Commuting patterns within Hertfordshire (based on the 23001 ...

<strong>Commuting</strong> <strong>patterns</strong>
Rationale behind the project
Living in <strong>Hertfordshire</strong>, it seemed a sensible location in which to study journey to work <strong>patterns</strong> for a number of reasons:
1. The local planning office have provided access to census data and boundary maps which are supplemented by their own surveys
and reports (see appendix).
2. Years of local knowledge make it easier to interpret and explain general <strong>patterns</strong> and discrepancies <strong>within</strong> the general information.
3. It seemed a sensible choice to start of with data relating to the whole county (working at a macro scale) and then to home in on
individual settlements where more subtle nuances came into play in addition to the broad trends identified at county level.
4. Two settlements were chosen Stevenage and Watford, because they are two of the largest settlements in <strong>Hertfordshire</strong>, they have
an almost identical total labour force, they are found at opposite ends of the county and one is a traditional town (Watford) while the
other is a planned new town (Stevenage).
The focus for investigation came from the data provided by the 2001 census and restrictions on data available limited the study to a number of
areas of interest:
1. Flows of commuters between areas, both into and out of. In particular do the concepts of distance decay and the ideas of gravity
models come into play? What other influences appear to be operating?
2. Method of travel to work and distances travelled pose some interesting data (as well as throwing up some apparent anomalies).
3. Sectors of industry and their relative importance in different areas.

<strong>Commuting</strong> <strong>patterns</strong> <strong>within</strong> <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> (<strong>based</strong> on the 2001 census data).
<strong>Hertfordshire</strong> general summary:
1) Identify the key components of commuting to, from and <strong>within</strong> <strong>Hertfordshire</strong>.
What <strong>patterns</strong> might you expect to find around <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> in terms of the ideas of distance decay (people are more likely to travel to
places close by)?
Turn these basic ideas into hypotheses (ideas to test).
e.g. Will the number of commuters increase or decrease as the distance increases?
Test by drawing/plotting the data on graphs or in a computer.
120,000
100,000
80,000
60,000
Series1
40,000
20,000
0
less than
2km
less than
5km
less than
10km
less than
20km
less than
30km
less than less than
40km 60km
60km
and over
What about the influence of transport routes? Do they reflect topography (the shapes of hills and valleys), do they relate to major
settlements or do they have a preferred geographical alignment (east - west or north - south for instance). What about the cost of
housing? How does this affect people's commuting <strong>patterns</strong>? Predict what you might expect to find and then test your ideas, do they fit
or do they need a little tweaking or were they completely wrong. Do not worry if your original ideas were incorrect it is the building up a
picture of the <strong>patterns</strong> created that leads to real understanding. Use "Gut feelings" to generate your ideas and then pool your
suppositions
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/cis/pdfs/C1InE.pdf

Plot on a map of <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> the main areas of employment for <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> people.
Does your map give any clues to the main reasons for variations? Can you suggest any reasons for the <strong>patterns</strong> shown?
2) Plot on a map of the counties of South-east England the main places of employment for <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> people. Does your map give you
clues as to the main attractions for commuters?
The map you are about to construct is a choropleth map and your first task is decide the boundaries for each group.
Where people from <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> work (% figures)
Within county Out of county
Broxbourne 4.46 Inner London 11.61
Dacorum 9.66 Outer London 8.80
East <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> 8.50 Essex 2.73
Hertsmere 5.81 Bedfordshire 2.18
North <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> 6.90 Buckinghamshire 1.54
St. Albans 8.49 Cambridgeshire 0.91
Stevenage 6.45 Berkshire 0.55
Three Rivers 4.04 Surrey 0.33
Watford 7.01 Hampshire 0.17
Welwyn Hatfield 8.40 Oxfordshire 0.12
Kent 0.12
Northamptonshire 0.10

Wards in and surrounding counties around <strong>Hertfordshire</strong>.

Counties of South East England

3) Draw a graph (either pie or bar chart) to illustrate the distance to work travelled for all people who live in <strong>Hertfordshire</strong>.
4) Do the figures for the journey to work show a pattern that confirms the idea of distance decay (i.e. fewer people travel to work over a
long distance than a short distance?
5) What are the main conclusions about the figures showing journey to work?
6) What surprising data appears in the graph and proves that not all data can be taken at face value?
7) Discuss with a partner and identify up to five problems caused by the commuting <strong>patterns</strong> identified.
8) Prioritise your ideas and suggest solutions you would recommend for the worst problems (you can use ideas you may have already
come across - congestion charging, car sharing, public transport, or you can suggest original or forward thinking ideas.

All of <strong>Hertfordshire</strong>, method of journey to work.
Office for National Statistics, 2001 Census, Standard Tables for Local Authorities.
Crown copyright.
Table S129 Sex and Distance Travelled to Work* by Method of Travel to Work
(Workplace Population) (numbers)
All people aged 16 to 74 in employment in the area:
<strong>Hertfordshire</strong>
Distance travelled to work *
ALL
PEOPLE
Method of travel to work
Work
mainly at
or from
home
Underground;
metro; light
rail; tram
Train
Bus;
minibus;
coach
Motor
cycle;
scooter
or moped
Driving a
car or
van
Passenger
in a car or
van
Taxi or
minicab
Bicycle On foot
Other
ALL PEOPLE 481,675 48,766 2,935 12,170 17,479 4,243 309,360 27,455 2,530 9,184 46,081 1,472
Less than 2km 97,830 108 732 2,898 613 44,051 6,441 585 4,250 37,735 417
2km to less than 5km 80,796 160 1,009 7,010 1,030 55,258 8,158 510 3,147 4,364 150
5km to less than 10km 72,521 375 1,920 3,948 890 58,203 4,766 195 911 1,183 130
10km to less than 20km 76,415 742 2,663 1,977 823 65,160 3,537 148 386 852 127
20km to less than 30km 34,311 555 1,612 548 349 29,449 1,210 44 82 401 61
30km to less than 40km 15,514 368 961 230 157 13,043 488 11 49 174 33
40km to less than 60km 12,140 158 925 157 95 10,244 335 11 37 148 30
60km and over 16,688 52 795 432 83 13,548 711 26 131 767 143
Works mainly at or from home 75,460 48,766 417 1,553 279 203 20,404 1,809 1,000 191 457 381
Cells in this table have been randomly adjusted to avoid the release of
confidential data.
* The distance travelled is a calculation of the straight line between the postcode of place of residence and
postcode of workplace.
Average journey to work 14.65 km (compared to 13.39 in England and Wales and 15.88 for east of England region).

Pie chart showing journeys to work for <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> people
Driving a car or a van
who works at home
Train
On foot
Passenger in a car or van
Bus mini bus or coach
Bicycle
Underground metro light rail or
tram
Motorcycle scooter or moped
Taxi
Other **
Distance travelled to work
40km to less than 60km
30km to less than 40km
60km and over
20km to less than 30km
Less than 2km
5km to less than 10km
2km to less than 5km
Works mainly at or from
home
10km to less than 20km

Office for National Statistics, 2001 Census, Standard Tables for Local Authorities. Crown
copyright.
Net In-<strong>Commuting</strong> (Derived from Table T10 Theme Table on Resident;
Workplace and Daytime Population)
All people aged 16 to 74 who are workers resident in the area, or work in the area but live
outside the area:
Resident
working
population (Live
in area and work
either in or
outside area)
Workplace
population
(Work in area)
Gross In-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
(Live outside
area and work
in area) *
Gross Out-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
(Live in area
and work
outside area) *
Net In-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
% Incommuting
% Outcommuting
<strong>Hertfordshire</strong> 518,768 481,676 120,115 157,207 -37,092 23 30 -7
Broxbourne 43,482 32,123 13,868 25,227 -11,359 32 58 -26
Dacorum 69,313 68,501 26,286 27,098 -812 38 39 -1
East <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> 67,534 57,200 22,904 33,238 -10,334 34 49 -15
Hertsmere 46,003 44,339 25,438 27,102 -1,664 55 59 -4
North <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> 58,814 47,664 17,669 28,819 -11,150 30 49 -19
St. Albans 65,676 55,586 23,353 33,443 -10,090 36 51 -15
Stevenage 39,576 41,725 18,959 16,810 2,149 48 42 5
Three Rivers 40,565 30,569 16,890 26,886 -9,996 42 66 -25
Watford 41,648 49,372 28,636 20,912 7,724 69 50 19
Welwyn Hatfield 46,157 54,597 28,467 20,027 8,440 62 43 18
* Please note that the Gross In-<strong>Commuting</strong> or Out-<strong>Commuting</strong> figures cannot be summed to produce totals for a larger area as the
total may include workers who commute <strong>within</strong> the summed areas.
© Crown copyright 2003
% in and out commuting are measured as a % of the resident working population.
Net

9) Plot on a map of <strong>Hertfordshire</strong> the areas which are net providers of jobs and those that are net producers of workers. Can you identify
any <strong>patterns</strong>? For example what do the key providers of jobs have in common?
10) Describe the similarities and differences between Stevenage and Watford in terms of site and situation, history, main industries, types
of employment, working populations and distribution of industry throughout the town.
Stevenage
Watford
Site
History
Sectors of employment
Main employers
Key industries
11) Why are main employers and key industries not necessarily the same thing?

Stevenage
http://www.thegrid.org.uk/learning/hals/geography.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevenage
http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/GBH_match_page.jsp?ons=Stevenage
http://www.hertsdirect.org/comdirectory/comvol/trade2y/chamcom3/10597217
http://www.hertsdirect.org/libsleisure/aboutherts/industry/
http://vision.edina.ac.uk/data_theme_page.jsp?u_id=10088380&c_id=10001043&data_theme=T_IND
http://www.nhc.ac.uk/about/stevenage.htm
http://www.britinfo.net/fp-C-DAH.htm
http://www.stevenage.gov.uk/environment/pollution/contaminatedlandstrategy/appendixe
http://www.norwichunion.com/careers/locations.htm#stevenage
http://www.hertfordshire.com/pages/towns/guides/566/
http://www.hertford.net/fordshire.htm
Watford
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watford
http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/GBH_match_page.jsp?ons=Watford
http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/onewatford/watfordhistory/
http://www.watford-chamber.co.uk/
http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/data_theme_page.jsp?u_id=10056779&c_id=10001043&data_theme=T_IND
http://www.hertfordshire.com/pages/towns/guides/636/
http://www.applegate.co.uk/searchadl/Search.htm
http://www.1stdirectory.com/AtoZ_Companies/index~letter~a.htm
http://www.watford.gov.uk/ccm/portal/
http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/
http://www.watfordmuseum.org.uk/outreach.html

Comparison of sectors of industry in Stevenage and Watford
8,000
7,000
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
Stevenage
Watford
Watford
51%
0
Stevenage
49%
Stevenage
Watford
Agriculture; hunting and forestry
Mining and quarrying
Electricity; gas and water supply
Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor ve...
Transport; storage & communication
Real estate; renting and business activities
Education
Other*

All people aged
16 - 74 in
employment
Agriculture;
hunting and
forestry
Fishing Mining and
quarrying
People aged 16 - 74 in employment working in
Manufacturing
Electricity;
gas and
water
supply
Construction
Wholesale &
retail trade;
repair of
motor
vehicles
Hotels and
catering
Stevenage 39,576 236 0 27 6,263 168 3,211 7,969 1,516
Watford 41,648 205 0 22 4,633 208 2,886 7,966 1,487
All people aged
16 - 74 in
employment
Financial
intermedi
ation
Public
administration
and defence
Education Health and
social work
Other*
Transport;
storage &
communicatio
n
Real
estate;
renting
and
business
activities
Stevenage 3,106 1,908 5,547 2,019 2,207 3,691 1,708
Watford 3,956 2,264 6,684 1,930 2,894 4,110 2,403

Ward summaries for Stevenage and Watford
Net In-<strong>Commuting</strong> (Derived from Table T10 Theme Table on Resident;
Workplace and Daytime Population)
All people aged 16 to 74 who are workers resident in the area, or work in the area but
live outside the area:
Wards in Stevenage District
Ward Code Ward Resident
working
population
(Live in area
and work either
in or outside
area)
Workplace
population
(Work in
area)
Gross In-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
(Live
outside area
and work in
area) *
Gross Out-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
(Live in area
and work
outside
area) *
Net In-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
Incommuting
as a
percentage of
residential
workforce
Outcommuting
as a
percentage of
residential
workforce
Net
commuting
as a
percentage of
residential
working
population
26UHFQ Bandley Hill 3,377 1,207 574 2,744 -2,170 17 81 -64
26UHFR Bedwell 2,763 8,814 7,961 1,910 6,051 288 69 219
26UHFS Chells 3,067 872 401 2,596 -2,195 13 85 -72
26UHFT Longmeadow 2,929 632 182 2,479 -2,297 6 85 -78
26UHFU Manor 3,713 782 274 3,205 -2,931 7 86 -79
26UHFW Martins Wood 3,186 845 359 2,700 -2,341 11 85 -73
26UHFX Old Town 2,938 3,637 2,886 2,187 699 98 74 24
26UHFY Pin Green 2,904 740 252 2,416 -2,164 9 83 -75
26UHFZ Roebuck 2,874 9,344 8,569 2,099 6,470 298 73 225
26UHGA St. Nicholas 3,154 2,877 2,273 2,550 -277 72 81 -9
26UHGB Shephall 2,790 1,126 627 2,291 -1,664 22 82 -60
26UHGC Symonds Green 3,147 6,724 5,980 2,403 3,577 190 76 114
26UHGD Woodfield 2,734 4,125 3,479 2,088 1,391 127 76 51
* Please note that the Gross In-<strong>Commuting</strong> or Out-<strong>Commuting</strong> figures cannot be summed to produce totals for a larger area as the
total may include workers who commute <strong>within</strong> the summed areas.
© Crown copyright 2003
Office for National Statistics, 2001 Census, Standard Tables for
Wards. Crown copyright.

Net In-<strong>Commuting</strong> (Derived from Table T10 Theme Table on Resident;
Workplace and Daytime Population)
All people aged 16 to 74 who are workers resident in the area, or work in the area but
live outside the area:
Wards in Watford District
Ward Code Ward Resident
working
population
(Live in area
and work either
in or outside
area)
Workplace
population
(Work in
area)
Gross In-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
(Live
outside area
and work in
area) *
Gross Out-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
(Live in area
and work
outside
area) *
Net In-
<strong>Commuting</strong>
Incommuting
as a
percentage
of residential
workforce
Outcommuting
as a
percentage of
residential
workforce
Net
commuting
as a
percentage of
residential
working
population
26UKFN Callowland 3,932 3,048 2,357 3,241 -884 60 82 -22
26UKFP Central 3,708 17,587 16,470 2,591 13,879 444 70 374
26UKFQ Holywell 3,534 5,478 4,712 2,768 1,944 133 78 55
26UKFR Leggatts 3,588 1,771 1,190 3,007 -1,817 33 84 -51
26UKFS Meriden 3,259 1,465 883 2,677 -1,794 27 82 -55
26UKFT Nascot 3,268 2,466 1,820 2,622 -802 56 80 -25
26UKFU Oxhey 3,325 1,303 701 2,723 -2,022 21 82 -61
26UKFW Park 3,005 2,693 2,079 2,391 -312 69 80 -10
26UKFX Stanborough 3,520 999 381 2,902 -2,521 11 82 -72
26UKFY Tudor 3,203 7,375 6,690 2,518 4,172 209 79 130
26UKFZ Vicarage 3,922 3,914 3,102 3,110 -8 79 79 0
26UKGA Woodside 3,384 1,273 693 2,804 -2,111 20 83 -62
* Please note that the Gross In-<strong>Commuting</strong> or Out-<strong>Commuting</strong> figures cannot be summed to produce totals for a larger area as the
total may include workers who commute <strong>within</strong> the summed areas.
© Crown copyright 2003
Office for National Statistics, 2001 Census, Standard Tables for
Wards. Crown copyright.

<strong>Hertfordshire</strong>
Office for National Statistics, 2001 Census, Standard Tables for Local
Authorities. Crown copyright.
All people aged 16 to 74 who are either resident in the area or work in
the area: <strong>Hertfordshire</strong>
'Resident'
population
aged 16-74
(A+B+C+F)
A. Lives in
area and
works
outside
area but
<strong>within</strong>
associated
area $$
B. Lives in
area and
works
outside
associated
area # $$
C. Lives
and
works in
area $
D. Lives
outside
area but
<strong>within</strong>
associated
area and
works
inside area
$$
E. Lives
outside
associated
area and
works
inside area
$$
F. Lives in
area and
does not
work
'Workplace
'
population
aged 16-74
(C+D+E)
###
'Daytime'
population
aged 16-74
(C+D+E+F)
###
ALL PEOPLE 746,008 155,658 1,549 361,561 120,115 n/a 227,240 481,676 708,916
Males 368,684 100,138 1,110 183,101 77,257 n/a 84,335 260,358 344,693
Females 377,324 55,520 439 178,460 42,858 n/a 142,905 221,318 364,223
In order to give the topic some realism it might be an idea to take on the role of a bus company deciding to tender for the contract to serve
Stevenage or Watford and to produce a report on the most lucrative. Alternatively, different teams could be given the case for serving Watford
and another the case for serving Stevenage. To this end commuting pattern data for <strong>within</strong> the towns has been supplied.
Resource written by Bob Grinham (Head of Geography, The Nobel School)