Daily Miles Traveled

Daily miles traveled have largely followed the economic cycle, with more miles driven during economic booms than during recessions.

Although the number of daily miles estimated for vehicles in the Bay Area declined during the Great Recession, daily miles traveled increased on a moderate upwards trajectory during the 2010’s, with a new high set in 2019 with 182 million miles traveled on a typical day, a 14% increase above 2010 levels. On a per capita basis, daily travel in the Bay Area had remained stable from 2005 to 2019 at approximately 23 daily miles per person. At just 10 miles per capita in 2019, San Francisco has by far the lowest VMT per capita, as more trips here are done by walking, biking, transit or other modes, such as scooting.

During of the COVID-19 pandemic, daily miles traveled dropped considerably as millions stayed home from offices, restaurants and stores. The data show that during the COVID-19 pandemic, daily miles on per capita basis dropped sharply as well. This indicates a significant shift in the amount of miles Bay Area residents drive each day. It remains to be seen what trends in daily miles traveled will look like during the post-pandemic world.

The Bay Area’s per capita miles traveled is low relative to other major metro areas.

Among major metro areas, New York, Philadelphia, Chicago and the Bay Area have relatively lower per capita daily miles traveled. This is in contrast to major metro areas like Atlanta, Dallas and Houston which have relatively higher per capita daily miles traveled. Perhaps surprisingly, the Bay Area’ per capita daily miles traveled is similar to that of Los Angeles, contradicting both the Bay Area’s reputation as being dense and walkable and Los Angeles’ reputation for being auto-oriented.