SECTION 5: DEFINITION AND MEASUREMENT OF TRANSPORT ACTIVITY IN TrSA
Theoretical Boundary of Transport Activity
5.1 At a broad level, transport activity is the movement of people or goods from one location to another. In the ABS’s standard industrial classification (Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification or ANZSIC), transport activities are primarily classified to Division I – Transport, Postal and Warehousing, which includes transport activities by different modes and their support services. However, a more complete picture of transport activities in the economy also includes activities undertaken on own-account, as well as final demand for various transport related goods and services (outlined below).
5.2 Transport activity potentially includes both supply of transport services and demand for transport related goods and services. Each is described below.
Supply of transport services
5.3 Supply of transport services could potentially cover:
- activities undertaken by ANZSIC Division I (for-hire transport services) e.g. air passenger transport;
- secondary transport activities of non-transport industries e.g. transport services undertaken in the Retail industry (i.e. where a fee-for-service is charged); and,
- own-account/ancillary transport activities of transport and non-transport industries (e.g. use of transport vehicles as an intermediate input in the process of producing or suppling services/ goods which are the primary outputs of the industry in which the enterprise is classified, e.g. using a retailer’s truck to deliver goods from the warehouse to the retail outlet).
5.4 Demand for transport related goods and services could potentially cover:
- household consumption of transport related services (own-account vehicle use);
- household consumption of transport products e.g. purchases of tyres, motor vehicle insurance;
- Government expenditure on transport related services e.g. repair and maintenance of roads, emergency services, street sweepers, Government corporation fleet hire etc.; and,
- investment in transport related infrastructure e.g. construction of roads, bridges etc.
Priority areas for measuring Transport Activity
5.5 In prioritising the measurement areas for an Australian Transport Satellite Account (TrSA), extensive user consultation across all States and Territories has been undertaken to determine interest in a TrSA and key transport data requirements. The consultation revealed a clear need for better understanding of the production of transport activities and their contribution to the economy.
5.6 Other key messages from the consultations include:
- Urban congestion, carbon emissions, road pricing and health are key priorities for the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) reform agenda.
- Any improvements to the quality of transport data feeding into the Australian System of National Accounts (ASNA), including the detailed input-output (I-O) tables, would be welcomed.
- While there is interest in what a transport satellite account can deliver, it is seen as a means to an end, rather than an end in itself.
- There is interest in the extent of own-account transport activity, and the direct and indirect effects of broader transport activity.
- There is interest in the cost structure of the transport industry.
- While there is recognition State input-output tables do not exist, there is significant demand for them and demand for State disaggregated transport data.
- There is interest in disentangling the cost and value of time to households in travelling to work and education institution versus time spent undertaking leisure/social activities.
- Significant interest in micro-level data exists, e.g. what is driving congestion of particular ports, key areas of urban congestion, and capacity utilisation of infrastructure across the country.
- Strong interest exists in transport employment data, including sub-topics such as age of the workforce, gender, full-time/part-time, cultural background, hours worked, number of employed, educational attainment.
- There is interest in mode share of walking/cycling or active versus non-active transport.
- Demand for data on freight and passenger movement by time of day travelled, and time spent by freight vehicles on the road.
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