Demographics

Area

– 56,271.55 square miles in total area (includes 402.2 square miles of water); ranks 23rd in the nation in total area. (2006)

Population

– 2,944,062 persons

Housing units

– 1,232,511 total units; 22.1 housing units per square mile of land (2000 census)

Per capita personal income

– $29,043 (2003)

Governmental jurisdictions

– 99 counties and 949 incorporated cities (2004); the state capitol is in Des Moines, population 198,682 (2000)

Labor force

- In October 2007, 1,675,000 people made up Iowa's labor force; the unemployment rate was 3.9 percent and the unemployment level 65,500 persons. (Iowa Workforce Development)

Commodity flow

- The top five commodities shipped to, from and within Iowa (calculated in tons and listed in order) in 2006 were cereal grains, coal, gravel, other foodstuff, and animal feed; when calculated according to the value of the products shipped, the top commodities shipped were machinery, coal, motorized vehicles, other foodstuffs, and mixed freight. (FAF, FHWA)

Shipment characteristics

- Trucks transport 77.6 percent of the shipments originating in Iowa, according to the total value of the commodities, this is followed pipeline at 12.2 percent, by rail at 6.4 percent and water 1 percent; when measured according to tons shipped, trucks transport 68.0 percent, pipeline 15.7 percent, rail 14.9 percent and water 2.0 percent (2006 FAF, FHWA). Commodities originating in Iowa travel an average of 136 miles by truck, 865 miles by rail, 1,287 by water, and 1,429 by air. (2002 Commodity Flow Survey)

Travel characteristics

- 84.4 percent of Iowans taking trips of 100 miles or more, one way, use a personal use vehicle as their principal means of travel; this is followed by 13 percent by airplane, 2.6 percent by bus and 1.8 percent by train; the top five out-of-state destinations for Iowans taking trips of 100 miles or more one way include Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Nebraska (1995)