Scheduled Intercity Transportation and the U.S. Rural Population - PosterNearly 93 percent of the 82 million rural residents of the United States live within the service area of at least 1 commercial intercity transportation mode (bus, air, rail, or interstate ferry ).1 Nearly six million rural residents live outside of the service areas of all three intercity modes. Connecticut , Delaware , Massachusetts , New Jersey , and Rhode Island are the only states in which every resident lives within the service area of at least one mode. What is a "transportation service area?" A Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) 2005 study defines it as the 25-mile area surrounding a nonhub or small hub airport, an intercity rail station, intercity bus terminal, or interstate ferry terminal . For large or medium hub airports, a 75-mile area was used. The study found:
A series of maps showing the locations of intercity transportation facilities across the United States by mode accompanies this study. The maps show the proximity of those facilities to rural areas.
1 The only interstate ferry service considered for purposes of this study is the Alaska Marine Highway System which provides year-round service at 31 Alaska port cities and at Bellingham, Washington. 2 There is no scheduled intercity bus service in Hawaii. 3 There is no scheduled intercity rail service in Hawaii. Find this web page at:
http://www.bts.gov/publications/scheduled_intercity_transportation_and_the_us_rural_population/poster/ |