How leisure influences our mobility behaviour

We travel more for leisure time than for work. This significantly shapes our mobility behaviour and determines how long we spend in traffic, what we do and why.

When you drive to work in Switzerland in the morning, you see the same thing every time: cars occupied by the driver only, jammed up on the motorways. And on public transport, commuters fight for a seat, takeaway coffee in hand. These are the classic images that spring to mind when we think of mobility.

The “why” matters

A lot has changed in recent years: people are using their bikes, walking or using their phone to activate a scootermore and more. The options for getting around are increasing all the time. The following holds true overall: the Swiss spend an average of 90 minutes (1) per day in traffic. But surprise, surprise! Only around 13 minutes (2) are lost on the way to work. We spend a lot more time in traffic for our leisure activities: a full 45 minutes (3) a day are taken up on the road with meeting family and friends, going to practice sports or doing some other activity.

This surprising statistic is due to the fact that our mobility behaviour differs fundamentally on working days and weekends. The average commute to work in Switzerland is 14 km (4) and does not therefore take very long. This is all the more the case due to people working from home. However, things look different at the weekend: we are willing to travel longer distances to visit family and friends, go on trips to the mountains or attend sporting and cultural events. We therefore spend significantly more time in traffic.

Travelling individually

How we use our free time not only has a direct influence on how much time we spend travelling, but also what means of transport we use – and possibly own. An environmentally conscious family in the city may not need a car for everyday use, but they might want a converted VW bus for camping in the heart of the countryside. A retired couple may take public transport to visit their grandchildren once a week, but they rely on a car to travel to their remote holiday home in the mountains.

In 2021, we mostly got around by car. Each day, we covered 20.8 km in it, while we only travelled 4.9 km per day using public transport. Surprisingly, since it often feels this way in traffic jams, we spend less time in the car than on foot each day, and the distance covered is not really that long. We walk for 30 minutes per day, which is almost a minute longer.

And then there is the group of people whose leisure activity is directly related to a mode of transport. For example, the amateur cyclist who covers 200 km a day in their leisure time; the mountain biker racing up and down the mountain; the motorcyclist who makes the passes unsafe. Then there are the train enthusiasts who travel throughout Switzerland, or the classic car owners who enjoy a Sunday excursion.

It can therefore be said: nothing has a greater influence on our mobility behaviour than our leisure activities. Nowadays, we can decide more individually than ever before how we wish to travel. We can be flexible and adapt the solution to the situation at any time. Our freedom to move is continually growing.

Sources:

1 Federal Statistical Office (FSO), Federal Office for Spatial Development (ARE): Mobility behaviour of the population in 2021 (Results from the micro-census), 2023. (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/mobilitaet-verkehr.assetdetail.24165365.html)

2 Federal Statistical Office (FSO), Federal Office for Spatial Development (ARE): Mobility behaviour of the population, 2021 and 2023. (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/mobilitaet-verkehr/personenverkehr/verkehrsverhalten.assetdetail.24185349.html)

3 Federal Statistical Office (FSO), Federal Office for Spatial Development (ARE): Mobility behaviour of the population, 2021 and 2023. (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/mobilitaet-verkehr/personenverkehr/verkehrsverhalten.assetdetail.24185349.html)

4 Federal Statistical Office (FSO): Commuter mobility, structure survey, 2021, 2023.