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BTS Home > Publications > National Transportation Statistics > 2005
Printable Version

Table 4-27: Annual Wasted Fuel Due to Congestion

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Population group Urban area Gallons wasted (millions) Percent changea
Short-term 1998-2003		 Percent changea
Long term 1982-2003
1982 1985 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 Percent Rank Percent Rank
Medium Akron, OH 0 0 1 1 1 1 2 1 2 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 -33 78 NM NM
Medium Albany-Schenectady, NY 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 100 1 NM NM
Medium Albuquerque, NM 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 5 6 6 7 7 6 6 5 6 -14 76 500 33
Medium Allentown-Bethlehem, PA-NJ 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 33 32 300 50
Small Anchorage, AK 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 NM NM NM NM
Very large Atlanta, GA 5 10 16 15 18 24 35 39 43 50 56 55 61 62 66 71 27 41 1,320 6
Medium Austin, TX 1 2 3 4 4 4 6 7 8 9 9 10 11 12 13 14 56 22 1,300 7
Small Bakersfield, CA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 63 NM NM
Large Baltimore, MD 4 7 17 17 16 17 19 21 22 24 23 24 27 30 37 39 70 15 875 18
Small Beaumont, TX 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 NM NM NM NM
Medium Birmingham, AL 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 6 6 7 40 29 600 28
Very large Boston, MA-NH-RI 13 20 32 33 38 38 39 37 39 44 48 46 49 51 60 60 25 42 362 46
Small Boulder, CO 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 NM NM NM NM
Medium Bridgeport-Stamford, CT-NY 1 2 4 4 5 5 5 6 6 7 8 9 10 10 12 11 38 31 1,000 11
Small Brownsville, TX 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 NM NM NM NM
Large Buffalo, NY 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 100 1 300 50
Small Cape Coral, FL 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 100 1 NM NM
Small Charleston-North Charleston, SC 1 1 2 2 3 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 33 32 300 50
Medium Charlotte, NC-SC 1 2 3 3 4 4 4 4 5 7 7 8 9 9 11 11 57 18 1,000 11
Very large Chicago, IL-IN 27 42 71 74 76 80 80 92 108 108 121 121 116 125 143 151 25 47 459 35
Large Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN 1 2 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 13 13 13 15 15 16 17 31 36 1,600 3
Large Cleveland, OH 1 1 3 4 4 6 7 9 11 12 11 11 10 9 8 7 -36 79 600 28
Small Colorado Springs, CO 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 3 4 4 4 4 100 1 NM NM
Small Columbia, SC 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 63 NM NM
Large Columbus, OH 1 1 4 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 10 11 9 10 11 12 20 50 1,100 9
Small Corpus Christi, TX 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 63 NM NM
Very large Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 7 15 27 29 31 33 36 39 42 48 56 65 68 73 77 83 48 26 1,086 10
Medium Dayton, OH 0 1 1 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 4 4 3 3 3 -25 77 NM NM
Large Denver-Aurora, CO 6 8 11 12 14 17 18 23 26 30 32 33 37 41 36 37 16 56 517 32
Very large Detroit, MI 15 17 43 46 56 61 56 55 58 60 61 62 60 66 69 73 20 53 387 44
Medium El Paso, TX-NM 0 0 1 1 1 1 2 2 1 2 2 3 4 4 4 4 100 1 NM NM
Small Eugene, OR 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 NM NM NM NM
Medium Fresno, CA 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 3 3 3 0 63 200 59
Medium Grand Rapids, MI 0 0 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 4 3 3 3 3 4 0 63 NM NM
Medium Hartford, CT 1 1 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 6 5 5 25 42 400 39
Medium Honolulu, HI 1 2 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 5 4 5 0 63 400 39
Very large Houston, TX 24 37 35 30 28 30 35 38 45 51 52 58 61 68 77 81 56 21 238 58
Large Indianapolis, IN 1 1 2 3 4 8 10 12 14 15 13 13 14 15 14 14 8 60 1,300 7
Medium Jacksonville, FL 1 2 4 5 6 6 7 8 8 8 7 8 8 9 10 11 57 18 1,000 11
Large Kansas City, MO-KS 1 1 2 2 3 4 5 5 6 7 7 9 9 9 8 9 29 39 800 20
Small Laredo, TX 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 NM NM NM NM
Large Las Vegas, NV 1 1 4 5 5 5 7 7 8 9 10 10 11 12 13 15 50 23 1,400 4
Small Little Rock, AR 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 63 NM NM
Very large Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA 117 146 357 357 357 352 319 356 379 379 403 394 388 401 413 407 1 62 248 56
Medium Louisville, KY-IN 2 2 2 3 4 5 6 6 8 9 10 10 11 11 12 13 30 37 550 31
Medium Memphis, TN-MS-AR 1 1 3 3 4 4 5 6 7 7 8 7 8 9 10 10 25 42 900 17
Very Large Miami, FL 9 13 31 34 43 44 47 51 53 58 60 66 72 78 83 87 45 27 867 19
Large Milwaukee, WI 2 3 5 5 6 7 7 8 9 10 10 12 12 12 12 12 20 50 500 33
Large Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN 2 4 10 10 12 15 18 20 22 29 32 36 35 38 37 38 19 55 1,800 1
Medium Nashville-Davidson, TN 2 2 3 3 3 3 5 5 6 7 7 8 10 10 11 11 57 18 450 36
Medium New Haven, CT 0 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 4 4 4 4 33 32 NM NM
Large New Orleans, LA 2 4 4 5 5 5 7 7 7 7 7 7 6 6 7 7 0 63 250 55
Very large New York-Newark, NY-NJ-CT 37 50 116 107 106 114 126 139 145 157 163 182 177 179 189 198 21 49 435 38
Large Oklahoma City, OK 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 4 4 5 4 5 5 5 25 42 400 39
Medium Omaha, NE-IA 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 67 16 400 39
Large Orlando, FL 2 3 6 8 9 10 11 11 13 15 17 17 19 21 22 22 29 38 1,000 11
Medium Oxnard-Ventura, CA 1 1 2 2 2 3 4 4 4 4 4 5 6 7 7 7 75 13 600 28
Small Pensacola, FL-AL 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 0 63 NM NM
Very large Philadelphia, PA-NJ-DE-MD 14 16 26 29 31 30 32 37 42 43 54 55 53 60 61 60 11 58 329 48
Very Large Phoenix, AZ 6 8 18 20 23 23 24 22 29 32 31 39 42 46 42 44 42 28 633 27
Large Pittsburgh, PA 4 5 6 6 6 6 6 7 7 7 7 8 7 7 7 8 14 57 100 60
Large Portland, OR-WA 2 2 6 7 9 12 12 14 16 18 19 20 21 22 22 21 11 59 950 16
Large Providence, RI-MA 1 2 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 6 6 7 8 8 10 11 83 10 1,000 11
Medium Raleigh-Durham, NC 1 1 3 2 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 7 7 8 60 17 700 25
Medium Richmond, VA 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 5 5 4 4 4 3 4 4 5 25 42 400 39
Large Riverside-San Bernardino, CA 2 4 17 20 21 20 18 21 22 22 25 27 28 29 32 35 40 29 1,650 2
Medium Rochester, NY 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 100 1 NM NM
Large Sacramento, CA 3 4 10 10 10 11 13 12 14 14 15 17 19 21 23 26 73 14 767 23
Small Salem, OR 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 63 NM NM
Medium Salt Lake City, UT 1 1 2 3 3 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 6 8 9 9 80 11 800 20
Large San Antonio, TX 2 3 4 4 4 4 4 7 7 8 10 14 15 14 15 15 50 23 650 26
Large San Diego, CA 4 8 27 25 26 25 26 27 28 30 32 41 44 46 56 60 88 9 1,400 4
Very large San Francisco-Oakland, CA 25 47 76 67 66 70 64 73 74 71 80 84 93 94 98 96 20 50 284 54
Large San Jose, CA 9 16 29 28 24 24 23 24 25 23 26 31 33 35 32 31 19 54 244 57
Medium Sarasota-Bradenton, FL 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 100 1 300 50
Large Seattle, WA 6 11 31 35 37 37 38 40 41 46 47 49 44 45 47 49 4 61 717 24
Small Spokane, WA 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 63 NM NM
Medium Springfield, MA-CT 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 100 1 100 60
Large St. Louis, MO-IL 6 10 11 11 14 18 21 23 23 26 27 28 29 26 28 26 -4 75 333 47
Large Tampa-St Petersburg, FL 7 8 14 17 18 20 22 23 23 22 22 23 22 26 26 29 32 35 314 49
Medium Toledo, OH-MI 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 0 63 NM NM
Medium Tucson, AZ 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 5 5 5 6 8 9 80 11 800 20
Medium Tulsa, OK 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 50 23 NM NM
Large Virginia Beach, VA 3 5 7 7 7 7 8 9 10 10 11 11 10 10 13 14 27 40 367 45
Very large Washington, DC-MD-VA 16 24 43 46 50 53 54 60 66 65 71 74 71 77 84 88 24 48 450 36
NA 85-Area Average 5 7 14 14 15 16 16 18 19 20 22 23 23 24 26 27 23 NA 440 NA
NA Very Large Area Average 24 34 68 68 71 73 73 80 86 90 97 100 101 106 112 115 19 NA 379 NA
NA Large Area Average 3 4 9 10 11 12 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 29 NA 633 NA
NA Medium Area Average 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 6 50 NA 500 NA
NA Small Area Average 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 NA NM NA

KEY: NA = not applicable; NM = not meaningful

Very large urban areas - over 3 million population.

Large urban areas - over 1 million and less than 3 million population.

Medium urban areas - over 500,000 and less than 1 million population.

Small urban areas - less than 500,000 population.

a Percent changes were calculated using the numbers in this table and were not obtained from the source. Rank is based on the calculated percent change with the highest number corresponding to a rank of 1.

NOTES

"Wasted" fuel is the difference between the fuel consumed under estimated existing conditions and the fuel consumed under free-flow conditions. Previous editions of this table were calculated on the basis of total fuel consumed during congested trips. Calculations are made for peak period speeds and for free-flow speeds on both the freeway and principal arterial systems. For a more detailed description of the formulas used, see the source document.

The urban areas included are those containing over 500,000 people and several smaller places mostly chosen by previous sponsors of the Texas Transportation Institute study on mobility.

SOURCE

Texas Transportation Institute, The 2005 Annual Urban Mobility Report (College Station, TX: 2005), Internet site http://mobility.tamu.edu as of June 10, 2005
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