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Scottish Household Survey: Travel Diary 2005-06
21/04/2008
Scotland's Chief Statistician today published the Scottish Household Survey Travel Diary: 2005-2006.
Main Findings
Men were more likely to drive
- Around two-thirds of men reported driving on the previous day (64 per cent), compared to just fewer than half of women drivers (48 per cent)
- Women were also much more likely to be a passenger than their male counterparts (20 per cent and 9 per cent, respectively)
The majority of all commuting journeys had only one occupant in the car
- Around 62 per cent of all commuting journeys were as a driver of a car or van, compared to only 32 per cent for educational purposes
- Of all commuting journeys, 85 per cent had only one occupant in the car/van
Bus journeys continued to increase
- The percentage of people reporting travel by bus continued to increase - from 10.4 percent in 2005 to 11.3 per cent in 2006
Walking journeys continued to show a decline
- The percentage of journeys made on foot continued its steady decline since 1999
- The percentage of driver journeys continued to increase but the percentage of journeys as a passenger has not significantly changed since 1999
Across Scotland the average number of occupants in a car/van was 1.6
- Commuting journeys had a lower average number of occupants per vehicle (1.2), as did those journeys starting before 7am (1.3)
- Conversely, journeys at the weekend had a higher average number of occupants per vehicle (1.8)
Car usage increased with income; bus usage decreased
- 83 percent of journeys reported by high income households (net income over £40,000 p.a.) were by car, compared to around a half of journeys made by those in low income households (up to £10,000 p.a.)
- Correspondingly, only 3 percent of journeys made by high income households were by bus, seven times lower than respondents in low income households
The majority of journeys were less than 5 km
- In 2005/2006, the average (mean) journey distance was 11 km, compared to a median of only 4 km
- This showed that half of all journeys were 4 km or less; in fact 31 per cent were less than 2 km
- Around two thirds of all driver journeys were less than 10 km
The SHS involves interviews with about 15,500 households across Scotland each year. While the aim is to obtain a representative cross section, like any such survey the results may vary from year to year depending upon the composition of the sample.
The SHS Travel Diary covers travel for personal purposes. This includes commuting and journeys in the course of work (eg. to/from a meeting) for which the purpose is for the traveller to reach a destination. However, it does not cover travel in the course of their work by people who are employed (eg.) to drive buses or lorries, to deliver letters or parcels, or as police officers, traffic wardens, etc. The SHS also excludes journeys of under a quarter of a mile, or under five minutes on foot.