passenger mile

American  

Or passenger-mile

noun

1. a unit of measurement, consisting of one mile traveled by a passenger, that airlines, railroads, and other public transportation facilities use in recording volume of traffic.

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Other Word Forms

• passenger mileage
  noun

Etymology

Origin of passenger mile

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

passenger mile

Buses, which generally run at about 25 percent capacity, emit 0.64 pound of CO2 per passenger mile, according to data from the Department of Defense.

From Scientific American ● May 17, 2023

“Passenger rail is 3 times more efficient than a car on a passenger mile basis.”

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 4, 2023

He says federal, state and local subsidies to air and highway travel average around a penny per passenger mile.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 30, 2021

The thrice-weekly train is subsidized at a rate of about $1.50 per passenger mile.

From New York Times ● May 24, 2016

In seven days, in all kinds of weather and over city and country roads, the horse and buggy traveled 197 miles at a cost per passenger mile of 2-1/2 cents.

From The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 21 The Recent Days (1910-1914) by Charles F. (Charles Francis) Horne