Fredericksburg is an independent city in the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia, 50 miles south of Washington, D.C., and 55 miles north of Richmond, Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 19,279. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Fredericksburg with neighboring Spotsylvania County for statistical purposes. This city is a part of the Washington Metropolitan Area and, because of the vast abundance of commuters who travel by car, bus, and rail to Fairfax, Prince William, and Arlington Counties as well as Washington, D.C., is considered by many to be a part of Northern Virginia.