Understanding How to Motivate Communities to Support and Ride Public Transportation (2008) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 33-69
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From page 33... ...
A minority of respondents reported that public transportation was their primary means of travel. Most of these individuals had no access to private transportation unless friends or family occasionally provided this option.
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From page 34... ...
Current Travel Patterns Public transportation users generally used the bus or train to commute to work and school, to see doctors, to visit family and friends, to attend support group meetings, and to handle everyday shopping needs. Generally, those respondents who were primary bus riders seemed to be on the lower end of the household income range and comments about recreation were infrequently heard or reported.
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From page 35... ...
primary factor influencing use of public transportation ("Just my sister in law .
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From page 36... ...
advantage, frequently cited, was the ability to avoid driving and the associated costs and headaches: • No need to find a parking space at your destination. • No need to pay for parking at your destination.
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From page 37... ...
• You can get a cold from someone else's germs. • It's crowded and stressful standing so close to other people who are in your personal space (and who might have eaten a garlic sandwich for lunch)
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From page 38... ...
. The streets are public transportation arteries; there are "tons of buses." • If transit disappeared from a small place like Brandon it might not make much of a difference -- you can bike or walk anywhere.
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From page 39... ...
. maybe gas prices might get me involved." A woman in Boise who used and liked public transportation when she was living in Chicago reported that she doesn't like the bus, which she defines as "the worst of public transportation," but would "quietly" support Boise's move to light rail.
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From page 40... ...
Attitudes Toward Transit Participants expressed a range of opinions about public transportation: • It's important to teach children about taking care of the environment. • Government should run transit services, not private companies.
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From page 41... ...
Along with each item is the research team's recommendation regarding inclusion in the full survey. 4.2.2 Values Statements The respondents were asked to rate 39 values statements on a scale ranging from "describes me or my feelings completely" to "does not describe me or my feelings at all." As with the transit characteristics, factor analysis was the primary tool used to examine the items and consider them for elimination.
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From page 42... ...
14 Lets you do something relaxing while traveling Deleted Relatively low importance, probably more important in promoting ridership than support 15 Is a relaxed way to get around Deleted Relatively low importance, probably more important in promoting ridership than support 16 Is for people like you Kept Describes the overall dimension well. 17 Is a "cool" way to travel Deleted Relatively low importance, probably more important in promoting ridership than support.
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From page 43... ...
While 23 through 26 tend to appeal to the same people, they are different enough that communication strategies will need to distinguish between their value for appeals and targeting. 23 Reduces pollution Kept 24 Reduces society's energy consumption Kept 25 Makes America/Canada more independent of foreign oil Kept 26 Reduces congestion on the roads Kept 27 Decreases the need to spend tax dollars on roads and highways Deleted Less related to societal benefits in 23-26, but 23-26 were more believable.
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From page 44... ...
. Although they are just as likely ever to have experienced local public transit as others, their past-week use of local transit is below average, especially for fixed-route buses.
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From page 45... ...
will be captured by a statement in another group, item 14, and that of those here in 1-5, ‘2' is the most valuable for this project. 1 Attention to the environment hurts the economy Deleted 2 Spending my tax dollars on upgrading community services like transportation is a waste of my money Kept Very relevant to transit and funding, and we need to know who disagrees with this the most.
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From page 46... ...
35 I like being able to come and go without worrying about timetables and schedules Kept 36 I need to have my personal space when I'm around others Deleted 37 I want my tax dollars to help my community Deleted Too much of a truism. 38 and 39 seem to relate to moral direction.
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From page 47... ...
More information about the factor analysis process may be found in Appendix F
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From page 48... ...
(300) % % % Aware of availability of any mode: 98 98 99 Fixed route buses 89 88 96U On-demand service: disabilities 84 83 92U On-demand service: senior citizens 78 79C 70 Trains 56 54 69U Ferries 26 25 35U Ever experienced any mode: 65 63 84U Fixed route buses 49 46 72U On-demand service: disabilities 5 5 5 On-demand service: senior citizens 2 2 1 Trains 36 35 49U Ferries 12 12 19U Past week usage of any mode: 20 17 41U Fixed route buses 15 12 34U On-demand service: disabilities 2 1 4U On-demand service: senior citizens 1 1 0 Trains 9 8 19U Ferries 1 <1 3 C Significantly greater than Canada.
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From page 49... ...
% Low (571) % Base: Total Respondents Aware of availability of any mode: 98 98L 98L 95 Fixed route buses 89 92 82 85 On-demand service: disabilities 84 84 85 85 On-demand service: senior citizens 78 78 79 78 Trains 56 69ML 37L 28 Ferries 26 30ML 22L 12 Ever experienced any mode: 65 73ML 53 49 Fixed route buses 49 54ML 39 40 On-demand service: disabilities 5 5 4 4 On-demand service: senior citizens 2 2 2 3 Trains 36 48ML 19 L 11 Ferries 12 15ML 9 6 Past week usage of any mode: 20 26ML 8 10 Fixed route buses 15 19ML 5 9M On-demand service: disabilities 2 2 1 1 On-demand service: senior citizens 1 1 1 1 Trains 9 14ML 2 <1 Ferries 1 1 1 <1 M Significantly greater than Medium.
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From page 50... ...
% Age 65-74 (251) % Base: Total Respondents Aware of availability of any mode: 98 93 Fixed route buses 89 80 On-demand service: disabilities 84 85 On-demand service: senior citizens 78 79 Trains 56 49 Ferries 26S 15 Ever experienced any mode: 65 62 Fixed route buses 49 45 On-demand service: disabilities 5 7 On-demand service: senior citizens 2 11T Trains 36 36 Ferries 12S 6 Past week usage of any mode: 20 14 Fixed route buses 15S 7 On-demand service: disabilities 2 2 On-demand service: senior citizens 1 3 Trains 9 6 Ferries 1 <1 S Significantly greater than Seniors.
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From page 51... ...
These findings are summarized in Figure 3 and Table 28. Transit Features as Determinants of Transit Support In addition to perceptions about what transit actually delivers, or the actual performance of transit, respondents were also asked to tell how important each of these same concepts are when deciding whether or not to support tranGreen: Reducing pollution Reducing society's energy consumption Reducing congestion on the roads Making your country more independent of foreign oil Eliminating the need for parking1 Being a good way to spend tax dollars For You: Being for people like you Having a direct, positive impact on your life or those of people you know Going where you want to go2 Saving you money vs.
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From page 52... ...
: 52 Helping those who can't afford a car to get around 60 Providing mobility to those who can't drive, such as seniors, teens, and people with disabilities 56 Giving people more choice in getting around 41 Green (Average Rating) : 44 Eliminating the need for parking 49 Reducing congestion on the roads 46 Reducing pollution 43 Reducing society's energy consumption 43 Being a good way to spend tax dollars 43 Making your country more independent of foreign oil 37 Works (Average Rating)
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From page 53... ...
When considering whether to support transit, they assign greater importance to many features: • Works -- Being a safe way to get around; eliminating the need for parking. • Green -- Making the country more independent of foreign oil; being a good way to spend tax dollars.
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From page 54... ...
: 44 43 47 Eliminating the need for parking 49 48 54 Reducing congestion on the roads 46 46 50 Reducing pollution 43 42 55U Reducing society's energy consumption 43 42 48 Being a good way to spend tax dollars 43 43 43 Making your country more independent of foreign oil 37 37 32 Works (Average Rating) : 38 37 44 Eliminating the need for parking 49 48 54 Being a safe way to get around 47 44 62U Being a dependable means of getting around 37 37 38 Being convenient in bad weather 30 30 30 Going where you want to go 29 28 34 For the Community (Average Rating)
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From page 55... ...
: 68 68 70 Being a safe way to get around 75 74 79 Being a dependable means of getting around 73 74 70 Going where you want to go 71 71 76 Eliminating the need for parking 62 62 63 Being convenient in bad weather 61 61 61 Green (Average Rating) : 67 67 69 Reducing pollution 74 73 82U Reducing congestion on the roads 71 70 74 Reducing society's energy consumption 70 69 74 Being a good way to spend tax dollars 63 63 66 Eliminating the need for parking 62 62 63 Making your country more independent of foreign oil 61 62 57 For You (Average Rating)
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From page 56... ...
: 52 52 52 54 Helping those who can't afford a car to get around 60 59 59 63 Providing mobility to those who can't drive, such as seniors, teens, and people with disabilities 56 56 59 54 Giving people more choice in getting around 41 41 39 44 Green (Average Rating) : 44 44 44 43 Eliminating the need for parking 49 49 50 49 Reducing congestion on the roads 46 46 48 47 Reducing pollution 43 44 43 42 Reducing society's energy consumption 43 42 45 42 Being a good way to spend tax dollars 43 44 40 43 Making your country more independent of foreign oil 37 36 38 36 Works (Average Rating)
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From page 57... ...
The presence of unique typologies would suggest the need for different marketing strategies to address the different typologies of support behaviors. Instead, however, conclusions from the factor analysis pointed to a set of highly correlated and intertwined set of support behaviors; this suggests that there is really only one, overarching notion of transitsupporting behaviors.
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From page 58... ...
: 52S 44 Helping those who can't afford a car to get around 60S 49 Providing mobility to those who can't drive, such as seniors, teens, and people with disabilities 56S 48 Giving people more choice in getting around 41 36 Green (Average Rating) : 44 41 Eliminating the need for parking 49 46 Reducing congestion on the roads 46 44 Reducing pollution 43S 31 Reducing society's energy consumption 43 43 Being a good way to spend tax dollars 43 41 Making your country more independent of foreign oil 37 40 Works (Average Rating)
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From page 59... ...
: 67 74 Reducing pollution 74 77 Reducing congestion on the roads 71 77 Reducing society's energy consumption 70 71 Being a good way to spend tax dollars 63 71T Eliminating the need for parking 62 75T Making your country more independent of foreign oil 61 74T For You (Average Rating) : 60 62 Going where you want to go 71 74 Saving you money vs.
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From page 60... ...
Skews low on: Provides mobility to those who can't drive (78%) Helps those who can't afford a car to get around (74%)
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From page 61... ...
Past week usage skews low for any mode (12%) , including fixed route buses (10%)
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From page 62... ...
Total (1800) % Encouraged others to use transit 67 Said good things to your friends or co-workers about public transportation 64 Suggested public transportation to a group of friends going to a large public event 61 Visited a Web site to learn more about public transportation in your area 43 Urged others to be patient while construction projects related to public transportation were in progress 36 Voted for a bill or bond which raised money for transit 30 Voted for a candidate because he/she was in favor of public transportation 22 Contacted a public transit agency to recommend a change or improvement 16 Spoken to your employer about getting transit programs and rideshare programs for employees 14 Filled out a rider-comment card or participated in a prior survey for public transportation 14 Attended a public meeting or town hall because public transportation was being discussed 10 Bought a souvenir such as a t-shirt or button from a public transportation agency 9 Signed up for email alerts regarding public transportation 8 Written a letter or email to the local newspaper in support of public transportation 4 Arranged or helped organize a meeting about public transportation in your neighborhood 3 Not really a supporter at all (not asked)
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From page 63... ...
(300) % % % RATING OF SELF AS A SUPPORTER: Very/strong supporter 74 73 80 Very strong supporter 40 40 40 Somewhat strong supporter 34 33 41 SUPPORT BEHAVIORS ENGAGED IN: Encouraged others to use transit 67 67 69 Said good things to your friends or co-workers about public transportation 64 63 67 Suggested public transportation to a group of friends going to a large public event 61 60 66 Visited a Web site to learn more about public transportation in your area 43 42 51 Urged others to be patient while construction projects related to public transportation were in progress 36 36 39 Voted for a bill or bond which raised money for transit 30 33C 8 Voted for a candidate because he/she was in favor of public transportation 22 22 24 Contacted a public transit agency to recommend a change or improvement 16 15 17 Spoken to your employer about getting transit programs and rideshare programs for employees 14 15 13 Filled out a rider-comment card or participated in a prior survey for public transportation 14 14 13 Attended a public meeting or town hall because public transportation was being discussed 10 10 14 Bought a souvenir such as a t-shirt or button from a public transportation agency 9 10 6 Signed up for email alerts regarding public transportation 8 9 5 Written a letter or email to the local newspaper in support of public transportation 4 3 5 Arranged or helped organize a meeting about public transportation in your neighborhood 3 4 1 Not really a supporter at all (not asked)
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From page 64... ...
(571) % % % % RATING OF SELF AS A SUPPORTER: Very/strong supporter 74 75 73 70 Very strong supporter 40 41 38 37 Somewhat strong supporter 34 34 34 33 SUPPORT BEHAVIORS ENGAGED IN: Encouraged others to use transit 67 71ML 60 62 Said good things to your friends or co-workers about public transportation 64 66ML 59 59 Suggested public transportation to a group of friends going to a large public event 61 65ML 54 52 Visited a website to learn more about public transportation in your area 43 49ML 33 33 Urged others to be patient while construction projects related to public transportation were in progress 36 39ML 31 30 Voted for a bill or bond issue which raised money for transit 30 29 30 31 Voted for a candidate because he or she was in favor of public transportation 22 24L 20 17 Contacted a public transit agency to recommend a change or improvement 16 16 15 14 Spoken to your employer about getting transit programs and rideshare programs for employees 14 15 14 14 Filled out a rider-comment card or participated in a prior survey for public transportation 14 14 12 14 Attended a public meeting or town hall because you knew public transportation was being discussed 10 12L 8 6 Bought a souvenir such as a t-shirt or button from a public transportation agency 9 10 7 9 Signed up for email alerts regarding public transportation 8 10L 6 4 Written a letter or email to the local newspaper in support of public transportation 4 3 4 4 Arranged or helped organize a meeting about public transportation in your building or neighborhood 3 3 3 4 Not really a supporter at all (not asked)
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From page 65... ...
(251) % % RATING OF SELF AS A SUPPORTER: Very/strong supporter 74 69 Very strong supporter 40 43 Somewhat strong supporter 34 25 SUPPORT BEHAVIORS ENGAGED IN: Encouraged others to use transit 67S 52 Said good things to your friends or co-workers about public transportation 64S 50 Suggested public transportation to a group of friends going to a large public event 61S 45 Visited a website to learn more about public transportation in your area 43S 12 Urged others to be patient while construction projects related to public transportation were in progress 36 36 Voted for a bill or bond issue which raised money for transit 30 34 Voted for a candidate because he or she was in favor of public transportation 22 19 Contacted a public transit agency to recommend a change or improvement 16 12 Spoken to your employer about getting transit programs and rideshare programs for employees 14S 5 Filled out a rider-comment card or participated in a prior survey for public transportation 14S 8 Attended a public meeting or town hall because you knew public transportation was being discussed 10 10 Bought a souvenir such as a t-shirt or button from a public transportation agency 9 7 Signed up for email alerts regarding public transportation 8S 4 Written a letter or email to the local newspaper in support of public transportation 4 4 Arranged or helped organize a meeting about public transportation in your building or neighborhood 3 4 Not really a supporter at all (not asked)
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From page 66... ...
7% 14% 23% 40% 55% 56% 59% 66% 68% 68% 79% 80% 82% 88% Spending my tax dollars on upgrading community services like transportation is a waste of my money One vote doesn't matter I get involved in political and social issues that don't impact me directly I have to try something for myself in order to support it Being unable to get from one part of town to another makes life more difficult than it should be Those who can't afford a car need help from others in the community I'm willing to make compromises to help society Government has a responsibility to improve the community Communities need to help people become more selfsufficient and independent I like being able to come and go without worrying about timetables and schedules I want a voice in where my tax dollars go It's good to be around people from all walks of life We need to take care of the planet It's important for people to improve their own lives and the lives of their children N = 1800 Figure 8. Agreement with values statements among total (% describes me or my feelings completely/very well)
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From page 67... ...
67 17% 25% 20% 14% 25% Society Do-Gooders The World And Me Talkers, Not Walkers Self-Involved Apathetics N = 1800 Figure 9. Value segment percentages among total.
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From page 68... ...
I have to try something for myself in order to support it (63%) Skews low on: Spending my tax dollars on upgrading community services like transit is a waste of my money (0%)
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From page 69... ...
Average # of Transit Support Behaviors: 5.0 4.1 4.2 3.0 3.8 Influentials Membership: Skews high (50%) Skews low (13%)
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