- Design and Application of a Travel Survey for European Long-distance Trips based on an International Network of Expertise -
•
THE OBJECTIVES
There is a need for passenger transport statistics at the European level, yet at present no high quality database is available. The DATELINE project presents concepts, methods and potential for implementing a homogenous European travel survey of long-distance mobility in all the Member States of the European Union, based upon an international network of expertise.
The four specific objectives for the project are to:
Develop a survey design for long-distance passenger travel to be applied in all Member States. It will address the needs of the respondent and implement the state-of-the-art in travel behaviour surveys.
Implement these surveys in all 15 Member States.
Create a database which helps to provide answers to planning related issues and which supplies input for analysis.
Integrate this database in both a national context and in the EUROSTAT Statistical Programme.
DATELINE is building upon the successful Fourth Framework projects MEST (Methods for European Surveys of Travel Behaviour) and TEST (Technologies for European Surveys of Travel Behaviour). The EUROSTAT Statistical Programme is monitoring and supporting the DATELINE project, which takes into account the will use the EUROSTAT working group's findings on long-distance travel.
THE PHASES OF DATELINE
The DATELINE project commenced in April 2000 and will continue until June 2003. (final decision is expected soon)
During the first nine months the concepts, overall methodology and sampling methodology were developed and a survey network built up in all EU countries.
The survey lasts one whole year, so that all seasons are covered.
Database building will con with data collection, and data analysis will commence during the later stages. Both will continue for nine months, following the completation data collection.
THE OUTPUT
The data will be incorporated in a single database accessible to all interested parties and may be used for further analysis. ELMIS (European Long-distance Mobility Information System) is a comprehensive retrieval software that will be used to guarantee accessibility to the database.
The main findings will produce central indicators of long-distance mobility. The information from the survey will assist decision-making in transport policy and planning at the national and European level, helping to ergamise in a mere transport, economic and sustainable way, paying particular attraction to user needs.
THE PARTICIPANTS
The DATELINE Consortium consists of research organisations, universities, private firms and other bodies from Austria, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Their combined expertise compises behavioural research, empirical work, transport requirements, government statistics, modelling and management of international projects.
The DATELINE Partner:
- Socialdata Institut für Verkehrs- und Infrastrukturforschung GmbH, Germany
- Universität für Bodenkultur, Austria
- Statistics Netherlands, Netherlands
- Helsinki University of Technology, Finland
- AVV Transport Research Centre, Netherlands
- Peter Davidson Consultancy, UK
- POLIEDRA, Politecnico di Milano, Italy
- Institut Socialdata i Sverige AB, Sweden
- TIS.PT, Portugal
- TRIAS, Greece
- University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
- University of Maribor, Slovenia
