Talking Freight: Establishment Surveys

1. Talking Freight: Establishment Surveys State and Local Experience Johanna Zmud Mia Zmud Chris Simek

2. State and Local Freight Surveys • Purposes • For modeling • For policy, decision-making • For improved understanding of freight movements • Sample Units • Drivers / Carriers • Shippers / Receivers (firms and households) • Database Contents • Vehicle characteristics, freight characteristics, driver characteristics, commodity type and quantity • Origins, destinations, routes traveled, stops, mode shares, travel times and distance • Satisfaction, attitudes, opinions

3. Sampling Challenges • Defining the universe and survey population • Adequacy of sampling frames and coverage errors • Sample size calculation

4. Instrument Development Challenges • Complexity and extent of data elements • Limitations to respondent knowledge • Specificity of data required

5. Data Collection Challenges

6. Example Projects • Policy-making • Value of Time Survey of Shippers, Georgia I-75 • Modeling • Commercial Vehicle Travel Diary Survey, Phoenix • Understanding Freight movements • NYS DOT Commercial Vehicle Driver Survey

7. #1 Value of Time Survey of Shippers • Truck-only Toll (TOT) Lane Study • Assess opinions of shippers and drivers that use corridor regarding TOTs • Determine pricing structure for TOT • Universe • Commercial Users of the I-75 Corridor • Data • Descriptive and Preference (VOT)

8. Shipper Survey Methods • Universe • Trucking companies that contain transport vehicles with 4 or more axles that operate on the corridor • Dual Sampling Frame • FMCA Commercial database – subset of carriers in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee, and North Carolina (N=8409) • Database developed in-field during operator survey (N=215) • Instrument • Screening (recruitment) • Attitude / opinion, Trips, Stated Preference • Data Collection • CATI – 176 completed interviews • Web – 156 completed interviews

9. Shipper Survey Challenges / Lessons • Lack of statistical control • Sample from unknown population • Time-consuming • 47% Noncontacts • An average of 10.3 contact attempts per CATI complete • CATI length: 13.4 minutes • Web application after-the-fact to enable shippers to participate on their own time • Web length: 14.6 minutes • Overcoverage of sampling units in FMCA database • 43% of sample records were not qualified to participate in survey • Nonresponse • 32% response rate • 40% refusal rate

10. #2 Commercial Vehicle Travel Diary Survey • Purpose • Recalibrate Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) truck model to reflect emerging travel realities and address new planning challenges • Survey to provide data for the model update • Approaches • Trip Diaries • Operator Surveys • Service Truck Activity

11. Travel Diary Survey Methods • Universe • Firms in modeled area that own and operate trucks (FHWA Class 5 and larger; two axel-six wheels) • NAICS: mail/parcel, local pickup and delivery, construction, retail, for-hire • Sampling Frame • MAG Employer Database (N=11,652) • Probability sample stratified by number of employees • Instrument • Screening (eligibility & recruitment) • Diary: Driver information, Truck information, Trip information

12. Travel Diary Survey Challenges / Lessons • Incidence • Types and number of trucks, firms often performed distribution-related delivery services (warehouse distribution) • Supplemental Frames: FleetSeek, ATA Fleet Directory, US Data Corp. • Non- Contacts / Qualified Sample Slowed Recruitment • Research updated numbers; 15 call attempts • In-person visits used to boost recruitment • Multiplicity in-field sampling • Diary Retrievals • Retraction of agreement to participate • Low participation by truck drivers (Spanish version necessary) • Extend data collection from 4 to 8 weeks to allow for temporal effects • Nonresponse • 21% response rate, 66% refusal rate

13. #3 Commercial Vehicle Driver Survey • Truck Drivers at NYSDOT Rest Areas, NYSTA Travel Plazas, Private Truck Stops • Strategic planning study • Supplement Transport Canada interviews at CA/NY border • Purposes: Facility locating, assess parking shortage, commercial vehicle routing, placement of NYSDOT traffic counters, etc.

14. Driver Survey Methods • Universe • FHWA vehicle class 8-13 • 30-total sites, with two days of collection at each • Instrument • Tablet PC with used to collect detailed information from over 1,000 truck drivers • Real-time geocoding and route verification • Data Elements • Truck, freight, facility characteristics • Driver attitudes and opinions regarding parking availability • Reasons why they stopped at this facility • Route choice

15. Driver Survey Instrumentation

16. Logistical Sites spread out across the state and, at times, separated by more than 100-miles. Lots of travel costs. Need to coordinate with interviewers, state police, NYSDOT and NYSTA personnel, facility operators and traffic count contractors to ensure everyone knows schedule and expectations. Survey Participation Survey is long, and it can be difficult to keep drivers on track (participation rate high, but key was listening to them “vent”) Good field staff and proper training one of the key’s to success. The more they know, the better driver response you will have. Data Collection Pilot is vital to success Driver Survey Challenges/ Lessons

17. Concluding Remarks • Overlap in challenges at national / state local levels • Solutions unique to information needs • Vehicle activity (travel patterns) is most often primary focus • Commodity flow has been less important • No single type (e.g., establishment, operator, distributor) or mode (e.g., intercept, telephone, web) meets needs at local level • The value of each is leveraged when used together • Wide variation in response rates and factors impacting response

18. Further Information • Johanna Zmud • jzmud@nustats.com • Mia Zmud • mzmud@nustats.com • Chris Simek • csimek@nustats.com