SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — About 80% of South Dakotans traveled in June but they didn’t go far.
The U.S. Bureau of Transportation said most trips in the state were less than a mile. Residents made 784,912 average trips of less than one mile a day in June, according to BTS data on June trips in the U.S. There were on average 744,789 trips of one to three miles a day in June. About 50,000 average daily trips were 100 miles or more.
The June numbers were close to traffic numbers in pre-pandemic February.
In February, there were 860,093 average daily trips of one to three miles and 794,422 trips of less than a mile.
The average trip numbers for the state in June were highest on June 5 at 3,453,488. The state high in February was 3,802,433 on Feb. 28.
The June percentage for number of travelers was slightly higher than in February and March. BTS data says that 19.7% people did not travel in February and 22.3% did not travel in March.
April was even slower with 25.7% people at home but 21.6% were home in May.
On April 27, Gov. Kristi Noem announced her “Back to Normal” plan. Her plan included transitioning people working from home to return to the work site.
April travel numbers in the state seem to reflect that some state residents were working from home. And as May and June arrived and travel increased, workers were being called back to the work site.
While South Dakotans were making short trips, according to BTS, the trip to work may have been longer, based on U.S. Census Bureau data. The mean travel time for workers 16 and older from 2014 to 2018 was 17 minutes in 2019, according to the Census Bureau. It was 17.7 minutes in Minnehaha County during the same years.
Traffic index numbers generated by monitors at five major Sioux Falls intersections have increased since Noem’s April 27 announcement. The rolling five day average on April 27 was .67. The rolling seven-day average was .71 on May 1 and has not dropped below that since.
Although the traffic index has reached .90 on June 19 and 20, it hasn’t reached the 1.02 of March 13, or the 1.04 of March 11 which was early in the pandemic in South Dakota, according to data from the city of Sioux Falls traffic division.
The traffic count total at the intersection of 41st Street and Louise was 53,829 on July 8 and 65,787 on June 18 which was one of the highest traffic days since March.
South Dakota’s percentages in April were similar to Iowa and Minnesota. In Iowa, 26.6% percent of the population stayed home while 28.4% stayed home in Minnesota.
Travel increased in Iowa and Minnesota in June. In Minnesota 22.5% stayed home while 21.4% did in Iowa.
Most trips were were less than one mile in June in Iowa and Minnesota.
Minnehaha County, the most populated county in South Dakota, posted travel numbers similar to the state. Average daily trips reached a February high of 887,121 on Feb. 28. In June, the highest count was 723,366 on June 5.
In April, the average daily trips per day total in Minnehaha County was 553,037. The February, total was 715,143. In June, the number was 637,050.
A long holiday weekend on July 3 through July 5 prompted more travel appears to have prompted more travel in South Dakota, according to Google’s mobility data.
On July 3, travel to parks, beaches and similar locations increased by 502% in South Dakota from baseline travel, according to Google.
The travel data is based on a sampling of users. Google mobility reports show trends over several weeks with the most recent representing two to three days prior. The baseline is the median value, for the corresponding day of the week, during the five week period Jan. 3 through Feb. 6. So a Monday, would correspond with Monday’s median value during Jan. 3 through Feb. 6.
On July 5, the travel to parks, beaches and similar locations increased by 413%. Retail and recreation travel includes by 9% while grocery and pharmacy trips increased by 29%.
Still, across the U.S., there were 2.8 billion fewer total trips during the week July 4 week than in 2019, trips increased that week over July over the prior month, according to the BTS.
The Link LonkJuly 10, 2020 at 01:44AM
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More travel, short trips in South Dakota, according U.S. traffic data - KELOLAND.com
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