On the Road Again: Miles Driven Numbers Change in August 2022

After July 2022 declines in all five regions in the U.S. from 2021, new figures from the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) show that vehicle miles traveled are on an upswing from August 2021. The North Central region, with a 0.7% decline from a year ago, marks the one exception.

The administration’s traffic trends for August 2022 show a 1.9 billion increase in vehicle miles, or 0.7%, over August 2021. Overall travel for the month was 289.3 billion vehicle miles and 271.7 billion miles when seasonally adjusted.

The administration’s traffic trends for August 2022 show a 1.9 billion increase in vehicle miles, or 0.7%, over August 2021. Overall travel for the month was 289.3 billion vehicle miles and 271.7 billion miles when seasonally adjusted. The former includes 91.4 billion vehicle miles on rural roads and 197.8 billion vehicle miles on urban roads and streets, while the latter figure marks a 1.5% increase, or 4 billion vehicle miles, when compared to July 2022.

Cumulative travel in 2022 changed by 1.7%, or 36.1 billion vehicle miles. The cumulative estimate for the year is 2,163.7 billion vehicle miles of travel, according to the administration.

All but one of the regions in the U.S. saw increases in estimated vehicle miles of travel. The Northeast experienced a 1.0% increase from August 2021 to 39.5 billion miles in August 2022.

The South Atlantic recorded approximately 62.3 billion miles for a 1.8% increase over August 2021 figures. North Central saw a 0.7% decrease with 64.4 billion miles traveled, and the South Gulf a 1.2% increase with 58.6 billion miles clocked. Vehicles in the West traveled  64.5 billion vehicle miles, a 0.3% increase over the same time last year.

The chart below by the FHA and features estimated vehicle miles of travel by region for August 2022 (in billions).

August 2022 Estimated Vehicle Miles By Region