RURAL MOBILITY AND MODE CHOICE: EVIDENCE FROM THE 2001 NATIONAL HOUSEHOLD TRAVEL SURVEY

This article reports on a study that used data from the 2001 National Household Travel Survey (NHTS) to compare travel behavior in rural and urban areas of the United States. The authors found that the private automobile is the overwhelmingly dominant mode of travel. The data showed that over 97% of rural households own at least one car versus 92% of urban households; 91% of trips are made by car in rural areas versus 86% in urban areas. Mobility levels in rural areas are generally higher than in urban areas, primarily because residences and activity sites are more widely dispersed. The authors note that, somewhat surprisingly, the rural elderly and poor are considerably more mobile than their urban counterparts. The mobility deficit of rural elderly and poor, compared to the rural population average, is strikingly less than for the urban elderly and poor compared to the urban average. The authors conclude with a brief discussion of whether public policies should continue to subsidize the higher costs of providing a whole range of services to low-density rural areas.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/00494488
• Authors:
  • Pucher, J
  • Renne, J L
• Publication Date: 2005-3

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 165-186
• Serial:
  • Transportation
  • Volume: 32
  • Issue Number: 2
  • Publisher: Springer
  • ISSN: 0049-4488
  • EISSN: 1572-9435
  • Serial URL: http://link.springer.com/journal/11116

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Accessibility; Aged; Demographics; Low income groups; Mobility; Mode choice; Rural travel; Socioeconomic factors; Travel behavior; Urban travel
• Identifier Terms: National Household Travel Survey
• Uncontrolled Terms: Lifestyle
• Subject Areas: Economics; Highways; Planning and Forecasting; Society; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00987517
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, ATRI
• Created Date: Mar 17 2005 12:00AM