This dataset provides an indicator of the main mode of transport to work in Functional Urban Areas (FUAs) and cities. The indicator is defined as the share of people using a given mode to commute to work. Modes of transport include car, scooter, public transport (including company buses), bicycle, walking and other. The indicator excludes employed people working from home.
Data sources and methodology
The indicator uses data extracted from the Eurostat database for European countries. For non-European countries, data is collected at the level of small administrative units (e.g. municipalities) and aggregated at the FUA and city level. A detailed description of the data sources can be found in the annex of Regions and Cities at a Glance 2024.
Defining FUAs and cities
The OECD, in cooperation with the EU, has developed a harmonised definition of functional urban areas (FUAs) to capture the economic and functional reach of cities based on daily commuting patterns (OECD, 2012). FUAs consist of:
- A city – defined by urban centres in the degree of urbanisation, adapted to the closest local administrative units to define a city.
- A commuting zone – including all local areas where at least 15% of employed residents work in the city.
The delineation process includes:
- Assigning municipalities surrounded by a single FUA to that FUA.
- Excluding non-contiguous municipalities.
The correspondence table between SAUs and FUAs/cities is available in parquet and csv format.
The definition identifies 1 272 FUAs and 1 269 cities in all OECD member countries except Costa Rica and three accession countries.
Cite this dataset
OECD Regions, cities and local areas database (Main mode of transport to work - FUAs), http://oe.cd/geostats
Further information
For questions and/or comments, please email [email protected]