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The Transport Department (TD) today (August 25) announced that the Travel Characteristics Survey (TCS) 2011 will be conducted from September 2011 to January 2012. About 50 000 households will be randomly selected and visited by survey officers.
At the press briefing, the Assistant Commissioner for Transport (Planning), Mr Anthony Loo said that the TCS aimed to collect up-to-date information on Hong Kong people's travel patterns and behaviour. The data collected will help the Government to better plan for the future transport infrastructure and improve public transport services. He called on the selected households to support the TCS by providing travel details and help achieve the slogan's objective to "Support the Travel Survey Today, Enjoy a Better Transport System Tomorrow".
"The travel patterns of Hong Kong people have changed significantly in recent years as a result of many factors, such as growth in the economy and population, new land use developments, increase in cross-boundary traffic movements, changes in commercial activities, and completion of new transport infrastructure projects. We hope to ascertain these changes through the TCS," he explained.
The key information to be collected in the TCS includes detailed trip information of individual household member, factors affecting travel characteristics and views on various transport facilities. This survey also canvasses public opinion on pedestrian and cycling facilities, and electric vehicles as an environmental mode of transport with a view to planning for the future transport system.
The TCS 2011 will commence on September 5. Selected households will receive notification letters in batches to invite their participation. Survey officers will visit the selected households within four weeks from the date of issue of the notification letters.
Mr Loo added, "Selected households can call the hotline 3900 1100 between 10am and 10pm from Monday to Sunday, including public holidays, to make interview appointments at a time more convenient to them. They are also welcome to call the hotline to enquire about the survey and verify the identity of survey officers."
To minimise the interview time, uniformed survey officers with photo identification issued by the TD will visit the selected households in pairs.
All household members are invited to participate in the survey. For children and the elderly who are unable to answer the questionnaire on their own, other household members can reply on their behalf.
"We expect each household member will take around 30 minutes to complete the interview, depending on the actual trip details.
"All personal information provided by the respondents, including trip records, employment and income, will be kept strictly confidential and used solely for statistical analysis. All the completed questionnaires will be destroyed upon completion of data analysis. No personal information will be retained," Mr Loo emphasised.
The TD will publicise the TCS through television and radio announcements, display of posters at government facilities and housing estates, and distribution of leaflets at various District Offices and TD's Licensing Offices. The public may also browse the department's website (www.td.gov.hk) for details.
Ends/Thursday, August 25, 2011
Issued at HKT 17:29
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