A study of past trends gives an indication of the problems which will have to be faced in the future. Figure I shows the population trend between 1900 and the present day. Except for a drop during World War II, this graph shows that the population is growing at a very rapid rate. Since the area of the Colony has changed only negligibly the population density has increased at approximately the same rate as the population. The overall density of population for the entire Colony is now 9,300 persons per square mile. However, this does not reflect the effective population density from the standpoint of transport requirements. Approximately 81 per cent of the population is concentrated in 29 of the Colony's 398 square miles. Population densities range over 100,000 persons per square mile; most of the Colony's business and commercial activity is concentrated into this small, densely urbanised area, and over 90 per cent of public transport journeys are made within it.
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| <span lang="en" dir="ltr" class="mw-content-ltr">As the Colony and its inhabitants become more prosperous, more people will travel and trip lengths will increase. Similarly, as the overall standard of living increases, people who previously made few journeys, many of which were on foot, will begin to use public transport. The upper income groups will increase and swell the demand for private cars and the road space to use them. Figure 2 shows that these factors are already in operation. Both use of public transport and vehicle registration are increasing at a faster rate than population. This is an unusual condition, but one that is likely to continue, as better job opportunities for the low income groups become more readily available in new industrial and urban developments.</span>
| <span lang="en" dir="ltr" class="mw-content-ltr">As the Colony and its inhabitants become more prosperous, more people will travel and trip lengths will increase. Similarly, as the overall standard of living increases, people who previously made few journeys, many of which were on foot, will begin to use public transport. The upper income groups will increase and swell the demand for private cars and the road space to use them. Figure 2 shows that these factors are already in operation. Both use of public transport and vehicle registration are increasing at a faster rate than population. This is an unusual condition, but one that is likely to continue, as better job opportunities for the low income groups become more readily available in new industrial and urban developments.</span>
| <span lang="en" dir="ltr" class="mw-content-ltr">[[File:MTS Fig2.png|thumb|350px|'''Figure 2''' — Growth of Population, Public Transport Riding and Vehicle Registration]]</span>
| <span lang="en" dir="ltr" class="mw-content-ltr">[[File:MTS Fig2.png|thumb|350px|'''Figure 2''' — Growth of Population, Public Transport Riding and Vehicle Registration]]</span>
1964年，工務局在英國道路研究所人員的技術指導下成立交通狀況調查組（Passenger Transport Survey Unit，PTSU），其職權範圍包括進行調查以獲取有關當前乘客流動的事實信息，以作確定未來發展對這些人員流動模式的可能影響。1967年，該單位成為一個永久性組織，[易]名為交通運輸調查組（Traffic and Transport Survey Unit，TTSU），負責長期複檢交通和運輸的需求、翻新調查數據及預測未來的交通和運輸趨勢。
1965年初，香港政府意識到有必要對公共交通進行更詳細的研究，因而決定這項工作應該在獲得交通狀況調查組研究的基礎數據的同時開始。為此，香港政府於1965年7月與費爾文霍士顧問工程公司（Freeman, Fox, Wilbur Smith and Associates）達成協議，進行大眾運輸可行性研究。
