by Calculated Risk on 3/24/2021 09:42:00 AM

This will be something to watch as the economy recovers.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) reported:

Travel on all roads and streets changed by -11.3% (-28.4 billion vehicle miles) for January 2021 as compared with January 2020. Travel for the month is estimated to be 223.3 billion vehicle miles.

The seasonally adjusted vehicle miles traveled for January 2021 is 247.1 billion miles, a -9.6% (-26.2 billion vehicle miles) decline from January 2020. It also represents 1.2% increase (2.8 billion vehicle miles) compared with December 2020.

Cumulative Travel for 2021 changed by -11.3% (-28.4 billion vehicle miles). The cumulative estimate for the year is 223.3 billion vehicle miles of travel.
emphasis added

Click on graph for larger image.

This graph shows the rolling 12 month total vehicle miles driven to remove the seasonal factors.

Miles driven declined during the great recession, and the rolling 12 months stayed below the previous peak for a record 85 months.

Miles driven declined sharply in March, and really collapsed in April.