New population estimates just released show that the Omaha metro area has added 58,779 people this decade. The growth remains steady at slightly more than 1% percent a year. This means that by 2025 the Omaha metro area could reach 1 million people up from the current population of 924,129 according to David Drozd, research coordinator with the University of Nebraska at Omaha's Center for Public Affairs Research
While Sarpy County has seen the fastest grown in terms of percentage, Douglas country has added the most people. Over in Iowa, Harrison County has actually lost population steadily over the past decade.
- Other key findings include:
- 83,000 babies were born in the Omaha metro area since 2010
- 15,000 housing units have been added since 2010
- 38,000 new jobs have been added since 2010
- The Omaha area has added 12,300 new immigrants since 2010
With all these new people comes more traffic. It now takes 18 seconds longer for the average daily commute which runs 20 minutes. This is due to the 8 percent increase of vehicle traffic on the Metro area’s 15 main routes.
Sources: Latest figures available fromNebraska Departments of Labor and Education,U.S. Census Bureau,Metropolitan Area Planning Agency.
