- Scientific survey of over 2,400 regional residents conducted by TPB that was representative of urban, inner suburban and outer suburban jurisdictions.
- Shows that the region’s residents generally demand more walkable, bikeable and transit-friendly communities and climate action, and prioritize this much more than expanding roads and parking
- Climate Action
- 84% of the region’s residents want elected officials to consider the impacts of climate change when planning transportation.
- For residents under 30 years of age, those most impacted by our long-range planning decisions and by climate change, that percentage rises to 92%.
- Overwhelming majorities of suburban as well as urban residents across the region’s jurisdictions agreed.
- Even in outer suburban jurisdictions, between 72 and 78% of residents wanted climate change considered in transportation planning.
- These percentages are much higher than those expressing congestion to be a significant concern that impacts their lives a lot (44%).
- Support for expanded pedestrian zones, bike lanes, and bus lanes
- Three quarters of survey respondents said they support post-pandemic use of street space for expanded pedestrian access and restaurant seating.
- Strong majorities also support bike lanes (63%) and bus lanes (71%), and a narrow majority (54%) support dedicated bus lanes even in situations that involve removal of on-street parking.
- It’s not only city residents who want dedicated bus lanes, either: the majority of survey respondents live in suburban areas, with a plurality from outer suburbs.
- “What transportation investments should we make today that future generations will thank us for tomorrow?” – only a small minority (134 out of 637) called for more or wider roads:
- 259 responses called for improving transit, walking and biking
- 172 responses called for clean transportation investments
- 134 responses called for more roads and more/wider car lanes
- 72 responses called for improving the condition of existing bridges and roads
- Dissatisfaction with region’s transportation system is by far the highest in the car-dependent outer suburbs
