2008 Missoula Long-Range Transportation Plan Survey May 20, 2008

Purpose Provide information about citizens’ perceptions of priorities for transportation planning in the Missoula area. One of several important information sources that will be used to develop Missoula’s long-range transportation plan.

Methods - 1 How? –Computer-assisted telephone interview –Random-digit dial –Kish table within household selection Whom? –Age 18 + –Live in Missoula 2.5 PM area –Households with landline phones When? –1/22/08 through 2/10/08 (Cold Weather) How was it tested? –Full pilot test Where do respondents live? –Residences geo-coded

Methods - 2 How Many? –430 completed interviews Sampling Error Rate? –5% (+/-) Response Rate? –51.7% –AAPOR RR3 (2006) Weighted Data? –By 2006 U.S. Census Age and Sex for Missoula County

Methods Missoula Survey Respondents (%) Census BBER Pop. Estimate Missoula City Outside Missoula City Missoula Urban Planning Area 90.9NA Outside Missoula Urban Planning Area 9.1NA 2008 Missoula Survey Respondents (%) BBER ACS Male Female Mean Age (adults 18 +) HH income ($000): < – 34* Housing ownership: Own* Rent*  The difference between estimates for Missoula County is significant at the.05 level.

Public’s Transportation Priorities Top 3 1.Improving safety at known high accident locations, 2.Minimizing the negative impacts of future transportation projects on natural features like rivers and wildlife habitat, and 3.Reducing traffic congestion in corridors that are currently severely congested. Near the Bottom –Reducing the number of miles driven by single-occupant vehicles.

Four Possible System Improvements: A Closer Examination 1.Improve bicycle or pedestrian facilities 2.Increase or improve public transit 3.Expand road capacity 4.Improve safety for drivers, passengers, bicyclists, and pedestrians.

What action would improve transportation in the Missoula Valley more? Rank all four actions Head-to-head comparisons, example: 1. Would improving bicycle and pedestrian facilities, or 2. Providing more or improved public transit services improve transportation more?

Summary Observations 1.Safety, environmental issues, and traffic congestion are key public opinion factors. 2.Many respondents view expanding road capacity as a way to reduce traffic congestion and improve safety. 3.Many respondents thought of the phrase, “expand road capacity,” in a broad sense. 4.Be very careful when attempting to enforce pre-conceived ideas of logical consistency on citizens’ responses.

Error bars: 95% confidence interval

Questions?