Travel
Published
- 1. Navigate toMain facts and figures section
- 2. Navigate toThings you need to know section
- 3. Navigate to By ethnicity (number of trips and mode of transport) section
- 4. Navigate to By ethnicity (average school trip distance) section
- 5. Navigate toData sources section
- 6. Navigate toDownload the data section
1. Main facts and figures
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in the 5 years to March 2019, white people made the highest percentage of trips by car or van out of all ethnic groups (63%)
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black people made the lowest percentage of trips by car or van (40%)
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journeys by local bus made up 19% of trips by black people – the highest percentage out of all ethnic groups for this type of transport
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white children had the longest trip to school (2.5 miles on average), and Asian children had the shortest (2.0 miles on average)
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white and Asian children were more likely to travel to school by car, while black children were more likely to travel by bus
2. Things you need to know
What the data measures
The data shows the number of trips people in England made and the type of transport used (for example, car, bus or train). The data is based on people of all ages living in England, and includes any trips they made in Wales and Scotland.
The data also shows how 5 to 16 year olds living in England got to or from school. Each trip is counted separately and includes trips to and from schools in Wales and Scotland.
Percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number and are calculated using unrounded figures.
Not included in the data
Percentages based on fewer than 100 people or 300 trips have not been included in the data. This is because the numbers are too small to make any reliable generalisations.
The data does not include school trips over 50 miles.
The ethnic groups used in the data
Data is shown for the following 5 aggregated groups:
- Asian
- black
- mixed
- white
- other
This means percentages are shown for these groups as a whole. This is to make sure group sizes are big enough to make reliable generalisations.
The data for ‘All ethnic groups’ includes people who did not give their ethnicity – this was 0.05% in the 5 years to March 2019.
Methodology
Read the detailed methodology document (PDF) (PDF opens in a new window or tab) for this data.
The data shows 5-year averages from April 2002 to March 2019. This is to make sure there are enough people to be able to make reliable generalisations. You can read more about why we combine multiple years of data and some of the issues involved.
The figures on this page are based on survey data. Find out more about interpreting survey data, including how reliability is affected by the number of people surveyed. Differences between ethnic groups have not been tested for statistical significance. The bullet points on this page only include findings about large differences.
National Travel Survey responses are weighted to take account of different population demographics. They are also weighted to take into account people who did not respond or complete their travel diary in full.
You can read more about how weighting is used to make survey data more representative of the group it is about.
In the data file
See Download the data for data from 2002 to 2019 (5 years combined) and for weighted and unweighted sample sizes.
3. By ethnicity (number of trips and mode of transport)
| All | Asian | Black | Mixed | White | Other | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode of transport | All % | All Number | Asian % | Asian Number | Black % | Black Number | Mixed % | Mixed Number | White % | White Number | Other % | Other Number |
| Bicycle | 2 | 16 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 8 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 2 | 17 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
| Bus in London | 2 | 17 | 6 | 46 | 12 | 93 | 4 | 35 | 1 | 11 | 8 | 65 |
| Car / van driver | 40 | 387 | 31 | 252 | 25 | 195 | 19 | 172 | 42 | 413 | 28 | 232 |
| Car / van passenger | 21 | 203 | 21 | 168 | 15 | 116 | 28 | 253 | 21 | 210 | 18 | 154 |
| London Underground | 1 | 10 | 2 | 18 | 2 | 19 | 2 | 18 | 1 | 9 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
| Motorcycle | 0 | 3 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 0 | 3 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
| Non-local bus | 0 | 1 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 0 | 1 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
| Other local bus | 4 | 36 | 3 | 23 | 7 | 55 | 6 | 51 | 4 | 36 | 5 | 42 |
| Other private transport | 1 | 7 | 0 | 3 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 1 | 7 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
| Other public transport | 0 | 3 | 1 | 5 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 0 | 3 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
| Surface Rail | 2 | 21 | 3 | 26 | 5 | 37 | 3 | 26 | 2 | 20 | 3 | 27 |
| Taxi / minicab | 1 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 10 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 1 | 10 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
| Walk | 26 | 245 | 31 | 250 | 29 | 227 | 35 | 323 | 25 | 244 | 33 | 274 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity (number of trips and mode of transport)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity (number of trips and mode of transport)’ (CSV)
4. By ethnicity (average school trip distance)
| Time period | All | Asian | Black | Mixed | White | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miles | Miles | Miles | Miles | Miles | Miles | |
| 2002/06 | 2.3 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 2.2 |
| 2003/07 | 2.3 | 1.8 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 2.2 |
| 2004/08 | 2.3 | 1.8 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 2.4 |
| 2005/09 | 2.3 | 1.7 | 2.5 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 1.9 |
| 2006/10 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 2.4 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 2.3 |
| 2007/11 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 2.3 | 1.8 | 2.4 | 2.8 |
| 2008/12 | 2.4 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 1.8 | 2.5 | 2.7 |
| 2009/13 | 2.5 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 2.6 |
| 2010/14 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 1.9 | 2.6 | 2.6 |
| 2011/15 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 2.6 | 2.2 |
| 2012/16 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 2.1 |
| 2013/17 | 2.4 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 2.1 |
| 2014/18 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.5 | 2.3 |
| 2015/19 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 2.2 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 2.1 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity (average school trip distance)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity (average school trip distance)’ (CSV)
5. Data sources
Source
Type of data
Survey data
Type of statistic
National Statistics
Publisher
Department for Transport
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
The National Travel Survey is the main source of data on personal travel by people living in England.
The survey collects information on how, why, when and where people travel. It also covers factors affecting people's travel habits, such as whether they have a car and driving licence.
6. Download the data
This file contains the following: ethnicity, year, value, numerator and denominator (weighted and unweighted)
This file contains the following: ethnicity, year, value, numerator and denominator (weighted and unweighted)
This file contains the following: ethnicity, year, value, numerator and denominator (weighted and unweighted)
This file contains the following: ethnicity, year, value, numerator and denominator (weighted and unweighted)
This file contains the following: ethnicity, year, value, numerator, denominator, unweighted sample
This file contains the following: ethnicity, year, value, numerator, denominator, unweighted sample
This file contains the following: ethnicity, year, value, numerator, denominator, unweighted sample