Skip to Content
U.S. Department of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Statistics
The Intermodal Transportation Database Friday, October 15, 2004
dark blue line
home glossary databases contact us about help
dark blue line
space holder
 
Advanced Search
Data Finder
By Mode
By Subject
Resources
See a complete list ...
Glossary : A
A   B   C   D   E   F   G   H   I   J   K   L   M   N   O   P   Q   R   S   T   U   V   W   X   Y   Z
Printable VersionAll Rows Shown
TermsDefinitions
ADAAmericans With Disabilities Act ( National Transit Database )
AIRS Parameter Occurrence CodeAn arbitrary code that distinguishes among monitors for the same pollutant at the same site. Also known as an AQS parameter occurance code. ( National Air Quality Data (AIRS) )
AIRS Site CodeAn arbitrary code that identifies a particular monitoring site within a county. Also known as an AQS site code. ( National Air Quality Data (AIRS) )
AM PeakThe period in the morning when additional services are provided to handle higher passenger volumes. The period begins when normal scheduled headways are reduced and ends when headways return to normal. ( National Transit Database )
AQSAir Quality System. This database provides air monitoring data - ambient concentrations of criteria air pollutants at monitoring sites, primarily in cities and towns. This data is used to create AIRSdata reports. ( National Air Quality Data (AIRS) )
AccidentAn occurrence involving a commercial motor vehicle operating on a public road which results in one of the following: a fatality; bodily injury to a person, who as a result of the injury, immediately receives medical treatment away from the scene of the ac ( Fatality Analysis Reporting System )
Accident TypeCategorizes pre-crash and crash circumstances (e.g., head-on collision, rear-end collision, sideswipe). ( General Estimates System (NASS/GES) )
Accident/IncidentThe term used to describe the entire list of reportable events. These include: fatalities, injuries, and illnesses; collisions, derailments, and similar accidents involving the operation of on-track equipment causing reportable damage above an established threshold; and impacts between railroad on-track equipment and highway users at crossings. ( Railroad Accident/Incident Reporting System )
ActivityPersons age 16 and over were asked to classify themselves by their main activity, i.e., working full or part time, a homemaker, in the armed forces, going to school, or retired. ( American Travel Survey )
Actual Departure And Arrival TimesThe time an aircraft becomes airborne upon departure or touches down upon arrival. ( Airline On-Time Performance Data )
Actual Passenger Car HoursThe hours that passenger cars travel while in revenue service (actual passenger car revenue hours) plus deadhead hours. Actual passenger car hours include layover/recovery time but exclude hours for charter services, school bus service, operator training and maintenance testing. ( National Transit Database )
Actual Passenger Car MilesThe miles that passenger cars travel while in revenue service (actual passenger revenue miles) plus deadhead miles. ( National Transit Database )
Actual Passenger Car Revenue HoursThe hours that passenger cars travel while in revenue service. Passenger car revenue hours include layover/recovery time but exclude deadhead, training operators prior to revenue service and road tests, as well as school bus and charter services. ( National Transit Database )
Actual Passenger Car Revenue MilesThe miles that passenger cars travel while in revenue service. Passenger car revenue miles exclude deadhead, training operators prior to revenue service and road tests, as well as school bus and charter services. ( National Transit Database )
Actual Train MilesThe miles in which trains travel while in revenue service (actual train revenue miles) plus deadhead miles. Actual train miles exclude miles for charter services, school bus service, operator training and maintenance testing. ( National Transit Database )
Actual Vehicle HoursThe hours that vehicles travel while in revenue service (actual vehicle revenue hours) plus deadhead hours. Actual vehicle hours exclude hours for charter services, school bus service, operating training and maintenance testing. ( National Transit Database )
Actual Vehicle MilesThe miles that vehicles travel while in revenue service (actual vehicle revenue miles) plus deadhead miles. Actual vehicle miles exclude miles for charter services, school bus service, operator training and maintenance testing. ( National Transit Database )
Actual Vehicle Revenue HoursThe hours that vehicles travel while in revenue service. Vehicle revenue hours include layover/recovery time but exclude deadhead, training operators prior to revenue service and road tests, as well as school bus and charter services. ( National Transit Database )
Actual Vehicle Revenue MilesThe miles that vehicles travel while in revenue service. Vehicle revenue miles exclude deadhead, training operators prior to revenue service and road tests, as well as school bus and charter services. ( National Transit Database )
Aggravated AssaultAn unlawful attack by 1 person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. This type of assault usually is accompanied by the use of a weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm. ( National Transit Database )
AirAir service for shipments that typically weigh more than 100 pounds using commercial or private aircraft. Includes air freight and air express. ( Commodity Flow Survey )
Air FreightProperty, other than express and passenger baggage transported by air. ( Air Carrier Statistics, Small Air Carrier Statistics )
Air Quality StandardsThe maximum legal ambient concentration of a criteria air pollutant as established by the Clean Air Act. The standards are framed in terms of different summary measures for each pollutant. Data for the relevant summary measures are available for each pollutant. Measurements are in terms of parts per million by volume and micrograms per cubic meter of air. See also Exceedence and Criteria Air Pollutant. ( National Air Quality Data (AIRS) )
Air TaxiAn aircraft operator who conducts operations for hire or compensation in accordance with 14 CFR 135 (for safety purposes) or FAR Part 135 (for economic regulations/reporting purposes) in an aircraft with 30 or fewer passenger seats and a payload capacity of 7,500 pounds or less. An air taxi operates on an on-demand basis. ( Small Air Carrier Statistics )
Air TemperatureThe ambient temperature indicated by a thermometer exposed to the air but sheltered from direct solar radiation. ( Recreational Boating Accident Reporting Database )
Air Traffic LiabilitiesThe value of transportation sold but not used or refunded; i.e., (1) liabilities to passengers, or (2) liabilities to others. These include payables to other airlines for portions of interairline passenger trips - amounts the ticketing carrier owes the performing carrier. Also included are amounts the ticketing carrier owes to passengers prior to flights - which remain unearned revenue until air transportation is provided. ( Air Carrier Financial Reports (Form 41 Financial Data) )
Air TripAny trip in which the type of transportation used to cover most of the miles on that trip was either by commercial airplane or a personal or corporate airplane. ( American Travel Survey )
Aircraft And Traffic Servicing ExpensesCompensation of ground personnel, in-flight expenses for handling and protecting all non-passenger traffic including passenger baggage, and other expenses incurred on the ground to (1) protect and control the in-flight movement of the aircraft, (2) schedule and prepare aircraft operational crew for flight assignment, (3) handle and service aircraft while in line operation, and (4) service and handle traffic on the ground after issuance of documents establishing the air carrier's responsibility to provide air transportation. ( Air Carrier Financial Reports (Form 41 Financial Data) )
Aircraft ConfigurationAn arrangement of passengers and/or cargo. ( Air Carrier Statistics )
The type of payload an aircraft was designed to carry: passenger, cargo, or both. ( Air Carrier Statistics )
Aircraft Days AssignedThe number of days that aircraft owned or acquired through rental or lease (but not inter-change) are in the possession of the reporting air carrier and are available for service on the reporting carrier's routes plus the number of days such aircraft are in service on routes of others under interchange agreements. Includes days in overhaul, or temporarily out of service due to schedulecancellations. Excludes days that newly acquired aircraft are on hand but not available or formally withdrawn from air transport service. ( Air Carrier Summary Data )
Aircraft HoursThe airborne hours of aircraft computed from the moment an aircraft leaves the ground until it touches the ground at the end of a flight stage. ( Air Carrier Statistics, Small Air Carrier Statistics )
Aircraft Operating ExpensesExpenses incurred directly in the in-flight operation of aircraft. ( Air Carrier Financial Reports (Form 41 Financial Data) )
Aircraft Registration NumberAn identification number issued by the FAA that includes all aircraft owned by individuals, businesses and government in the United States. ( Aviation Accidents Database and Synopses )
Airframe CyclesThe number of take off and landings for structural components of an airplane, such as: fuselage, empennage, wings, landing gear and engine mounts, but excluding such items as: engines, accessories, electronics, and other parts that may be replaced from time to time. ( Aviation Accidents Database and Synopses )
Airframe HoursThe number of hours flown by an airframe in its lifetime. ( Aviation Accidents Database and Synopses )
Airport CodeA three character alpha-numeric code issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation which is the official designation of the airport. ( Small Air Carrier Statistics, Airline Origin and Destination Survey (DB1B), Aviation Support Tables )
Airport ElevationThe highest point on an airport's usable runways expressed in feet above mean sea level. ( Aviation Accidents Database and Synopses )
Alcohol InvolvementNHTSA defines a fatal crash as alcohol-related or alcohol-involved if either a driver or a non-motorist (usually a pedestrian) had a measurable or estimated blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.01 grams per deciliter (g/dl) or above. NHTSA defines a nonfatal crash as alcohol-related or alcohol-involved if police indicate on the police accident report that there is evidence of alcohol present. The code does not necessarily mean that a driver or non-occupant was tested for alcohol. ( Fatality Analysis Reporting System )
NHTSA defines a fatal crash as alcohol-related or alcohol-involved if either a driver or a nonmotorist (usually a pedestrian) had a measurable or estimated blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.01 grams per deciliter (g/dl) or above. NHTSA defines a nonfatal crash as alcohol-related or alcohol-involved if police indicate on the police accident report that there is evidence of alcohol present. The code does not necessarily mean that a driver or non-occupant was tested for alcohol. ( Fatality Analysis Reporting System )
AllisionA striking or collision of a moving vessel against a stationary object. ( Marine Casualty and Pollution Database )
AltimeterAn instrument used to measure the altitude, or elevation above sea level. ( Aviation Accidents Database and Synopses )
AmtrakOperated by the National Railroad Passenger Corporation of Washington, DC. This rail system was created by President Nixon in 1970, and was given the responsibility for the operation of intercity, as distinct from suburban, passenger trains between points designated by the Secretary of Transportation. ( Railroad Accident/Incident Reporting System )
Angled CollisionCollisions which are not head-on, rear-end, rear-to-rear, or sideswipe. ( Fatality Analysis Reporting System )
Annual MeanThe average yearly concentration of a pollutant, computed by AQS software from 24-hour values. ( National Air Quality Data (AIRS) )
Arrival DelayArrival delay equals the difference of the actual arrival time minus the scheduled arrival time. A flight is considered on-time when it arrives less than 15 minutes after its published arrival time. ( Airline On-Time Performance Data )
ArsonTo unlawfully and intentionally damage, or attempt to damage, any real or personal property by fire or incendiary device. ( National Transit Database )
AssetsCurrent Assets include cash, accounts receivable, notes receivable. Long-term assets include net carrier operating property. ( Motor Carrier Financial & Operating Information )
Automated GuidewayA transit mode that is an electric railway of guided transit vehicles operating without vehicle operators or other crew aboard the vehicle. ( National Transit Database )
Available Seat MilesThe aircraft miles flown in each inter-airport segment multiplied by the number of seats available for revenue passenger use on that segment. ( Small Air Carrier Statistics )
Average Annual Daily TrafficThe average daily volume of traffic on a yearly basis. ( Highway Perfomance Monitoring System )
Average Lifetime Mileage Per Active VehicleThe average miles accumulated on a vehicle since date of manufacture. ( National Transit Database )
Average Miles Per ShipmentThe 1993 CFS excluded shipments of STCC 27, Printed Matter, from calculation of average miles per shipment. This was done after determining that respondents in the 1993 CFS shipping newspapers, magazines, catalogs, etc., had used widely varying definitions of the term shipment. In the 1997 CFS, numerous efforts were made during data collection and editing to produce consistent results from establishments shipping SCTG 29, Printed Products. As a result, average miles per shipment for printed products is included in calculations for the 1997 CFS. ( Commodity Flow Survey )
All Rows Shown
A   B   C   D   E   F   G   H   I   J   K   L   M   N   O   P   Q   R   S   T   U   V   W   X   Y   Z

Accessibility | Disclaimer | Freedom of Information Act | Privacy Policy
FedStats | FirstGov | USDOT | White House