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Key findings

Table 1.1: Percentage of people who travelled and did not travel on the reference day
 20122013
 %%
   
Did not travel26.829.0
Travelled73.271.0
 
Total 100100
   

Seven out of ten people (71%) made a journey on the travel reference day1 in 2013. This represents a slight decrease on 2012. 

 

1 The travel reference day is the day for which respondents provide information on their travel pattern.

 

Table 1.2: Average journey profile Dublin and all regions excluding Dublin, 2012 and 2013
       
Area2012 2013
DistanceDurationSpeed1 DistanceDurationSpeed1
 KmMinutesKm/hour KmMinutesKm/hour
        
All regions excluding Dublin15.321.243.3 15.821.643.9
Dublin9.722.825.5 10.823.427.7
      
All regions13.621.737.6 14.322.138.8
        
1 Derived

The average journey distance in 2013 was 14.3 kilometres and on average took 22.1 minutes to complete. While journeys in Dublin tend to be shorter in distance, they take longer to complete. In 2013, it took almost sixty per cent longer to complete a trip of the same distance in Dublin than in the rest of the country.

Table 1.3: Precentage distribution of journeys by purpose, 2012 and 2013
   
Purpose20122013
 %%
   
Work23.024.8
Education4.84.6
Shopping21.422.7
To eat or drink2.31.9
Visit family / friends10.510.2
Entertainment / leisure / sports9.19.8
Personal business5.86.4
Companion / escort journey19.015.2
Other4.14.2
   
All purposes100100
   

The most common reasons for making a journey in 2013 were to travel to and from work (24.8%) or to go shopping (22.7%). Companion journeys were the next most important reason for making a journey (15.2%). It should be noted that the survey was answered by those aged 18 and over, hence the figures for education are likely to be lower than they would be if the survey had included all age groups. Return journeys, that is journeys back to the respondents place of residence after completing a journey for a specific purpose, are excluded from this journey purpose analysis.

Distribution of journeys by purpose, 2013
Work24.8
Education4.6
Visit family/
friends
10.2
Shopping22.7
Companion/
escort journey
15.2
Other22.4
Table 1.4: Percentage distribution of journeys by mode of travel, 2012 and 2013
   
Mode of travel20122013
 %%
   
Private car - driver70.469.0
Private car - passenger6.15.8
Lorry / motorcycle / other2.72.5
Walk13.615.4
Bus3.93.8
Cycle1.21.3
Rail / DART / Luas1.31.5
Taxi / hackney0.80.9
   
All modes of travel100100
   

The results show a strong affinity to the car when choosing a particular mode of transport. In 2013, almost three quarters (74.8%) chose the car, either as a driver or a passenger, when making a journey. Only 5.8% travelled as passengers with the vast majority (69.0%) driving themselves. The next most popular modal choice was walking (15.4%).

Distribution of journeys by mode of travel, 2013
Private car -
driver
69
Walk15.4
Private car -
passenger
5.8
Other9.8
Table 1.5: Average journey profile by mode of travel, 2012 and 2013
     
Mode of travel2012 2013
DistanceDuration DistanceDuration
 KmMinutes KmMinutes
     
Private car - driver14.320.2 15.420.5
Private car - passenger24.528.8 25.129.6
Lorry / motorcycle / other25.431.1 27.831.0
Walk1.818.6 1.919.2
Bus14.834.8 18.138.4
Cycle6.923.8 5.723.6
Rail / DART / Luas29.344.4 28.044.9
Taxi / hackney10.221.2 6.816.4
     
All modes of travel13.621.7 14.322.1
      

In 2013, the average journey was 14.3 kilometres and took 22.1 minutes to complete. There was a significant variation in the average journey profile across different transport modes. Journeys of a longer distance were more likely to be completed using public transport, car pooling or motorbike/lorry. Journeys by rail, DART or Luas had an average distance of 28.0 kilometres and took on average 44.9 minutes to complete.  The average distance for journeys as a car passenger was 25.1 kilometres while the average duration was 29.6 minutes.

X-axis labelDistance (Km)Duration (minutes)
Private car - Driver 15.420.5
Private car - Passenger25.129.6
Lorry/motorcycle/
other
27.831
Walk1.919.2
Bus 18.138.4
Cycle5.723.6
Rail/DART/luas2844.9
Taxi/hackney6.816.4
All modes of travel14.322.1
Table 1.6: Percentage distribution of journeys by time of departure, 2012 and 2013
   
Time of departure20122013
 %%
   
00:00-06:591.74.1
07:00-09:5919.914.9
10:00-12:5919.418.6
13:00-15:5923.922.9
16:00-18:5923.323.6
19.00-23:5911.815.9
   
All times of travel100100
   

Almost half of all journeys (46.5%) in 2013 took place between the hours of 13:00 and 18:59. Just over one fifth of all journeys (22.9%) were made between 13:00 and 15:59 while close to one quarter (23.6%) took place between 16:00 and 18:59. The method of data collection changed from a 24 hour format in 2012 to a 12 hour format in 2013. Consequently, caution should be applied when comparing the timing of journeys in 2012 and 2013. 

Distribution of journeys by time of departure, 2013
00:00-06:594.1
07:00-09:5914.9
10:00-12:5918.6
13:00-15:5922.9
16:00-18:5923.6
19.00-23:5915.9
Table 1.7: Percentage distribution of journeys by duration, 2012 and 2013
   
Duration20122013
 %%
   
15 minutes or less57.657.6
16 - 30 minutes27.526.6
31 - 45 minutes6.77.0
46 - 60 minutes4.24.5
>60 minutes3.94.3
   
All durations100100
   

In 2013, the vast majority of journeys (84.2%) took 30 minutes or less to complete. Almost six out of every ten journeys (57.6%) took less than 15 minutes to complete. Just 15.8% of journeys took longer than 30 minutes.

Distribution of journeys by duration, 2013
15 mins
or less
57.6
16-30
mins
26.6
31-45
mins
7
46-60
mins
4.5
>60 mins4.3
Table 1.8: Percentage distribution of journeys by journey distance, 2012 and 2013
   
Distance20122013
 %%
   
<2 kilometres22.321.1
2<4 kilometres18.218.9
4<6 kilometres11.711.7
6<8 kilometres6.06.6
8+ kilometres41.941.7
   
All distances100100
   

Just over four out of every ten journeys (41.7%) involved distances of eight kilometres or more. Over one fifth of journeys (21.1%) were less than two kilometres. 

Distribution of journeys by journey distance, 2013
<2 km21.1
2<4 km18.9
4<6 km11.7
6<8 km6.6
8+ km41.7

Go to next chapter >>> How we travelled