Southeastern Institute of Research Idea-66: Westbound I-66 Inside the Beltway Stakeholder Telephone Survey Pulsar Advertising December 22, 2004 G 1
Agenda I. Objectives II. Methodology III. Key Findings IV. Conclusions & Implications 2
Research Objectives Provide input to aid in formulating a contextsensitive solution to managing congestion in the I-66 Westbound Corridor: Describe and document trips Westbound along the I-66 Corridor Identify and assess stakeholder perception of traffic congestion in the Westbound I-66 Corridor Explore the relative appeal of 4 concepts 3
Research Objectives (con t.) Assess relative appeal of 4 initial concept categories that the Governor identified (as stated in Governor Warner s letter dated September 4, 2003): 1. Bus or rail transit improvements 2. Changing the requirements for HOV and/or adding toll lanes 3. Roadway widening 4. Do nothing 4
Study Methodology A random telephone survey was conducted among residents along the I-66 corridor In order to qualify for the survey, respondents had to live within a 10-mile long / 1-mile wide corridor along I-66. Some respondents lived inside the Beltway, and others lived outside the Beltway. Outside the Beltway, the eligible area was defined by zip codes Inside the Beltway, it was defined by carrier routes 5
Map of Study Area I-66 Inside The Beltway I-66 6
Map of Study Area- I-66 Outside of Beltway I-66 7
Methodology (con t.) All respondents traveled Westbound at least 3 times per week, using either I-66, Metro or other roads running parallel to I-66 501 interviews were completed 300 with residents inside the Beltway 201 with residents outside the Beltway These sample sizes were established in advance to ensure that sufficient numbers of these two groups were included in the total for individual analysis A sample of 501 has a margin of error of 4.4% at the 95% confidence level. 8
Stakeholder View Of I-66 Westbound Corridor Traffic 9
Commuters Believe that Westbound Traffic Is Becoming More Congested Easy to travel with very little congestion 5% Easy to travel with some congestion 17% Harder and harder to travel with growing congestion Very hard to travel with significant congestion 32% 45% 77% Don't know 1% Unweighted data 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Question: How would you describe the traffic issues you encounter when driving either I-66 West or the other westbound roads running parallel to I-66? Would you say I-66 or the other roads are? (Read answers.) 10
Residents Both Inside and Outside the Beltway Believe that Westbound Traffic Is Congested Easy to travel with very little congestion Easy to travel with some congestion 6% 3% 8% 23% 69% inside and 88% outside the Beltway believe Westbound traffic is congested. Harder and harder to travel with growing congestion Very hard to travel with significant congestion 22% 47% 42% 46% Don't know 3% 1% Inside the Beltway Outside the Beltway Unweighted data 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Question: How would you describe the traffic issues you encounter when driving either I-66 West or the other westbound roads running parallel to I-66? Would you say I-66 or the other roads are? (Read answers.) 11
Question: What do you see as the cause of the congestion you re experiencing on either I-66 West or the other westbound roads running parallel to it? Only most frequent mentions are shown. Commuters Believe the Congestion Is the Result of Too Many Cars and Not Enough Lanes for Westbound Traffic Total Inside of Beltway Outside of Beltway % % % Too many cars 38 39 38 Not enough lanes/ not wide enough 27 29 24 Expanding population 17 16 18 Too much development 12 8 17 Poor drivers / accidents 7 7 7 Bad merges / ramps 6 8 3 Poor infrastructure 6 3 9 Unweighted data Inadequate public transportation 5 5 5 12
What Do Commuters Believe The Solution Should Be? 13
SIR s Assessment Approach Possible Solutions: Bus or rail transit improvements Changing the requirements for HOV and/or adding toll lanes Roadway widening Do nothing 3 Ways To Assess Solutions: 1. Open-ended question Answer to What do you believe could be done to lessen congestion? 2. Ranking of the concept 3. Calculation of a Concept Performance Index 14
Assessment #1. Open-ended question Answer to What do you believe could be done to lessen congestion? 15
Question: What do you believe could be done to lessen the congestion along I-66 West and/or the I-66 Corridor to improve its efficiency for your use? Note: The 4 options were not mentioned. Only most frequent top of mind mentions are shown. Commuters Propose Widen/Add Lanes and Improve Public Transportation to Resolve Traffic Congestion (Chart shows most popular commuter suggestions before hearing 4 alternative solutions) Total Inside of Beltway Outside of Beltway % % % Widen/add lanes 52 53 52 Improve public transportation/expand Metro 33 29 37 Build more roads 8 8 9 Extend Metro to Dulles 5 6 5 Improve HOV 5 6 3 Don t know/refused 8 8 8 Unweighted data 16
Assessment #2. Ranking Question: Of all of these options, which would you choose first; which one second, which one third and which one fourth? (Rotate options to avoid order bias) 17
Graph reports the proportion selecting each option as first choice. Of Four Concept Categories Tested, Making Bus and/or Rail Transit Improvements Is the First Choice of Westbound Commuters to Reduce Westbound I-66 Congestion Bus and/or rail transit improvements 47% Roadway widening 37% Change the requirements for HOV and/or add toll lanes 12% Do nothing 4% Unweighted data 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Question: Of all of these options, which would you choose first; which one second, which one third and which one fourth? 18
Graph reports the proportion selecting each option as first choice. Those Who Live Inside the Beltway and Those Outside the Beltway Do Not Differ Significantly in Terms of Their First Choice Solutions to Reduce Westbound Congestion Bus and/or rail transit improvements 49% 45% Roadway widening Change the requirements for HOV and/or add toll lanes 12% 13% 34% 40% Inside of Beltway Outside of Beltway Do nothing 5% 2% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Unweighted data Question: Of all of these options, which would you choose first; which one second, which one third and which one fourth? 19
Graph reports the proportion selecting each option as first choice. Those Who Drive Alone or Carpool Prefer Either Improvements to Bus or Rail Transit or Widening the Roadway to Reduce Congestion. Those Who Use Some Other Form of Transportation Prefer Making Improvements to Bus or Rail Transit. Bus and/or rail transit improvements 42% 39% 58% Roadway widening 27% 42% 45% Change the requirements for HOV and/or add toll lanes Do nothing 12% 10% 13% 3% 6% 2% Drive alone (n=306) Carpool (n=31) Vanpool/Metrorail/Bus/Telework (n=62) 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Unweighted data Question: Of all of these options, which would you choose first; which one second, which one third and which one fourth? 20
Graph reports the proportion selecting each option as first choice. Those Who Believe The Congestion on Westbound I-66 Is Lighter and That It Is Easy to Travel on I-66 Prefer Bus and/or Rail Transit Improvements. Those Who Believe Westbound I-66 Is Getting More Congested and Harder to Travel Prefer Either Bus and Rail Improvements or Roadway Widening. Bus and/or rail transit improvements 46% 51% Roadway widening 23% 40% Change the requirements for HOV and/or add toll lanes 11% 13% Easy to travel on I-66 (n=107) Do nothing 1% 14% Harder to travel on I-66 (n=383) 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Unweighted data Question: Of all of these options, which would you choose first; which one second, which one third and which one fourth? 21
Graph reports the proportion selecting each option as fourth (last) choice. The Majority Selected Do Nothing As The Least Most Popular Option Percent who selected Do Nothing as their last choice (option) All Residents 57% Outside of Beltway 66% Inside of Beltway 52% Unweighted data 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Question: Of all of these options, which would you choose first; which one second, which one third and which one fourth? 22
Assessment #3. Concept Performance Index Assigning 3 points for each first place choice, 2 points for each second place, 1 point for each third place and 0 points for each fourth place choice. 23
Concept Performance Index Respondents ranked the four congestion reduction options according to their first choice, second choice, third choice and fourth choice. In order to assess how well the four options performed across all of these ratings, a Concept Performance Index was calculated. This index was calculated by assigning 3 points for each first place choice, 2 points for each second place, 1 point for each third place and 0 points for each fourth place choice. The total points for each option were totaled. And, the grand total for all options was calculated. The proportions reported for the index represent each option s share of the grand total of points. 24
There Is No Clear Cut Winner. Making Bus and/or Rail Improvements Performs Best on the Concept Performance Index. Doing Nothing Indexes Least Favorably. Bus and/or rail transit improvements Roadway widening Change the requirements for HOV and/or add toll lanes 25 29 36 However, widening the road and changing HOV requirements or adding toll lanes perform reasonably well, also. Do nothing 10 Unweighted data 0 20 40 60 80 100 Question: Of all of these options, which would you choose first; which one second, which one third and which one fourth? 25
The Four Options Tested Index About the Same For Inside and Outside the Beltway Residents Bus and/or rail transit improvements 36 35 Roadway widening Change the requirements for HOV and/or add toll lanes 27 33 25 24 Inside of Beltway Outside of Beltway Do nothing 12 8 Unweighted data 0 20 40 60 80 100 Question: Of all of these options, which would you choose first; which one second, which one third and which one fourth? 26
Only most frequent mentions are shown. Some concern for environment Question: Why do you choose bus and/or rail transit improvements as your first option for improving the efficiency of traffic flow along the I-66 Corridor? Rail Transit and/or Bus Improvements Are Rated Favorably Because They Are Viewed as Decreasing the Number of Cars and Reducing Congestion; and, Because They Would Move More People Total Inside of Beltway Outside of Beltway % % % Fewer cars / less congestion 19 16 24 Environmental reasons 15 18 11 Bus or rail needs to be extended 14 12 18 Move more people 14 15 11 People would use it 13 16 8 Easiest / best option 12 10 16 Widening road would not solve 7 8 6 More convenient / less stress 5 5 6 Least disruptive 5 8 1 Like the idea 5 8 1 It s needed 5 5 3 Don t know 1 1 - Unweighted data 27
Only most frequent mentions are shown. Respondents Support Widening the Roadway Because They Believe It Would Move More Cars and Increase Traffic Flow Total Inside of Beltway Outside of Beltway % % % More cars increase traffic flow 40 30 53 Easiest / best option 19 22 15 It s needed 12 18 5 People / I prefer to use car 7 3 11 More people / development needs to keep up 6 6 6 Other 8 11 4 Don t know 2-5 Unweighted data Question: Why do you choose roadway widening as your first option for improving the efficiency of traffic flow along the I-66 Corridor? 28
Conclusion Transit and Roadway Widening Are The Most Popular Possible Solutions Bus or rail transit improvements Assessment #1 Assessment #2 Assessment #3 Open-ended Ranking CPI 2 1 1 Changing the requirements for HOV and/or adding toll lanes 3 3 3 Roadway widening Do nothing 1 2 2 NA 4 4 29
Key Conclusions & Implications 30
#1. The Vast Majority of All Stakeholders (Inside And Outside The Beltway) Believe I-66 Westbound Is Becoming More Congested Conclusion: Stakeholders believe that Westbound traffic in the I-66 Corridor is becoming more congested. They blame that congestion on the number of cars on the road, not having enough lanes on the road and population growth and development. Implication: Stakeholders are sensitive to the growing congestion along the I-66 Corridor. They are ready to hear about plans for its management. 31
#2. Of Four Alternative Concepts Tested, Making Bus and/or Rail Transit Improvements and Roadway Widening are the Most Appealing Overall Conclusion: Nearly one-half (47%) of commuters rated bus and/or rail transit option as their first choice as a way of reducing congestion. And, one-third (33%) said (without interviewer prompting) as an openended question) that the public transportation and Metro should be improved and expanded to lessen congestion in the I-66 Corridor. On a Concept Performance Index, bus and rail improvements also scored highest, indexing at 36%. Widening the roadway is also a popular choice with commuters. Over one-half (52%) of respondents suggested this solution in an open-ended question. Over one-third (37%) rated this option first. It scored well on a Concept Performance Index as well (29%). Implication: From the perspective of stakeholders, making bus and/or rail improvements should be adopted as a plan or at least as part of a plan to reduce traffic congestion on Westbound I-66. Widening the roadway is also a strong contender and should be included as part of a plan that is responsive to the needs and preferences of stakeholders. Ideally, a plan that involves both bus and rail improvements and widening the roadway would be a context-sensitive solution. 32
#3. To Do Nothing About The Traffic Congestion In The Westbound I-66 Corridor Is Simply Not Acceptable Conclusion: For nearly 6 out of 10 (57%) commuters, doing nothing is their last choice for how to deal with the traffic congestion. Those who live outside the Beltway are particularly likely to say that doing nothing is not an option. Two-thirds of this group (66%) or nearly 7 out of 10 rated doing nothing as their last choice. Implication: Stakeholders are receptive and ready for action to be taken regarding Westbound congestion on I-66. 33