American Driving Habits Exposed: You'll Never Guess Who Drives The Most

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Americans judge do thrust a lot. In fairness, location are a batch of us, positive nan state itself is beautiful big, positive our rider railroad web isn't precisely cutting edge anymore. Then again, driving itself is its ain reward, astatine slightest erstwhile you're not stuck successful traffic. So are we connected these roads because we want to be, aliases because we person to be? Who's down nan instrumentality astir often? And wherever are we putting successful nan miles?

The bully folks complete astatine KBB person crunched nan numbers, and now, nan habits of nan American driver person been exposed for each to see. All in, successful 2023 (the astir caller twelvemonth pinch complete data) Americans put successful a expansive full of 2.9 trillion miles. That is... a lot, for illustration measurement much than I would person guessed. That's not moreover counting heavy-duty vehicles for illustration semis, which evidently screen a batch of miles connected their own.

It gets a small tricky figuring retired really this useful connected average, but this useful retired to astir 14,779 miles per household. That number has been steadily expanding since nan pandemic lockdown of 2020, erstwhile we still managed to mean 12,700 miles per household, moreover though we were each expected to beryllium staying inside. But that's still rather a spot little than nan 17,800 miles that households averaged successful 2017, nan highest twelvemonth connected record. I would conjecture that nan hybrid agency and activity from location gyration has put a imperishable dent successful commuting miles, though again, those numbers are steadily rising again.

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That said, for those who do still commute to nan office, they're still putting successful astir nan aforesaid time. The mean American one-way commute was 26.8 minutes successful 2023, much aliases little level pinch nan 27.6 minutes it took successful 2019. A notable 9% of drivers took complete an hr to get to work.

Shocking nary one, men and women do thrust beautiful differently. For commutes, men averaged 28.4 minutes vs 25 minutes for women. In total, men drove 20% much miles per time than women successful 2022. That spread gets peculiarly wide among nan elderly: men thrust 100% much than women astatine ages 65 and older. I conjecture grandpa wants to walk a small much clip successful that classical musculus car he still has. Retirement itself has a beautiful awesome impact, since yet ditching nan regular commute leads to a 30% driblet successful miles driven. By contrast, astatine moving ages, men thrust astir a 3rd much than women.

Who drives nan most? That would beryllium men betwixt nan ages 34 and 54, who put successful 44% much miles than nan mean American. Least, obviously, are nan youths betwixt 16 and 19, who are excessively engaged pinch their phones and their unspeakable euphony to drive, putting successful 48% little than nan average. This contempt nan truth that Gen Z claims to emotion driving cars. Kids these days!

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So that's America each united. What happens erstwhile we look astatine these states divided? I'll beryllium honorable here: I was expecting high-income states to lead, since deeper pockets would bargain much cars and beryllium much consenting to salary for state for non-essential trips. Turns out, it's not mean income that seems to matter, but organization density. That's really Wyoming wins nan driving competition, putting successful 21,575 miles per driver, aliases 50% much than America arsenic a whole. The Equality State is followed by Mississippi, Missouri, and New Mexico.

On nan different end, New York is past spot for driving, pinch only 9,750 miles covered by nan mean driver successful a year. Remind me, are location immoderate awesome organization centers successful New York? Maybe 1 wherever it's famously unspeakable to drive? I can't remember. Anyway, nan Empire State is followed by Rhode Island, Washington, and, possibly much surprisingly, Alaska. (Technically, Washington, D.C. has nan smallest mileage astatine 6,678, but of course, it's not a authorities yet.)

Want to pump up those numbers yourself? Treat yourself to a roadworthy travel sometime. Maybe don't moreover person a destination successful mind. Americans only managed 2.9 trillion miles successful 2023; spell connected and make it a bully large information number instead.