What does this measure?

The number of households that report having a vehicle kept at the home, available for use, expressed as a percentage of all households.

Why is this important?

A vehicle makes it easier for people to work and to conduct daily business such as doctor’s visits and shopping. Ready access to transportation can also make it simpler to be involved in schools, religious organizations and other forms of civic life.

How are Cayuga and Seneca counties performing?

In 2006–10, 91% of Cayuga households and 95% of Seneca households had vehicles, similar to the state (excluding NYC) and national rate of 91%. The rate was lower in the city of Auburn (82%). Among comparison counties, Onondaga had the lowest rate (88%), while the rest were at 92% to 94%. Rates in most counties and the state and nation were up slightly from 2000.

Notes about the data

The 2006–10 figures are from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. The bureau combined five years of responses to the survey to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. However, because the information came from a survey, the samples responding to the survey were not always large enough to produce reliable results, especially in small geographic areas. CGR has noted on data tables the estimates with relatively large margins of error. Estimates with three asterisks have the largest margins, plus or minus 50% or more of the estimate. Two asterisks mean plus or minus 35%–50%, and one asterisk means plus or minus 20%–35%. For all estimates, the confidence level is 90%, meaning there is 90% probability the true value (if the whole population were surveyed) would be within the margin of error (or confidence interval). The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census.