Fact #748: October 8, 2012 Components of Household Expenditures on Transportation, 1984-2010

The overall share of annual household expenditures for transportation was lower in 2010 than it was in 1984, reaching its lowest point in 2009 at 15.5%. In the early to mid-1980s when oil prices were high, gasoline and motor oil made up a larger share of transportation expenditures but then declined until about 2004 when gasoline and motor oil expenditures began to rise again. The share of household expenditures on gasoline and oil was exactly the same in 1985 as it was twenty five years later in 2010 at 4.4%. During this period, expenditures for vehicle purchases declined to the lowest level in 2009 and remained constant for 2010 at 5.4%.

Share of Household Expenditures on Transportation, 1984-2010
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Note: Other transportation-related expenditures include vehicle finance charges, maintenance and repairs, vehicle insurance, vehicle rental, leases, licenses and other charges, and public transportation.

Supporting Information

Annual Household Expenditures and Transportation Share of Expenditures, 1984-2010
YearVehicle PurchasesGasoline and Motor OilOther Transportation relatedAnnual Household Expenditures (current dollars)
19848.2%4.8%6.6%$22,546
19858.6%4.4%6.4%$23,976
19869.6%3.8%6.6%$24,439
19878.1%3.6%6.8%$24,776
19889.0%3.5%6.9%$26,389
19898.3%3.5%6.9%$28,323
19907.5%3.6%6.8%$29,062
19917.1%3.3%6.8%$30,487
19927.1%3.2%6.9%$30,527
19937.4%3.1%7.0%$31,436
19948.3%3.0%7.3%$32,740
19958.0%3.0%7.2%$33,597
19968.2%3.1%7.2%$35,591
19977.9%3.1%7.5%$36,146
19988.2%2.8%7.3%$37,260
19998.7%2.7%7.0%$39,143
20008.6%3.3%6.9%$40,238
20019.1%3.1%6.9%$41,395
20028.9%2.9%6.9%$42,557
20039.1%3.2%6.6%$42,742
20047.8%3.7%6.5%$43,395
20057.6%4.3%6.0%$46,409
20067.1%4.6%5.9%$48,398
20076.5%4.8%6.3%$49,638
20085.5%5.4%6.2%$50,486
20095.4%4.0%6.1%$49,067
20105.4%4.4%6.1%$48,109
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Consumer Expenditure Survey 2010, Table 2, 2011.

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