Overview
To assist in providing policy-relevant information about
conditions in sparsely settled, remote areas of the U.S. to public
officials, researchers, and the general public, ERS has developed
ZIP-code-level frontier and remote (FAR) area codes. The aim is not
to provide a single definition. Instead, it is to meet the demand
for a delineation that is both geographically detailed and
adjustable within reasonable ranges, in order to be usefully
applied in diverse research and policy contexts. This initial set,
based on urban-rural data from the 2000 decennial census, provides
four separate FAR definition levels, ranging from one that is
relatively inclusive (18 million FAR residents) to one that is more
restrictive (4.8 million FAR residents).
The term "frontier and remote" is used here to describe
territory characterized by some combination of low population size
and a high degree of geographic remoteness. FAR areas are defined
in relation to the time it takes to travel by car to the edges of
nearby Urban Areas (UAs). Four levels are necessary
because rural areas experience degrees of remoteness at higher or
lower population levels that affect access to different types of
goods and services. A relatively large number of people live far
from cities providing "high order" goods and services, such as
advanced medical procedures, major household appliances, regional
airport hubs, or professional sports franchises. Level one FAR
codes are meant to approximate this degree of remoteness. A much
smaller, but still significant, number of people find it hard to
access "low order" goods and services, such as grocery stores, gas
stations, and basic health-care needs. Level four FAR codes more
closely coincide with this, much higher degree of remoteness. Other
types of goods and services--clothing stores, car dealerships,
movie theaters--fall somewhere in between. Users are able to choose
the definition that bests suits their specific application.
This initial set of FAR codes is viewed as preliminary. It does
not include Alaska and Hawaii. In addition, the criteria are
subject to modification based on further demographic analysis and
on feedback from the user community. A second version of FAR codes,
updated to 2010 and including all 50 States, will be generated
following this evaluation process. See the Documentation for detailed
description of criteria, data sources and methodology.
2000 Frontier and Remote Area Codes Data Files