<h2>Hi</h2>

Household Transport in 2009

6 Sep 2010 03:32 PM

Scotland's Chief Statistician today published Household Transport in 2009 which presents further analyses of transport-related information collected by the Scottish Household Survey (SHS). Headline results were published in August.

Main Findings

Public transport use & convenience

  • Forty-six per cent of respondents used their local bus service in the last month (up from 41 per cent in 2002), with 24 per cent using their local train (up from 15 per cent in 2002)
  • Eighty-one per cent of respondents felt that public transport was very or fairly convenient to access in 2009
  • A quarter of respondents had a regular bus service (at least 5 buses an hour) in 2009 (up from 20 per cent in 1999)
  • Fifty-five per cent of respondents aged 60 and over used a concessionary pass at least once a month with 32 per cent having a pass but not using it
  • Nine per cent of respondents with a limiting illness or disability had difficulty with at least one type of travel activity (walking/car/bus/train/taxi)

Travel to work

  • Sixty-seven per cent of respondents used the car to travel to work (stable since 1999), of which only 6 per cent travelled as a passenger (down from 12 per cent in 1999)
  • Walking and cycling accounted for 15 per cent and public transport 16 per cent of all journeys to work in 2009
  • Forty-six per cent of drivers and 39 per cent of passengers experienced delays to work at least once a week due to traffic congestion
  • Fifteen per cent of respondents travelling to work by car were involved in car sharing and 13 per cent were aware of their workplace's travel plan

Travel to school

  • Fifty-one per cent of all journeys to school were made by walking or cycling in 2009 (down from 55 per cent in 1999) and 22 per cent by bus (down from 25 per cent in 1999)
  • Children in primary school were more likely to walk (56 per cent) or be driven (31 per cent) to school than children in secondary school (42 per cent and 16 per cent respectively)

Driving and access to car & bikes

  • Twenty-six per cent of households had access to two or more cars in 2009 (up from 18 per cent in 1999), whilst 31 per cent had no access to a car (down from 37 per cent in 1999)
  • Men were more likely to hold a full driving license than females (76 per cent vs. 61 per cent). The figures have remained stable for men since 1999 however female license possession increased from 51 per cent over the same period
  • Eighty-one per cent of those living in accessible rural areas drove at least once a week in 2009 compared to 51 per cent of those in large urban areas
  • Thirty-five per cent of households had access to at least one bicycle in 2009 (up from 32 per cent in 1999)

The Scottish Household Survey started in February 1999 and involves interviews with about 15,500 households across Scotland each year. While the aim is to obtain a representative cross section, like any survey the results may vary from year-to-year depending upon the composition of the sample. Some topics have been included in the SHS since it started; others were added more recently.

Household Transport provides further analyses of SHS Transport results. Headline figures were published in Main Transport Trends on August 23 and covered: travel to work/school, car/bike access, driving licence, frequency of driving, walking, access to bus service and frequency of public transport.

Related Information