Census learning centre
Questions and concepts related to commuting

Release date: October 4, 2023

Catalogue number: 982000032021030

Hello and welcome to the "Questions and concepts related to commuting" video.

This video is designed to give you a basic understanding of the commuting concepts. It will help you understand the definition of commuting, the target population of commuting questions and why commuting questions are asked. It also describes the census questions that collect data on the three subtopics of commuting.

Subject
Commuting
Length
00:05:05
Cost
Free
Links

Watch the video

Concept video: Questions and concepts related to commuting  - Transcription

(The Statistics Canada symbol and "Canada" wordmark appear on screen with the title: "Concept video: Questions and concepts related to commuting.")

Welcome to the "Questions and concepts related to commuting" video.

This video will provide a basic understanding of commuting concepts, such as the definition of commuting, the population of interest and the questions from the 2021 Census of Population.

This video will help you to understand the following:

  • What is the target population of commuting data?
  • What is commuting and why are commuting questions asked?

Also, this video describes the questions that collect data on the three subtopics of commuting:

  • Workplace location
  • Modes of commuting and
  • Commuting time.

Let’s start with the target population of census commuting data.

(Images of the first pages of the 2021 Census of Population 2A-L and 2A-R long-form paper questionnaires appear.)

Questions on commuting are only included on the Census of Population 2A-L and 2A-R long-form questionnaires. As a result, the target population differs from that of the Census of Population 2A short-form questionnaire.

Therefore, any subsequent reference to the Census of Population refers to the 2A-L and 2A-R questionnaires.

Questions on commuting were asked to employed individuals, aged 15 and older living in private households.

Depending on whether a person had a usual place of work, worked from home, or had no fixed workplace address, the target population was further narrowed down for each of the commuting variables.

Here we can see the commuting variables associated with each population.

(An image appears showing the commuting variables associated with each population. The following information is contained in the image:

  • Employed persons aged 15 years and over, in private households
    • Place of work status
      • People who have a usual place of work
        • Distance (straight-line) from home to work
        • Commuting destination
      • People who have a usual place of work or people who worked at home
        • Workplace location
      • People who have a usual place of work or people with no fixed workplace address
        • Main mode of commuting
        • Multiple modes of commuting
        • Time leaving for work
        • Commuting duration
        • Time arriving at work
      • People who have a usual place of work or people with no fixed workplace address, and people who commute in a car, truck or van (drivers and passengers)
        • Commuting vehicle occupancy)

Now, let’s explain what commuting is.

Commuting refers to the journey between a person’s place of residence and their place of work. It is part of the labour market activities section in the Census of Population.

It collects information on the following:

  • Location of workplace
  • Modes of commuting and
  • Commuting time.

Data on commuting help to answer questions such as:

  • Where do people work?
  • Where do workers commute from?
  • How do they travel to work?
  • When do they leave for work?
  • How long is their commute? and
  • How many workers live close enough to walk or bike to work?

Why are questions on commuting asked?

Data on commuting are used by businesses and a variety of people, such as city planners and engineers. These data provide useful information on the people present in an area during business hours and the methods of commuting they use to get there.

The characteristics of the population in a downtown core during business hours will differ from the characteristics of the same area outside of business hours. Therefore, information on commuting can provide valuable insights to inform data-driven decision making.

Next, let’s look at the questions on commuting from the 2021 Census of Population.

Data on commuting were captured from responses to questions 51 to 53 of the 2021 Census 2A-L and 2A-R questionnaires.

Question 51 asked the respondent what address they usually worked at most of the time.

(Question 51 of the 2021 Census appears on screen.)

This was used to determine a person’s place of work status and the location of their workplace.

Place of work status refers to whether a person worked:

  • at home
  • outside Canada
  • at no fixed workplace address or
  • at a usual workplace.

Question 52 a), b) and c) asked the respondent how they usually got to work—what modes of commuting they used to get to work, what was their main mode of commuting and, if their main mode of commuting was by car, truck or van, they were also asked how many workers shared the ride with them.

(Question 52 a), b) and c) of the 2021 Census appear separately on screen as they are mentioned.)

Question 53 a) asked the respondent at what time did their trip to work typically begin and question 53 b) asked how many minutes it normally would take them to get to work.

(Question 53 of the 2021 Census appears on screen.)

This information is used to calculate their time arriving at work.

(The words, "Thank you for watching the 'Questions and concepts related to commuting' video" appear on screen.)

This concludes the “Questions and concepts related to commuting” video.

(The census logo appears with a link, which is also available to view here: Census of Population. The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 978-0-660-48842-4 appears underneath the link.)

For more detailed information regarding concepts, variables, methodology, historical comparability and other elements, please refer to Statistics Canada's census web pages.

(The "Canada" wordmark appears.)

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