What share of car trips are under 3 miles?

33.6% of trips made in a car, SUV, van or pickup in the US are under 3 miles, 49.6% are under 5 miles and 9.9% under 1 mile, according to the FHWA 2022 National Household Travel Survey (weighted, 31,060 trips in the public file).

How do Americans make their trips?

Of all trips: 86.7% in a household car, SUV, van or pickup, 6.8% on foot, 1.5% by bus or train and 0.9% by bike or e-bike (NHTS 2022).

How long does 3 miles take by bike?

About 18 minutes at 10 mph, an easy pace, and about 12 minutes on an e-bike at 15 mph (class 1 and 2 e-bikes assist up to 20 mph in California, Vehicle Code 312.5). On foot at 3 mph it takes about an hour.

What does a short car trip cost?

A 3-mile trip there and back is 6 miles: $4.56 at the IRS rate of 76 cents a mile, which counts fuel, wear, insurance and the car losing value, and about 2.4 kg of CO2 at the EPA's 400 grams a mile for a typical passenger car.

A third of car trips are under 3 miles

Most of what Americans drive to is close. 1 in 3 trips in a car, SUV, van or pickup is under 3 miles, about a 20-minute bike ride, and half are under 5.

of car trips under 1 mile: 9.9%; of car trips under 1 mile
under 3 miles: 33.6%; under 3 miles
under 5 miles: 49.6%; under 5 miles
of all trips by car: 86.7%; of all trips by car

Car, SUV, van and pickup trips by distance

33.6% are shorter than a 20-minute bike ride

9.9%

12.5%

11.2%

16%

20.7%

16.3%

13.4%

under 1 mile1 to 2 miles2 to 3 miles3 to 5 miles5 to 10 miles10 to 20 miles20 miles or more

Share of trips by a household car, SUV, van or pickup, by trip length. FHWA, 2022 National Household Travel Survey, weighted to all US trips on a typical day. The public files have no state, so these are national figures.

Every trip, of every length

87 of every 100 trips are made by car

Walked 6.8%
Bus or train 1.5%
Bike or e-bike 0.9%
Car, SUV, van or pickup 86.7%
Other (school bus, ride-hail, plane…) 4.1%

One figure per percent of all trips, by how the trip was made. NHTS 2022.

What 3 miles takes

The same trip, four ways

by bike, at an easy 10 mph: 18 min; by bike, at an easy 10 mph
by e-bike at 15 mph (assist stops at 20 mph on class 1 and 2): 12 min; by e-bike at 15 mph (assist stops at 20 mph on class 1 and 2)
on foot, at 3 mph: 60 min; on foot, at 3 mph
by car there and back at the IRS rate, and 2.4 kg of CO₂: $4.56; by car there and back at the IRS rate, and 2.4 kg of CO₂

Speeds are round numbers for an easy pace, not measurements. Costs: IRS standard mileage rate; CO₂: EPA.

What's within 3 miles of you?

See the grocery stores, schools, parks and stations within a 10, 15 and 20 minute walk or ride of your home, plan a week of trips, and see what driving them takes.

What's within reach The harm cars do

About 4,274 people die in crashes on California roads each year, 27% of them on foot (NHTSA FARS).

The average US household spends $13,318 a year on transportation, about 353 hours of work (BLS): time and money.

Common questions

What share of car trips are under 3 miles?: 33.6% of trips made in a car, SUV, van or pickup in the US are under 3 miles, 49.6% are under 5 miles and 9.9% under 1 mile, according to the FHWA 2022 National Household Travel Survey (weighted, 31,060 trips in the public file).
How do Americans make their trips?: Of all trips: 86.7% in a household car, SUV, van or pickup, 6.8% on foot, 1.5% by bus or train and 0.9% by bike or e-bike (NHTS 2022).
How long does 3 miles take by bike?: About 18 minutes at 10 mph, an easy pace, and about 12 minutes on an e-bike at 15 mph (class 1 and 2 e-bikes assist up to 20 mph in California, Vehicle Code 312.5). On foot at 3 mph it takes about an hour.
What does a short car trip cost?: A 3-mile trip there and back is 6 miles: $4.56 at the IRS rate of 76 cents a mile, which counts fuel, wear, insurance and the car losing value, and about 2.4 kg of CO2 at the EPA's 400 grams a mile for a typical passenger car.

Source

FHWA, 2022 National Household Travel Survey (NextGen NHTS), public use trip file. Trips are weighted with the survey's trip weight, so the shares stand for all US trips on a typical day. Trip length is the survey's trip distance; trips without one are left out. Modes from the survey's derived trip mode: car, van, SUV and pickup count as a household vehicle; bike includes bike share and e-bikes.