specification: API Commons Plans
specificationVersion: '0.1'
schema: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/interface-research/main/schema/api-commons.yml#/$defs/Plans
provider: Department of Transportation
providerId: department-of-transportation
created: '2026-05-04'
# Provenance stamped 2026-08-11: this artifact was written by the API Evangelist
# bulk sweep dated 2026-05-04, not harvested from the provider. See roadmap#35.
method: generated
modified: '2026-05-05'
reconciled: true
tags:
  - Federal Government
  - Transportation
  - Vehicles
  - Aviation
  - Motor Carriers
  - Open Data
description: Department of Transportation public APIs (NHTSA vPIC, NHTSA Vehicle Safety, FMCSA QCMobile,
  FAA Airport Status, BTS, FRA, FTA NTD, PHMSA) are free of charge and operated as public data services.
  NHTSA Vehicle Safety (api.nhtsa.gov) is fronted by api.data.gov and uses a free api.data.gov developer
  key (default 1,000 requests per hour); NHTSA vPIC, FMCSA QCMobile, and FAA Airport Status are unauthenticated
  open endpoints subject to fair-use throttling. There is no paid tier, no billing relationship, and no
  commercial contract for use of these APIs.
sources:
  - https://www.transportation.gov/digitalstrategy/datadissemination
  - https://api.nhtsa.gov/
  - https://vpic.nhtsa.dot.gov/api/
  - https://mobile.fmcsa.dot.gov/qc/services/api/
  - https://soa.smext.faa.gov/asws/
  - https://api.data.gov/
plans:
  - id: department-of-transportation-public-free
    name: Public Free
    type: freemium
    description: Free public access. NHTSA Vehicle Safety (api.nhtsa.gov) requires a free api.data.gov
      key (default 1,000 requests per hour); NHTSA vPIC, FMCSA QCMobile, FAA Airport Status, BTS, FRA,
      FTA, and PHMSA endpoints are unauthenticated and subject to fair-use throttling.
    entries:
      - label: api.data.gov Keyed Requests
        description: Free, requires an api.data.gov key. Default 1,000 requests per hour per key; raise
          via api.data.gov support.
        name: keyed_requests
        type: quota
        metric: requests
        limit: 1000
        timeFrame: hour
        geo: US
        domains:
          - https://api.nhtsa.gov
        unit: 1
        price: '0.00'
        userMultiplied: false
      - label: Open Endpoints
        description: Free unauthenticated access subject to fair-use; no per-key quota.
        name: open_requests
        type: quota
        metric: requests
        limit: -1
        timeFrame: month
        geo: US
        domains:
          - https://vpic.nhtsa.dot.gov/api
          - https://mobile.fmcsa.dot.gov/qc/services
          - https://soa.smext.faa.gov/asws/api/airport
        unit: 1
        price: '0.00'
        userMultiplied: false
    elements:
      - name: Public Documentation
      - name: Open Data License (public-domain federal data)
      - name: NHTSA vPIC API
      - name: NHTSA Vehicle Safety API
      - name: FMCSA QCMobile API
      - name: FAA Airport Status API
      - name: Bureau of Transportation Statistics Data Portal
      - name: Federal Railroad Administration Safety Data
      - name: Federal Transit Administration National Transit Database
      - name: PHMSA Pipeline Safety Data
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: kin@apievangelist.com
x-canonical:
  generated: '2026-10-08'
  vocabulary: all/0-working/economics/plans-canonical.yml
  models:
  - free
  units:
  - request
  plans:
  - name: Public Free
    access: freemium
    model: free
    model_how: derived
    units:
    - request
    periods:
    - hour
    - month