The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) is conducting a series of monthly surveys to monitor expectations of and satisfaction with the transportation system and to gather event, issue, and mode-specific information. The surveys will serve as an information source for the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) modal administrators, who can use them to support congressional requests and for internal DOT performance indicators. Overall, the surveys will support the collection of information on a wide range of transportation-related topics. This document contains the following information: Background of the survey initiative; A detailed description of how sample respondents were selected for the survey; Information on interviewer training, pre-testing, interviewing methods, household screening methods and methods for call attempts and callbacks; Guidance on the use of weights for analyses; Instructions for calculating standard error estimates; Data collection methods. This report provides technical information for the August 2003 Household Survey. Starting in December 2002, the Omnibus Household Surveys are conducted on a bi-monthly basis. Each bi-monthly survey will contain a set of core questions that are based on critical information needs within DOT. In addition, supplemental questions will be included that correspond to one of the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) five strategic goals: safety, mobility, economic growth, human and natural environment, and security. Finally, specific questions posed by the various DOT modes will be included and will vary from month to month. The August 2003 survey collected data from August 3, 2003 through August 13, 2003. Data were collected from households in the U.S. using a Random-Digit-Dialed telephone methodology. The final completed sample size is 1,032 cases, and the total number of variables in the public-use dataset is 225. The data were collected by M. Davis and Company (MDAC), under contract with the BTS.
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