Passenger Bus Statistics

Detailed information for 1994

This annual survey provides establishment-oriented industry statistics (such as basic input and output data of the Canadian passenger bus industry) and transportation-oriented statistics (including distance run, passengers and equipment operated).

Data release - December 18, 1995 (released in Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 53-215-X)

• Description
• Data sources and methodology

Description

For reference year 1995, this survey became part of a survey with a larger coverage then titled "Passenger Bus and Urban Transit Annual Survey" (see record number 2798).

This annual survey provides establishment-oriented industry statistics (such as basic input and output data of the Canadian passenger bus industry) and transportation-oriented statistics (including distance run, passengers and equipment operated). The survey also classifies new establishments entering the industry.

Statistical activity

This statistical activity is part of a set of surveys measuring various aspects of activities related to the movement of people and goods. These surveys are grouped as follows:

Transportation by air includes records related to the movement of aircraft, passengers and cargo by air for both Canadian and foreign air carriers operating in Canada as well as the financial and operating characteristics of Canadian air carriers. These data are produced by the Aviation Statistics Centre.

Transportation by rail includes records relating to rail transportation in Canada, and between the United States and Canada.

Transportation by road includes records relating to all road transport in Canada. In addition to surveying carriers and owners of registered motor vehicles, certain programs rely on aggregation of provincial and territorial administrative records.

Subjects

• Transportation
• Transportation by road

Data sources and methodology

Sampling

This survey is a census with a cross-sectional design.

The universe of the Passenger Bus Survey is derived from Statistics Canada's Business Register. Coverage is defined to include all establishments with at least one employee, supplemented with lists of zero-employee establishments obtained from adminstrative records. The survey universe did not include the following types of establishments: Private carriers; Railway commuter services; Establishments whose principal source of revenue was from ferry services. This survey is a census of establishments with total gross operating revenues of $500,000 and over the previous year. Both user requirements and the reporting capabilities of respondents were taken into consideration by using differentiated questionnaires, suited in length and complexity to the type and size of the motor carrier operation being surveyed. Completed reports were returned to the Transportation Division of Statistics Canada where the data were recorded and processed by computer.

Error detection

Inconsistent or blank questionnaires were manually edited and missing information or illogical items were completed by telephoning the reporting establishments. Data which could not be obtained in this manner were estimated using reports from previous years, industry averages and administrative records in the form of information filed with Statistics Canada under the authority of the Corporations and Labour Union Returns Act (CALURA). All data were then edited by computer program which rejected any information which was logically or arithmetically inconsistent or had values beyond specified boundaries. Rejected records were subsequently corrected manually.

Quality evaluation

Although not all establishments deriving revenue from the transportation of passengers by motor carrier are included in this publication, coverage is considered representative of the industry. However, users should be aware of the factors affecting the accuracy of the tabulations and the comparability between years. The following factors account for reduced statistical accuracy: For tabulation purposes, data concerning interprovincial and international bus establishments were allocated to the location of their head office. Bus establishments domiciled in the United States which could not provide separate statistics for their Canadian operations were excluded from tabulations, resulting in an understatement of the total bus activity. Since all establishments do not keep financial and administrative records according to a uniform accounting procedure, individual judgement may result in minor variation in the interpretation of accounts. Imputation of missing values may also affect the accuracy of the tabulations. With urban transit systems turning increasingly to exact fare and passes for revenue collection, data on the number of passengers carried are estimated.

Disclosure control

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information it collects that could identify any person, business, or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Various confidentiality rules are applied to all data that are released or published to prevent the publication or disclosure of any information deemed confidential. If necessary, data are suppressed to prevent direct or residual disclosure of identifiable data.

In order to prevent any data disclosure, confidentiality analysis is done using the Statistics Canada Generalized Disclosure Control System (G-Confid). G-Confid is used for primary suppression (direct disclosure) as well as for secondary suppression (residual disclosure). Direct disclosure occurs when the value in a tabulation cell is composed of or dominated by few enterprises while residual disclosure occurs when confidential information can be derived indirectly by piecing together information from different sources or data series.