More Californians using alternate transportation options, survey finds

Courtesy of Sacramento Record-Bee.com: The percentage of Californians walking, biking or using public transportation more than doubled since 2000, according to the California Household Travel Survey (CHTS).

According to California Air Resources Board Chairman Mary D. Nichols, the increase comes “with real benefits for public health that also cuts greenhouse gases and smog forming pollution.”

The survey was conducted between Jan. 2012 and Feb. 2013, according to a press release from Caltrans. Approximately 109,000 people from more than 42,000 household in 58 counties were included in the study.

The average trip per household was 9.2 and the average trip per person was 3.6, the release stated. Diaries were given to participants to record where and when they traveled, as well as how they got to and from their destination on one random day.

Nearly 23-percent of household trips were taken by walking, biking or using public transportation, according to the release. In 2000, 11-percent of trips were taken using the same methods.

Walking trips nearly doubled from 8.6-percent to 16.6-percent. “This increasing interest in many transportation choices is why we are on the path to more sustainability in California,” California State Transportation Agency Secretary Brian Kelly stated.

Caltrans and regional transportation planning agencies will use the CHTS data to forecast future travel demands and greenhouse gas emissions to find ways to improve transportation and residents’ needs, according to the release.

Category: General Update