The survey covers 4.92 lakh households and 20.34 lakh persons
NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 05: Buses accounted for 55.8% of household overnight journeys in India during 2025–26, followed by inter-city railways at 17.7%, while two-wheelers emerged as the leading mode of transport for workers commuting to their workplaces, accounting for 42.6% of such trips, according to the first-ever National Household Travel Survey (NHTS).
The National Statistics Office (NSO), under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), conducted the nationwide survey between July 2025 and June 2026, covering 14,274 villages and 10,377 urban blocks. The survey collected information from 4,92,023 households covering 20,34,371 persons.
The survey defines travel as a trip covering a distance of at least one kilometre.
Students mostly walk, take buses to educational institutions
The survey found that 66.4% of students aged six years and above undertook within-travel-day trips of at least one kilometre to attend their basic-course educational institutions. The proportion was 65.6% in rural areas and 68.1% in urban areas.
Among students, walking was the most common mode, accounting for 37% of trips, followed by buses at 29.5% and bicycles at 15.8%.
Auto-rickshaws accounted for 10.5% of student trips, while two-wheelers accounted for 6.7%.
Students aged 15–29 years recorded the highest regular participation in educational travel, at 77% nationally.
Two-wheelers dominate workforce mobility
The survey found that 57.6% of workers aged 15 years and above undertook within-travel-day trips of more than one kilometre to fixed or non-fixed workplaces.
Two-wheelers were the predominant mode, accounting for 42.6% of workers’ commutes, followed by walking at 28.3%, bicycles at 10.7%, buses at 6.7% and auto-rickshaws at 6.4%.
Two-wheelers accounted for 37.1% of rural worker commutes and 52.3% of urban worker commutes.
The survey also recorded a gender gap in workforce travel, with 61.9% of male workers undertaking daily work trips of more than one kilometre, compared with 41.9% of female workers.
Mass transit modes such as monorail, metro, suburban rail and trams accounted for 5% of urban worker commutes nationally, with higher usage recorded in Maharashtra at 20.7%, West Bengal at 16.5% and Delhi at 14.4%.
Most students, workers travel within 30 minutes
The average travel time was 23 minutes for students travelling to educational institutions and 25 minutes for workers travelling to fixed workplaces.
About 87.6% of students reached their educational institutions within 30 minutes. The corresponding figure for workers commuting to fixed workplaces was 83.4%.
Among students, 82% departed for educational institutions between 7 am and 10 am, with the peak period being 8 am to 9 am, accounting for 35.7% of departures.
Among workers, 94.9% left for work before 10 am, with the largest share departing between 8 am and 10 am.
Urban workers spend ₹1,044 a month on commuting
The average monthly expenditure on commuting to a fixed workplace was ₹785 per worker.
Urban workers spent an average of ₹1,044 per month, compared with ₹612 for rural workers.
Male workers incurred an average monthly commuting expenditure of ₹835, compared with ₹533 for female workers.
Students spent an average of ₹443 per month on commuting, with urban students spending ₹617 compared with ₹361 for rural students.
Social and religious activities drive overnight travel
The survey found that buses and railways together accounted for 73.5% of household overnight journeys. Buses accounted for 55.8%, inter-city railways 17.7%, cars 15.1% and two-wheelers 8.8%.
Railway use for overnight journeys was higher among urban households, at 22.7%, compared with 14% among rural households.
Social, communication and religious activities accounted for 70.2% of overnight household travel, including 69.7% in rural areas and 70.9% in urban areas.
Culture, leisure, sports and tourism accounted for 7.4% of overnight trips, rising to 9.3% in urban areas, while self-care and maintenance accounted for 6.5%.
For other within-day trips unrelated to education and employment, two-wheelers were the leading mode at 32.2%, followed by walking at 24.9%, auto-rickshaws at 18.9%, bicycles at 12.6% and buses at 8.5%.
Survey to support transport planning
According to MoSPI, the NHTS is intended to provide data-driven insights into domestic travel patterns to support regional transport planning, infrastructure development and evidence-based policy formulation.
The survey captures travel purposes, modes of transport, travel duration and distance, frequency of travel and expenditure on regular trips.
The findings are also expected to help identify gaps in existing transport systems, assess accessibility, optimise transport routes and improve service frequency and scheduling.
The survey introduced several concepts, including the definition of a travel day as the period from 3 am on one calendar day to 2:59 am the following day. An overnight trip is defined as one keeping a person away from their residence for more than 24 hours, subject to a minimum travel distance of 50 km.
