Hybrid methodology for improving response rates and data quality in mobility surveys

Abstract

This paper presents a surveying method developed and tested in several data collection campaigns for different purposes in the field of urban mobility. The method combines the advantages of personal intercept interviews and online questionnaires to meet the basic requirements of a survey: good data quality, representativeness and minimal costs. Five application case studies in European cities are presented to evaluate and demonstrate the validity of the method and to study people’s willingness to complete a survey. The successful application of the method in a variety of research projects proves its validity for survey campaigns to assess different transport policies. The results evidence the validity of the methodology. The response rates obtained were quite high compared with merely online surveys – between 14 and 22% – and the data collected met the quality requirements for each research project where the method was applied. The method combines low cost, reliability and high response rates and therefore clearly contributes to mobility survey performance and sampling practices in transport research.