Travel Trends in the Baltimore Region

BMC INITIATES SERIES OF REPORTS ON TRAVEL TRENDS IN THE BALTIMORE REGION

BALTIMORE (May 12, 2011) – How do people get around in the Baltimore region? What kinds of trips do they take? What factors influence where they go and how they get there? Understanding these issues is a crucial part of planning a transportation system that works for the region’s residents. To find answers, BMC staff, on behalf of the Baltimore Regional Transportation Board (BRTB), turned to the Household Travel Survey conducted in 2007-08.

Data for the survey was collected from randomly selected households in the Baltimore region. Each household completed a travel diary that documented the activities of all household members on an assigned day. Demographic information was also collected.

The surveys were stored in a database, which contains records for approximately 4,500 households, 10,000 persons, 49,000 trips, and 6,000 vehicles.

The data allow BMC staff to look at a number of issues. They include:

• Travel Flows – County-to-county, metropolitan, intermetropolitan
• Mode Share – Proportion of trips that involve transit, carpooling, etc.
• Commuting – Indicators such as travel time and time left home
• Life Cycle – Household status (worker / no worker, children / no children) as a predictor of trip rates
• Trip Chaining – Combining several errands into one trip

The last topic, trip chaining, should reveal something about the challenges of and opportunities for increasing the attractiveness of public transit. That’s an example of how the survey results may stimulate policy development. Other policy issues that the survey data may offer a new perspective on are the mobility needs of older citizens and reduction in vehicle miles traveled (VMT).

The results are being published in a new series of reports called Directions. Two reports have been published to date:

• Commuters and Commuting in the Baltimore Region – summarizing information about who commuters are, where they are going, how they get there, and how long it takes
• Travel Differences by Age, Gender and Lifecycle in the Baltimore Region – summarizing information about the effects of individual and household characteristics on people’s travel patterns

Both reports are available at www.baltometro.org  and others will be published online as they are completed.

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The Baltimore Metropolitan Council is an organization of the elected executives of Baltimore City and Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford and Howard counties. The executives are committed to identifying regional interests and developing collaborative strategies, plans and programs which will improve the quality of life and economic vitality throughout the region.

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Last Updated on Tuesday, 17 May 2011 09:46