The Generic Travel Survey Process

Note: Significant components of this chapter come from Chapter 2 of the FHWA Travel Survey Manual. Material has been reviewed and updated by Lisa Aultmann-Hall and Peter Stopher.

# 2.1 The Survey Implementation Process

Most travel surveys (and other types of surveys, as well) follow a common implementation procedure. Backstrom and Hursh-Cesar (1981) divide the generic survey implementation process into the 20 steps listed in Table 2.1. These 20 steps can be classified into the five general stages shown in Figure 2.1:

  • Survey planning,

  • Survey design,

  • Field implementation,

  • Data preparation, and

  • Data analysis.

This manual concentrates on the three middle stages: survey design, field implementation, and data preparation. The survey planning and data analysis stages are related to decisions about the scope and intended uses of the data including models and other analyses. For this manual, it is assumed that the agency has either developed a detailed vision for creation or revision of an existing modeling system or has identified a particular set of policy needs for which survey data is needed.

Figure 2.1 shows the many functional relationships between the steps in the implementation of a generic travel survey. Decisions made at each point of the process affect many other elements of the survey effort. Once the need for a new travel survey has been identified, an agency needs to proceed with three tasks: compiling useful background information for the survey effort, designing the overall survey effort based on the recognized data needs and available data sources, and organizing the survey team and resources.

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