The TimeUse+ data set: 4 weeks of time use and expenditure data based on GPS tracks

Abstract

This data paper introduces the TimeUse+ data set and outlines the comprehensive survey methodologies employed in its collection. The TimeUse+ study comprised two online questionnaires and a smartphone-based diary, recording travel, time use, and expenditure data. Participants were instructed to utilize the TimeUse+ application over a 4-week period. The app passively tracked participants’ movements via GPS and enabled them to annotate their trips and time spent at fixed locations with relevant time use and expenditure information. We begin by providing an overview of extant research on smartphone-based activity-travel diaries and the survey methodological research that informed the TimeUse+ app’s design. We then delineate the study design and components of TimeUse+, highlighting insights derived from prior focus groups and pretests. The data analyzed in this study were collected during the main study wave of TimeUse+, conducted in German-speaking Switzerland from July 2022 to February 2023. Approximately 63,000 individuals were invited to participate, of which approximately 10% initially indicated interest. Despite the study’s extensive and burdensome nature, we observed a net response rate of 2.1%. We present findings related to travel behavior, time use patterns, and expenditure habits, and discuss the challenges faced and lessons learned during each stage of development and execution of the TimeUse+ study. These extensive longitudinal data, which include validated information on travel mode and purpose, as well as detailed data on duration, social partners, and expenditures associated with activities performed at each destination, are being made available for further research.