4 |
| 1977 | 57.0 | 59.0 |
| 1978 | 60.2 | 62.1 |
| 1979 | 62.1 | 61.5 |
| 1980 | 62.0 | 61.4 |
| 1981 | 63.5 | 62.6 |
| 1982 | 62.3 | 64.2 |
| 1983 | 65.1 | 66.5 |
| 1984 | 69.8 | 69.2 |
| 1985 | 72.7 | 71.4 |
| 1986 | 75.2 | 73.8 |
| 1987 | 77.7 | 77.3 |
| 1988 | 81.0 | 81.5 |
| 1989 | 83.8 | 84.3 |
| 1990 | 85.4 | 86.3 |
| 1991 | 85.3 | 87.4 |
| 1992 | 88.1 | 90.4 |
| 1993 | 90.4 | 92.4 |
| 1994 | 94.1 | 94.8 |
| 1995 | 96.4 | 97.5 |
| 1996 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| 1997 | 104.5 | 103.0 |
| 1998 | 108.9 | 105.9 |
| 1999 | 113.7 | 108.3 |
| 2000 | 117.9 | 110.5 |
| 2001 | 118.8 | 112.5 |
| 2002 | 120.6 | 114.9 |
| 2003 | 123.9 | 116.3 |
| 2004 | 129.1 | 119.2 |
| 2005* | 133.7 | 119.4 |
|
* Preliminary data. | ||
Return to 2006 Facts of the Week