Vehicle Miles Traveled (miles/year)

Metric Definition
Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) is one indicator used to calculate carbon emissions from ground travel – 23% of community emissions in 2020. As long as the majority of vehicles on the road run on fossil fuels, this measure will track overall vehicle emissions trends. VMT is predicted to continue increasing as the Fort Collins population grows. The reduction in VMT in 2020 was due to COVID-19 and resulting Stay-at-Home orders, and that reduction is not expected to become a trend in following years. Growth in VMT can have positive, negative, or neutral impacts on emissions depending on vehicle type. VMT data is modeled by the Northern Front Range Metropolitan Planning Organization (NFRMPO).
Why Is This Important?
This metric is an important data point used to calculate carbon emissions from ground travel, which make up about 24% of the community’s carbon inventory (2017).
City Organization Impact on Performance
Medium – The City has a moderate impact on the performance of VMT - initiatives such as congestion management, pedestrian network improvement, bicycle network and public transportation expansion all contribute to bringing down VMT. However, the sensitivity of the NFRMPO’s transportation model may not reflect all of these efforts in the VMT number.
Benchmark Information
None available.