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About 2017 National Household Travel Survey

FHWA conducted the latest National Households Travel Survey (NHTS-2017) with assigned travel dates from April 19, 2016 through April 25, 2017. NHTS collects data on demographic and socioeconomic composition of households, as well as detailed information on their travel behavior nationwide.

For NHTS-2017, State DOTs and Metropolitan Planning Agencies (MPOs) had the opportunity to purchase extra household samples as part of the NHTS Add-on program. These additional samples, along with national samples collected in the Add-on areas, are compiled for application in transportation planning, forecasting and research. Caltrans participated in NHTS-2017 Add-on program and received a total of 26,095 samples of households residing in California. Total number of household samples nationwide is 129,112.

NHTS-2017 California Data:

NHTS-2017 California data is a detailed database of 26,095 sample households residing in California. It contains demographic and socioeconomic composition of all sampled households, as well as detailed information on their travel behavior for one assigned day for each household, from April 19, 2016 through April 25, 2017.

NHTS-2017 California data is available in aggregated and geocoded forms:

Aggregated (Cleansed) Data:

Locations are aggregated to Census Tract level to protect survey participants’ privacy. Locations below Census Tract level (Census Blocks, Block Groups, x/y coordinates, etc.) are not shown.

  • Available for download with a simple online registration, from National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL): Go to California add-on.
  • Available for online analysis of California data as well as the entire national dataset, from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), through an online tool at: http://nhts.ornl.gov/.

Geocoded (Spatial) Data:

  • Available within a secure virtual machine hosted by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) upon application approval: Go to Spatial Data Page.
  • Available for download - to universities and public agencies only (including public-agency contractors) – through an application process, from Caltrans. Access and send the application.

Contacts:

For more information about NHTS in California, contact:

Mohammad Assadi (916) 924-9244 mohammad.assadi@dot.ca.gov
Cathy Lin (503) 601-6328 Xuejing.Lin@dot.ca.gov