Can we focus long-distance travel survey sampling? Analyzing travel behavior trends between and within demographic groups

Abstract

This work determines if there are statistically significant differences long-distance travel behaviors between and within different demographic groups, defined by income, age, and presence of children. This work considers data from three long-distance travel surveys, using ANOVA and Theil Index analyses. Results indicate long-distance sampling frames can be dramatically reduced based on simple combinations of household demographics. In most cases, only one or two demographics were necessary to statistically differentiate between the long-distance travel patterns of different groups. Therefore, practitioners could use these results to create more frequent and focused long-distance travel survey sampling frames reducing survey administrative costs and respondent burden.