TRENDS IN NEW YORK STATE LONG-DISTANCE TRAVEL:

Transcription

1 DRAFT TRENDS IN NEW YORK STATE LONG-DISTANCE TRAVEL: Based on 2001 National Household Travel Survey February 28, 2006 Pat Hu Ho-Ling Hwang Tim Reuscher Center for Transportation Analysis Oak Ridge National Laboratory Oak Ridge, Tennessee Prepared for Office of Transportation Policy and Strategy New York State Department of Transportation Albany, New York 12232

2 DRAFT TRENDS IN NEW YORK STATE LONG-DISTANCE TRAVEL: Based on 2001 National Household Travel Survey Background and Objectives Data on personal travel trends are needed to examine the reliability, efficiency, capacity, and flexibility of the State s transportation system to meet current and future demands; to assess the feasibility and efficiency of alternative congestion-alleviating technologies; to evaluate the merits of alternative transportation investment programs; and to assess the energy use and air quality impacts of various policies. To address these data needs, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) initiated an effort to collect detailed data on personal travel. In 1969, the first Nationwide Personal Transportation Survey (NPTS) was conducted. The survey was repeated in 1977, 1983, 1990, and In 2001, an expanded survey included both daily and longdistance travel. In essence, the 2001 survey combined the NPTS and the 1995 American Travel Survey, and was renamed the National Household Travel Survey (NHTS). New York State participated in the 2001 NHTS by procuring additional 12,000 sample households. These additional sample households allowed New York State to address transportation planning issues pertinent to geographic areas significantly smaller than what the national NHTS data are intended for. The final sample size for New York State was 13,423 usable households. In the 2001 NHTS, long-distance trips were defined as trips of 50 miles or more from home to the farthest destination traveled. This included both the portion of the trip to reach the farthest destination, as well as the return trip home and any overnight stops made along the way or stops to change transportation modes. Similar to the daily trips, characteristics of long-distance travel were collected such as the modes used (e.g., personal vehicle, airplane, bus, train, and ship), trip purposes (e.g., commuting, business, pleasure, and personal or family business), socio-economic attributes of the travelers, and trip destinations. 1

3 The definition of long-distance trip has changed from that used in the 1995 American Travel Survey (ATS), where long-distance trips were defined as trips of 100 miles or more and excluded trips for the purpose of commuting. Therefore, caution should be exercised when comparing estimates based on the 2001 NHTS to those based on the 1995 ATS. Comparisons reported in this report are based on trips that were 100 miles or more from home to the farthest destination. Appendix A of this report provides a detailed discussion on the comparison issues and data limitations. This report highlights major trends in long-distance travel taken by New York residents and those taken by visitors to New York State. This report also highlights the similarities and differences in long-distance travel patterns between 1995 and 2001, but it does not address the causes for the differences. Unless otherwise specified, a trip in this report is defined as a round-trip-travel from home to the farthest destination and the return back to home. New York State 2

4 In 2001, New York residents: Made over 21 million long-distance trips to a destination within the State, 40 million trips to an out-of-state destination, and 5 million trips to a foreign destination -- amounting to almost 70 billion miles; New York residents traveled long- distance to: 2001 (thousands) In-state destination 21,364 Out-of-state domestic destination 39,576 Foreign destination 5,093 Undetermined destination 10 Total 66,043 Visitors traveled long-distance to New York State 38,880 Were more likely to travel to places outside the State; On average, took fewer than four long distance trips per person per year; Traveled long distance primarily for leisure purposes, and to visit Other Visit friends 1% friends and relatives; 32% Traveled the longest distances for business trips, and the shortest for personal and family Leisure business; 33% Business 16% Personal business 18% Visiting Friends Leisure Personal & Family Business ,000 1,500 Avg Trip Length (miles) 3

5 In 2001, New York residents (continued): Flew commercial airlines for trips longer than 1,000 miles; Used personal vehicles three-quarters of the time, typically for trips shorter than 500 miles; Other Train Bus 4.9% 2.5% 1.4% Air 18.2% POV 72.9% 0.0% 20.0% 40.0% 60.0% 80.0% % Long-Distance Trips Made more long-distance trips if their incomes were higher; Made longer trips if they were less than 25 years old; and Were most likely to travel to Canada as a foreign destination (accounting for 36% of the total foreign long distance trips), followed by United Kingdom (7%). Trip Length 1,150 1,100 1,050 1, or younger 25 to or older Age Unreported See source data in Table B.1 4

6 How did business travel differ from non-business travel? One out of five domestic long-distance trips made by New York residents was for business. Traveling long distance for business was very different from non-business long-distance travel. For example, almost 40% of the long-distance business trips were by air while only 15% of the nonbusiness long-distance trips were by air. Among the business-related long-distance trips made by New Yorkers: Three-quarters were made by individuals with an annual income of more than $50,000; % Trips 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0% Business Non-business Personal Veh. Air Bus & Train Other Almost 90% were made by those between 25 and 64 years old; and Most were made by men. Compared to non-business long-distance travel, business-related long-distance trips by New Yorkers were: Longer in distance by almost 39%; and Made in smaller groups. Party Size: It should be emphasized that characterizing long-distance travel Nonbusiness patterns by household socio-economic characteristics or by travelers Business demographics is limited and inconclusive due to the short reporting 0.0% 50.0% 100.0% period (i.e., a 4-week window) in the % Tri ps 2001 survey. Using a short reporting period to collect information on long-distance travel which occurs infrequently tends to capture trips made by the most frequent long-distant travelers. 5

7 How did business travel differ from non-business travel (continued)? The over-night stays for business-related travel made by New York residents averaged more than 2 nights while the duration of non-business travel made by New Yorkers averaged close to 4 nights. The majority of the long-distance trips to a domestic destination returned on the same day. 40% 30% % Trips 20% 10% Business Non-business 0% No. of Nights New Yorkers Spent on Domestic Trips See source data in Tables B.2 and B.3. 6

8 Where in the United States did New York residents visit in 2001? Two out of three domestic long-distance trips taken by New York residents were to a destination outside the State. This was true for both 1995 and Where New Yorkers visited in 2001 Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New Jersey were the three most popular out-of-state destinations for New York residents, accounting for about 30% of the total domestic long-distance travel by New Yorkers in 2001, and about 25% in The difference between 1995 and 2001 could be a result of the different period for recording longdistance travel (see Appendix A). With a 4-week reporting period in the 2001 survey, it was more likely to capture trips made to the neighboring states. In 2001, about 5% of domestic long-distance trips by New Yorkers were to Florida. Where New Yorkers visited in 1995 See source data in Table B.4. 7

9 Visitors to New York State In 2001, visitors made almost 39 million trips to New York State. Most of them came in personal vehicles to visit friends and relatives and for leisure. This was an increase of 56% from the 25 million trips in More than half of these trips (55%) were made by residents from the neighboring states Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Virginia. Compared to the 1995 estimates, visits by Massachusetts residents increased significantly, from 2.4 million trips in 1995 to 8.7 million in The influence of the different survey methodology and different data reporting period on this increase was unclear. On the other hand, visits from New Jersey residents dropped significantly, from 3.4 million trips in 1995 to 1.3 million in Reasons for this decrease were not determined. Out-of-State residents visited New York State in 2001 in

10 Visitors to New York State (continued) The primary reason for visiting New York State was to visit friends and relatives, closely followed by trips for business. Most visitors came by personal vehicle, followed by air. The mode distribution varies between non-business trips and business-related trips. Visiting Friends & Relatives 33% Business 30% Leisure 23% Personal & Family 14% Non-business Business 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% % trips Personal vehicle Air Train Other More than two out of three business-related trips made by visitors to New York State were made by a single individual. Compared to business-related trips, four out of five trips to New York State for non-business purposes were made in groups of 2 or more. When visiting New York State, visitors spent an average of at least 2 nights away from home. Non-business More than 30% of the longdistance trips made by visitors Business were same-day trips, while 20% were over-night stays for 2 nights. The duration of the stay by % Trips visitors was shorter for businessrelated trips, averaging slightly more than one night while the duration for nonbusiness trips averaged more than 3 nights. 0% 20% 40% No. of Nights Spent on Trips % 80% 100% See source data Tables B.4, B.5, and B.6. 9

11 How have trends in Domestic long-distance travel changed over time? Compared to 1995, Americans took almost 25% more long-distance trips in In 2001, New York residents took 61 million person-trips to domestic destinations -- an increase of 33% from Two out of three domestic long-distance trips taken by New York residents were to an out-of-state destination. This was true for both 1995 and Also in 2001, more than 39 million person-trips were made by visitors to New York State, an increase of 57% from Long-distance travel taken by New York residents accounted for almost 5% of the total person-trips taken by all U.S. residents in Summary Statistics of Domestic Long-Distance Travel* 1995 ATS and 2001 NHTS 2001 (000) 1995 (000) % increase from 1995 to 2001 U.S. Total 1,267,255 1,001,319 26% Trips taken by New York State residents 60,940 45,942 33% - To a destination within New York State 21,364 (35%) 15,983 (35%) - To a destination outside New York State 39,576 (65%) 29,959 (65%) Trips taken by visitors to New York state 38,880 24,820 57% Percent taken by New York residents of the national total 4.81% 4.59% * Excludes trips that are between 50 and 100 miles from home, and exclude commute trips. 10

12 Between 1995 and 2001, Americans took more, but shorter, long-distance trips to a domestic destination. This was true for both New York and non-new York residents. On average, New York household took more than four long-distance trips a year in Long trips taken by New York residents were 21% shorter in 2001 than in Trip Rates and Average Length of Domestic Long-Distance Travel 1995 NPTS and 2001 NHTS Travel by whom New York Residents Non New York Residents All U.S. Residents % change from 1995 Number of Trips per household % Number of Trips per person % Trip Length (miles) % Number of Trips per person % Trip Length (miles) % Number of Trips per person % Trip Length (miles) % Average Length of Long-Distance Trips Trip Length New York Residents Non-New York Residents

13 APPENDIX A.: DATA COMPARATIVE ISSUES AND ASSUMPTIONS

14 Data Comparative Issues and Assumptions Before any meaningful comparisons can be conducted between the ATS and the NHTS, data comparative issues would need to be addressed. There are several fundamental differences in these two surveys, including the data collection period (12-months verses 4-weeks, ATS and NHTS respectively), definition of in-scope trips (100-mile verses 50- mile one-way), routing-distance verses great-circle-distance, length of recall period (up to 3 months verses days), survey method employed (personal and phone interviews verses all phone interviews), etc. Although commuter trips were collected under the ATS, these trips were treated differently and not classified as long-distance trips in the ATS data products. On the other hand, 2001 NHTS defines commute as an option for trip purposes and, therefore, includes in-scope commute trips (i.e., 50 miles or more one-way) in its long-distance data file. Due to these incompatibilities between the 1995 ATS and 2001 NHTS, the trend analyses conducted under this study are focused only on a subset of the NHTS long-distance trips. That is, o All commute trips were eliminated from the NHTS data, and o Trips with one-way adjusted-gcd (as described in Part I) shorter than 100-mile were removed from the NHTS data. Note that comparisons conducted for this highlight report are limited to 1995 ATS statistics as those published in the BTS state report. No attempt was made in this study to recalculate any statistics from the 1995 ATS dataset. Data Limitation One of the significant data comparative issues encountered in this trend analysis is that statistics for per traveling household and per traveler can not be computed based on the 2001 NHTS data set. As mentioned, the NHTS long-distance trips were collected from each sample household for a predetermined 4-week travel period. The number of trips collected for this 4-week period was then multiplied by 13 (i.e., 52/4) to derive the estimated annual total of long-distance trips made by the household. Under this method, unfortunately, a household that traveled outside its assigned travel-period would be treated as non-traveler for the entire survey year. Since long-distance travel is a rather rare event than typically daily trips, it is more likely to be missed by the given travelperiod. Consequently, the number of non-traveler or non-traveling households would be greatly overestimated. Collection of the most-recent trip information in the NHTS was an attempt to overcome this problem. Regrettably, this information is currently not available for analytical uses. Another major limitation encountered during this trend analysis is the way that a household trip was defined. In the 1995 ATS, a household trip was defined as travel made by one or more members of a household at the same time, on the same trip. This information was not only collected during the ATS survey but also was provided in a A.1

15 Household Trip File, separated from the Person Trip file. Under the 2001 NHTS, however, no such household trip file was created. Furthermore, the person trip file compiled from the NHTS data does not contain information that can be used to readily identify a household trip. In order to conduct the trend analysis, an approximation method (using travel date and matching origin-destination) was employed to the person trip file so that the number of household trips in NHTS can be estimated. That is, the 2001 NHTS household trip is defined as a trip taken by members of a given household with identical beginning and ending travel dates and with an identical origin and destination pair. For example, for a household with two members (A & B), assuming person-a made two trips (i.e., 2 person-trips) and person-b also made 2 trips a total of 4 person-trips for this household as listed below. Person Trip begin Trip end Origin Destination HH Trip # A 4/1/2001 4/3/2001 NYhome Acity 1 A 7/2/2001 7/10/2001 NYhome Funplace 2 B 5/1/2001 5/1/2001 NYhome Shops 3 B 7/2/2001 7/10/2001 NYhome Funplace 2 Based on this approximation method, the 4 person trips are for 3 household trips: person- A traveled on HH trip #1 by himself; person-b made HH trip #3 by herself and both were on HH trip #2. A.2

16 APPENDIX B. SOURCE TABLES

17 Table B.1 Summary Statistics of Long-Distance Travel by New York Residents 2001 Persontrips (thousand) Trips per person Miles (million) Miles per person Miles per trip All New Yorkers 66, ,659 3,738 1,055 Means of transportation Personal use vehicle 48, ,547 1, Commercial Airplane 11, ,813 2,297 3,572 Intercity Bus Train 1, Other 3, , Unreported Main purpose Business 10, , ,377 Personal family business 11, , Leisure 22, ,225 1,407 1,178 Visit friends or relatives 21, ,213 1,138 1,008 Other Unreported ,140 Income Less than $25,000 6, ,682 1, $25,000 to $49,999 14, ,369 2, $50,000 or more 41, ,000 5,942 1,143 Unreported 4, ,609 2, Age 24 or younger 15, ,166 2,761 1, to 64 41, ,555 4,588 1, and over 6, ,236 2, Unreported 1, ,702 4,222 1,107 Gender Male 34, ,371 3, Female 31, ,288 3,639 1,130 * Based on Census estimates, 2001 New York population was approximately 18,636 thousand persons. ** Number of person-trips includes all trips, to domestic as well as foreign destinations, 100 miles or more one-way (in adjusted-gcd), taken by New Yorkers in B.1

18 Table B.2 Long-Distance Travel Made by New York Residents Categorized by Business vs. Non-Business 2001 Person trips (thousand) Non- Business Business Miles (million) Non- Business Business Miles per trip Non- Business Business All New Yorkers 10,538 55,485 14,511 55,046 1, Means of transportation Personal use vehicle 5,908 42,295 3,523 20, Commercial Airplane 3,817 8,158 10,566 32,150 2,768 3,941 Intercity Bus Train 451 1, Other 328 2, , Unreported Party Size 1 5,805 8,360 7,459 11,521 1,285 1, ,951 18,937 3,927 16,114 1, ,038 1,813 10,573 2,371 1, , ,481 1, , ,356 1,142 1,201 Income Less than $25, , ,989 1, $25,000 to $49,999 1,646 12,384 1,580 10, $50,000 or more 8,011 33,101 11,702 35,201 1,461 1,063 Unreported 531 3, ,069 1, Age 24 or younger , , , to 64 9,195 32,543 12,581 31,968 1, and over 496 6, ,452 1, Unreported 258 1, ,001 2, Gender Male 7,731 27,069 10,501 23,771 1, Female 2,808 28,415 4,010 31,274 1,428 1,101 * Number of person-trips includes all trips, to domestic as well as foreign destinations, 100 miles or more one-way (in adjusted-gcd), taken by New Yorkers in ** Non-business estimates do not include trips and miles with an unreported trip purpose. B.2

19 Table B.3 Number of Nights New Yorkers Spent on Trip by Main Purpose (Business vs. Non-Business) Domestic Trips (thousand person trips) International Trips (thousand person trips) Number of Nights Business Non- Business All Business Non- Business All 0 2,715 10,736 13, ,334 8,134 9, ,401 8,590 9, ,163 5, ,093 3, ,723 2, nights or more Unreported 1,976 7,208 9, TOTAL 9,687 51,247 60, ,230 5,093 MEAN NIGHTS * All person-trips are in thousands. ** Totals may include some unreported characteristics. B.3

20 Table B.4 Where Did New Yorkers Go in 2001 and What has Changed Since 1995? State 2001 NHTS person-trips 2001 NHTS Percent (%) State 2001 NHTS person-trips 2001 NHTS Percent (%) Alabama Montana Alaska Nebraska Arizona Nevada Arkansas New Hampshire California New Jersey 4, Colorado New Mexico Connecticut 2, New York 21, Delaware North Carolina 1, District of Columbia North Dakota Florida 3, Ohio Georgia Oklahoma Hawaii Oregon Idaho Pennsylvania 8, Illinois Rhode Island Indiana South Carolina Iowa South Dakota Kansas Tennessee Kentucky Texas Louisiana Utah Maine Vermont 1, Maryland 1, Virginia 1, Massachusetts 4, Washington Michigan West Virginia Minnesota Wisconsin Mississippi Wyoming Missouri Total US 60, * All person-trips are in thousands. Trips made by NYS residents to foreign countries are excluded. B.4

21 Table B.4 (continued) Where Did New Yorkers Go in 2001 and What has Changed Since 1995? State 1995 ATS person-trips 1995 ATS Percent (%) State 1995 ATS person-trips 1995 ATS Percent (%) Alabama Montana Alaska Nebraska Arizona Nevada Arkansas New Hampshire California New Jersey 2, Colorado New Mexico Connecticut 1, New York 15, District of Columbia 1, North Carolina Delaware North Dakota Florida 3, Ohio Georgia Oklahoma Hawaii Oregon Idaho Pennsylvania 4, Illinois Rhode Island Indiana South Carolina Iowa South Dakota Kansas Tennessee Kentucky Texas Louisiana Utah Maine Vermont 1, Maryland 1, Virginia 1, Massachusetts 3, Washington Michigan West Virginia Minnesota Wisconsin Mississippi Wyoming Missouri Total US 45, * All person-trips are in thousands. Trips made by NYS residents to foreign countries are excluded. B.5

22 Table B.5 Long-Distance Travel by Visitors to New York State Categorized by Business vs. Non-Business 2001 Persontrips (thousand) Trips per person Miles (million) Miles per person Miles per trip All New Yorkers 38, , Means of transportation Personal use vehicle 27, , Commercial Airplane 6, , ,624 Train 2, , Other 2, , Main purpose Business 11, , Personal family business 5, , Leisure 9, , ,076 Visit friends or relatives 12, , Other Income Less than $25,000 2, , $25,000 to $49,999 11, , $50,000 or more 21, , ,019 Unreported 2, , Age 24 or younger 11, , to 64 25, , and over 1, , Unreported Gender Male 21, , Female 17, , * Number of person-trips includes all trips 100 miles or more one-way (in adjusted-gcd), taken by visitors to New York in ** Non-business estimates do not include trips and miles with an unreported trip purpose. B.6

23 Table B.6 Summary Statistics of Long-Distance Travel by Visitors to New York State, 2001 Person trips (thousand) Miles (,million) Miles per trip Non- Non- Non- Business Business Business Business Business Business New York Visitors 11,587 27,293 10,770 24, Means of transportation Personal use vehicle 7,838 20,041 3,427 10, Commercial Airplane 2,636 3,986 6,701 10,677 2,543 2,678 Train 982 1, Other , Party Size 1 7,771 3,463 6,108 4, , ,673 6,611 3,038 5,176 1, ,477 5, , , , , ,353 1,281 1,276 Income Less than $25, , , $25,000 to $49,999 5,409 6,589 3,001 5, $50,000 or more 5,566 16,116 6,889 15,197 1, Unreported 555 1, ,439 1, Age 24 or younger , ,589 1, to 64 10,492 15,041 9,811 13, and over 203 1, , Unreported Gender Male 8,372 12,679 6,567 11, Female 3,214 14,615 4,203 12,853 1, * Based on Census estimates, total U.S. population in 2001 was about 277,203 thousand persons. ** Statistics based on 2001 NHTS estimates on all people who visited NYS, including NYS residents but excluding visitors not living in the United States. B.7

24 Table B.7 Number of Nights Visitors to New York Spent on Trip by Main Purpose (Business vs. Non-Business) Business (thousand person trips) Non-Business (thousand person trips) All (thousand person trips) Number of Nights 0 6,371 5,558 11, ,658 4,082 5, ,423 7,006 8, ,838 3, ,625 3, ,013 1,370 6 nights or more 581 4,172 4,752 TOTAL 11,587 27,293 38,880 MEAN NIGHTS * All person-trips are in thousands. ** Totals may include some unreported characteristics. B.8