Analytics, Latvia, Society, Statistics

The survey found that 79% of residents in Latvia are mobile, that is, they leave their homes at least once a day, including 83% who leave their homes on workdays and 69% on weekends.

The main reasons why people prefer to stay at home on weekends include home chores, because they have a day off, and because they have no any particular place to go, said Zemite.

On the average, people in Latvia move a distance of 29.6 kilometers each day, which takes them 80 minutes.

Those who commute by train cover the longest distance - 47 kilometers a day, which takes them 79 minutes, said Zemite.

64% of residents in Latvia use public transport, 22% travel by foot, 7% use multi-modal transport, 6 percent ride a bicycle, and 1%- hybrid automobiles.

Armands Plate, head of the Central Statistical Bureau's Agricultural and Environmental Statistics Department, said that the survey could help ministries and local governments better plan infrastructure development and environmental protection measures. The survey, however, only provides data for 2017, therefore it will have to be carried out on a regular basis so that developments and trends could be observed.

The Central Statistical Bureau's head Aija Zigure also stressed that the survey should be done on a regular basis, but that depends on financial support. The first survey cost EUR 80,000, 95% of which was covered by the European Union's co-financing.