Statistical data set

Purpose of travel

Data about why people travel, produced by Department for Transport.

• From: Department for Transport
• Published: 30 July 2013
• Last updated: 28 August 2024 — See all updates

Accessible Tables and Improved Quality

As part of the Analysis Function Reproducible Analytical Pipeline Strategy, processes to create all National Travel Survey (NTS) statistics tables have been improved to follow the principles of Reproducible Analytical Pipelines (RAP). This has resulted in improved efficiency and quality of NTS tables and therefore some historical estimates have seen very minor change, at least the fifth decimal place.

All NTS tables have also been redesigned in an accessible format where they can be used by as many people as possible, including people with an impaired vision, motor difficulties, cognitive impairments or learning disabilities and deafness or impaired hearing.

If you wish to provide feedback on these changes then please contact us.

Trips, stages, distance and time spent travelling

NTS0403: Average number of trips, miles and time spent travelling by trip purpose: England, 1995 onwards (ODS, 56.4 KB)

NTS0407: Long distance trips within Great Britain by purpose and length: English households, 2002 onwards (ODS, 43.7 KB)

NTS0408: Purpose of next trip by sex and previous trip: England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 45.2 KB)

NTS0409: Average number of trips and distance travelled by purpose and main mode: England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 105 KB)

Employment status

NTS0412: Commuter trips and distance by employment status and main mode: England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 53.8 KB)

Travel purpose by start time and day of the week

NTS0502: Trip start time by trip purpose (Monday to Friday only): England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 146 KB)

NTS0504: Average number of trips by day of the week or month and purpose or main mode: England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 141 KB)

Travel purpose by age and gender

NTS0611: Average number of trips and distance travelled by sex, age and purpose: England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 335 KB)

NTS0710: Average number of trips and distance travelled by mobility status and purpose, aged 16 and over: England, 2007 onwards (ODS, 38.8 KB)

NTS0901: Annual mileage of cars by ownership, fuel type and trip purpose: England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 12.8 KB)

NTS9906: Average number of trips by trip purpose, region and rural-urban classification of residence (trips per person per year): England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 88.8 KB)

Travel purpose by region

NTS9907: Average distance travelled by trip purpose, region and rural-urban classification of residence (miles per person per year): England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 91.8 KB)

NTS9912: Average trip length by trip purpose, region and rural-urban classification of residence: England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 89.6 KB)

NTS9913: Average time spent travelling by trip purpose, region and rural-urban classification of residence (hours per person per year): England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 86.7 KB)

NTS9914: Average trip duration by trip purpose, region and rural-urban classification of residence (minutes): England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 83.9 KB)

NTS9918: Average number of trips and distance travelled by trip purpose, ethnic group, region and rural-urban classification of residence: England, 2002 onwards (ODS, 523 KB)

Contact us

National Travel Survey statistics

Email national.travelsurvey@dft.gov.uk

To hear more about DfT statistical publications as they are released, follow us on X at DfTstats.

Published 30 July 2013
Last updated 28 August 2024 + show all updates

1. 28 August 2024

   Data tables updated for the latest National Travel Survey report for 2023.

2. 30 August 2023

   Data tables updated for the National Travel Survey report for 2022.

3. 31 August 2022

   Data tables updated for the NTS 2021 annual report.

4. 22 September 2021

   Data tables updated for the NTS 2020 report.

5. 5 August 2020

   Data tables updated for the NTS 2019 report.

6. 31 July 2019

   Updated for 31 July 2019 publication.

7. 26 July 2018

   Tables updated for the year 2017.

8. 27 July 2017

   Table 0403 to 0406, 0409 and 0410 updated to 2016 data.

9. 8 September 2016

   Tables updated to the latest data for the year 2015.

10. 2 September 2015

    Tables updated to the latest data for the year 2014.

11. 29 July 2014

    Tables NTS0401 to 0410 updated to include data for the year 2013.

12. 30 July 2013

    NTS04 - Why people travel (trip purpose) 2012 data added. This replaces previous editions of these tables.

13. 30 July 2013

    First published.