So the Road to College survey is only based on answers from about 500 families from a “Paying for College” Facebook group. Any junior in AP Stat would know that this isn’t a reliable data set.
The figure of >20% of students taking a gap year is not just regulated to this year. From 2017: “According to the AGA, a nonprofit that accredits gap year programs, between 30,000 and 40,000 students are taking time off for a semester or more. The group says that figure is up 23 percent.”
“Now, more than 35 percent of high school students are thinking of taking a gap year, according to a recent survey by TD Ameritrade.”
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/19/making-the-most-of-a-gap-year-before-college.html
All your data appears either unreliable or fake.