Annual vehicle miles traveled per capita, by state

[Ban my account ffs!]

It has more to do with population density, not with political affiliation.  Look at a state like Alaska, which has the smallest population density... but people are clumped into villages and cities... and since those villages and cities are so far apart, driving between them is no dice.  Airline miles per capita are probably very high in AK though.

Then look at North Dakota, which is currently experiencing a major housing shortage due to the oil boom, which they were not prepared for at all.  People are buying homes in small towns dozens of miles away from work because developers are afraid that building like crazy will be rewarded with an oil bust and lost money.  It's happened before in the same region.