A nationwide web-based freight data collection

A limited number of studies have tried to apply behavioral models to freight policy analysis, but due to the lack of data, most have not produced satisfactory results. Many decision-makers are unwilling to participate in surveys that inquire about their shipping decisions, since such information is an important part of their business strategies, and understandably, they fear jeopardizing their competitive edge by participating. This results in generally poor participation rates for freight surveys and makes them very expensive in many cases. However, recent empirical findings suggest that the linkage between non-response rates and non-response biases is often nonexistent. This paper examines a non-response bias analysis in an online establishment survey that was conducted to obtain data for the on-going development of behavioral microsimulation freight model. The survey method, design, and challenges in obtaining the shipping information from the companies are also discussed in this study.