The purpose of this Visitor Survey app is to help local and regional transportation agencies in using automation to gather data relevant to transport system planning. Participation in each survey is by invitation only. Participants are invited as a result of an in-person interview of their group, conducted in or near a public venue in the study area. ETC Institute is the app author and the Consultant conducting the travel survey. A local, regional, or statewide public agency such as a Department of Transportation is the ultimate data owner. The name of the data owner is stated inside the app and is revealed in advance communications with each participating household.

Visitors (who are 18 and older, or 13 and older with adult permission) participating in the survey are asked to download the app, install it, and log in with a PIN. After login, the app begins to automatically detect and record stops that the User makes during a prescribed period, usually 24 hours. The User is asked to review the stops and answer a few questions about each stop before finishing/submitting the completed trip diary directly from the app.

App users are aware that while the app is installed on their smartphone or tablet, their GPS location is used to detect and record their stops and to help draw their approximate travel path, which in turn facilitates the stop review process. In addition to the GPS signal, the app also uses - with the User’s permission – their device’s accelerometer and gyroscope sensors. The data from these sensors are used by the app’s logic engine to confirm that a stop has indeed been made. ETC is committed to keeping each participant’s identifying information private. Our data privacy policy is available for review on our Company’s website and can be accessed directly via a link on this page.