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How We Travel A Sustainable National Program for Travel Data (2011) / Chapter Skim
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Executive Summary
Pages 1-4

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From page 1...
... A wellfunctioning transportation system is essential for business travel and tourism, yet no national data have been collected on long-distance, intercity passenger travel by surface transportation modes since 1995. A strong economy depends on state and regional investments in freight corridors to keep freight moving, but industry-based data on freight shipments, focused on supply chain linkages and local goods movement, are not collected.
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From page 2...
... The following paragraphs provide a brief overview of the committee's recommendations for achieving such a program; details are presented in the concluding chapter of this report. To support the wise use of public resources for transportation, particularly in a time of slow growth and massive budget deficits, a National Travel Data Program should be organized and sustained; built on a core of essential travel data whose collection is sponsored at the federal level; and well coordinated with travel data collected by states, MPOs, transit agencies, and the private sector (see Figure ES-1)
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From page 3...
... DOT Modal Agencies Functions Administrations National Travel Data: Core Federal Data Collection Passenger Travel Freight Travel Data Component Data Component • Next-generation NHTS • Next-generation CFS State, MPO, and • Intercity passenger • Supply chain survey Other Local travel survey • International freight Agency (e.g., • International travel data transit) Travel passenger travel data • Local operations Data Private-Sector • National panel survey surveys (linked to but • Shares data Travel Data not part of federal collection • Shares data program)
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From page 4...
... Declining rates of response to voluntary surveys threaten their validity, and conducting large, periodic surveys makes data collection less efficient and creates cost spikes that can become targets for budget cutting. RITA, in collaboration with its data partners, should invest aggressively in research and testing of new methods -- including continuous data collection and greater use of technology -- for data collection, integration, management, and dissemination.
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Key Terms

  • national travel
  • data program
  • data travel
  • passenger travel
  • data partners

  • transportation statistics
  • metropolitan planning
  • collection activities
  • innovative technology
  • national data

  • effective travel
  • federal travel
  • program data
  • federal data
  • critical travel

  • disseminate travel
  • business travel
  • travel survey
  • disparate data
  • data programs

  • shares data
  • sustainable travel
  • essential travel
  • makes data
  • data constituencies

  • collect travel
  • vehicular travel
  • modal travel
  • continuous data
  • major travel


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