Release and Concepts Overview
2016 Census of Population:
Journey to work

Release date: October 4, 2017

 More information   PDF version

Table of contents

  1. Objectives of the Release and Concepts Overview series
  2. Concepts and definitions:
  3. Key indicators
  4. Products and activities available with this release:
    • Products available on day of release
    • Social media activities with this release
  5. Products available after release
  6. 2016 Census Program web module
  7. 2016 Census Program release schedule
  8. Contact information

1. Objectives

Census of Population release topics will be accompanied by their own Release and Concepts Overview and will be available from Statistics Canada's website in advance of each release.

The purpose of the Release and Concepts Overview series is to provide an overview of:

  • the concepts, definitions and key indicators used by each of the major 2016 Census of Population releases

  • the products that will be available on each major day of release and later.

The Release and Concepts Overview series will help partners, stakeholders and other data users to better understand the information being released.


This Release and Concepts Overview is for the Journey to work release, which will be on November 29, 2017.

The information provided in this overview is subject to change.

2. Concepts and definitions

Journey to work

Journey to work data available for each place of work status

Place of work status Workplace location Commuting destination Main mode of commuting Commuting vehicle occupancy Time leaving for work Time arriving at work Commuting duration Distance from home to work
Worked at home Available Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable
Worked outside Canada Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable
No fixed workplace address Not applicable Not applicable Available Available if the mode of transportation reported is "car, truck or van" Available Available Available Not applicable
Usual workplace address Available Available Available Available if the mode of transportation reported is "car, truck or van" Available Available Available Available
Table summary

This table shows the journey to work data for each place of work status. The column headings are: Place of work status, workplace location, commuting destination, main mode of commuting, commuting vehicle occupancy, time leaving for work, time arriving at work, commuting duration and distance from home to work. The rows are: the place of work status along with their corresponding values.

Geography

In addition to making data available for Canada, the following other levels of geography will be available:

  1. Province or territory
  2. Census metropolitan area (CMA)
  3. Census agglomeration (CA)
  4. Census division (CD)
  5. Census subdivision (CSD)
  6. Census tract (CT)
  7. Population centre (POPCTR)
  8. Statistical Area Classification (SAC)
  9. Federal electoral district (FED)
  10. Economic region (ER)
  11. Forward sortation area (FSA)©
  12. Designated place (DPL)
  13. Aggregate dissemination area (ADA) (new!)
  14. Dissemination area (DA)

3. Key indicators

The following place of work and journey to work indicators will be available at the national, provincial and subprovincial levels, as well as by age and sex.

Place of work

  • Place of work status
  • Workplace location
  • Commuting destination
  • Distance from home to work

Journey to work

  • Main mode of commuting
  • Commuting vehicle occupancy
  • Time leaving for work / Time arriving at work (derived)
  • Commuting duration

4. Products and activities available with this release

The following will be available with the Journey to work release on November 29, 2017:

  • Analytical products
    • The Daily article
    • Census in Brief
    • Infographic
  • Data products
    • Data tables
    • Census Profile
    • Focus on Geography Series
  • Geography product
    • GeoSearch
  • Reference products
    • Release and Concepts Overview series
    • Guide to the Census of Population, 2016
    • Census Dictionary
    • Journey to work Reference Guide
  • Social media
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Chat with an expert (December 4, 2017)

The following provides additional details on some key products to be available at the time of the Journey to work release. Together, they will provide main findings, important messages, latest trends and additional background information.

  • The Daily article: This will provide an overview of place of work and commuting characteristics (e.g., mode and duration) in 2016, as well as historical comparisons, at the national and provincial levels and for selected census metropolitan areas (CMAs).

  • Census in Brief: A short article will provide analyses focusing on issues that are relevant from a public policy perspective:

    • a profile of commuters whose main mode of commuting was sustainable transportation (public transit, carpooling and active transit)

  • Infographic: This product will allow users to quickly visualize some key findings on the place of work and journey to work from the 2016 Census of Population. Specifically, it will include current and historical information on the commuting duration, the main mode of commuting and the distance from home to work, by selected social and geographic characteristics.

  • Data tables: These cross-tabulations allow for a more detailed examination of Canada, by comparing up to eight variables across various levels of geography.

  • Census Profile: This product provides key statistics about the dwellings and the people living there. Users are able to select a standard geographic area and compare two geographic areas. They can search by place name or postal code for an area of interest as large as Canada or as small as a grouping of city blocks.

  • Focus on Geography Series: This product presents highlights through short text, tables and figures for various release topics and levels of geography, including Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas (CMAs), census agglomerations (CAs) and Canadian municipalities (census subdivisions).

  • Journey to work Reference Guide: This guide explains census concepts and definitions. It also includes information about data quality and historical comparability, as well as comparisons with other data sources.

  • Guide to the Census of Population, 2016: This reference document provides an overview of the 2016 Census of Population processes, including content determination, collection, processing, data quality assessment, data dissemination and data suppression. It also includes response rates, global non-response rates, the distribution of the number of census subdivisions for which data have been published by province and territory and at the national level, as well as other data quality information.

  • Census Dictionary: This provides detailed definitions of census concepts, variables and geographic terms, as well as historical information to facilitate the comparison between census years.

Social media activities with this release

  • Facebook and Twitter: The official social media accounts will also be used to communicate and engage with the public for the dissemination of results from the 2016 Census of Population.

  • Chat with an expert: Users are invited to chat with Statistics Canada experts on the topics of Journey to work, Mobility and migration, and Language of work, on December 4, 2017, from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., Eastern time. For more information, refer to Statistics Canada's website: Chat with an expert.

5. Products available after release

The following products will be available with later releases:

Analytical products

  • Articles in Insights on Canadian Society (ICS)
  • Data visualization tool. More information about this initiative will be made available during the release cycle.

Data products

  • Additional data tables at various levels of geography
  • 2016 Census Aboriginal Population Profile
  • 2016 Census Individuals Public Use Microdata File (PUMF)
  • 2016 Census Hierarchical Public Use Microdata File (PUMF)
  • 2016 Census Long-form Research Data Centre (RDC) Microdata File

Reference products

  • Reference guides (various topics)
  • Technical reports

6. 2016 Census Program web module

To access the 2016 Census of Population products, please consult the 2016 Census Program web module.

7. 2016 Census Program release schedule

Release dates, 2016 Census Program
Release date Release topic
November 16, 2016 Geography
February 8, 2017 Population and dwelling counts
May 3, 2017

Age and sex

Type of dwelling

May 10, 2017 Census of Agriculture
August 2, 2017

Families, households and marital status

Language
September 13, 2017 Income

October 25, 2017

Immigration and ethnocultural diversity

Housing

Aboriginal peoples
November 29, 2017

Education

Labour

Journey to work

Language of work

Mobility and migration

8. Contact information

General enquiries

Media Relations – Media Hotline

More information

Note of appreciation

Canada owes the success of its statistical system to a long-standing partnership between Statistics Canada, the citizens of Canada, its businesses, governments and other institutions. Accurate and timely statistical information could not be produced without their continued co-operation and goodwill.

Standards of service to the public

Statistics Canada is committed to serving its clients in a prompt, reliable and courteous manner. To this end, the Agency has developed standards of service which its employees observe in serving its clients.

Copyright

Published by authority of the Minister responsible for Statistics Canada.

© Minister of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development, 2017

All rights reserved. Use of this publication is governed by the Statistics Canada Open Licence Agreement.

Catalogue no. 98-501-X

Ottawa

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