Nearly 4,500 members of the community completed the “Shape Your Transportation Future” survey to share their priorities on transportation projects and spending for the next 30 years.
The survey will inform Pima Association of Governments’ (PAG’s) federally required long-range transportation plan. Underway is development of the 2055 Regional Mobility and Accessibility Plan (RMAP).
“We’re gratified that so many people in our community took the time to complete the survey and for the support from our many partners to promote it,” said PAG Executive Director Farhad Moghimi. “The information we received is invaluable to our long-term planning efforts and will help other governments in the region as they continue their work to improve the transportation network.”
As the greater Tucson area’s metropolitan planning organization, PAG regularly updates the region’s performance-based transportation plan.
The plan, which promotes a safe, reliable and efficient transportation network, also supports economic vitality of the region, increased accessibility and mobility for people and freight, environmental protections, transportation mode integration, and network preservation.
As PAG staff develop this plan, gathering public input is an important part of the process. The recent survey was promoted through an email campaign, traditional advertising, social media advertising, and meeting with people at public events. Partners spread the word by sharing our emails and social media messages about the survey.
The data we gathered portrays an interesting picture of what matters to transportation users in the region. Survey participants were asked to rank their priorities based on a list of transportation elements.
The most popular transportation priority among participants was improving roadway conditions, with 1,303 participants ranking this their top choice. The same category also was the most popular second priority, with 700 participants making improved roadway conditions their second choice. It was also the second most common third choice, with 663 participants.
Improving road and intersection safety and reducing traffic congestion were the third and fourth top priorities, with 459 and 453, respectively, making these their top choices.
These priorities also were reflected in your choices when asked to apply spending priorities to transportation elements. Survey participants wanted the most funding allocated to improving existing roads. Safety improvements and reducing congestion were the other two most prioritized areas of spending, respectively.
The survey measured the different ways people travel through our region. Among the travel modes, 3,295 participants conveyed they mostly travel by automobiles. Bicycles were the second most commonly used mode, with 234 participants selecting the option.
This is just a small sampling of the data we collected. In all, we gathered more than 200,000 data points. This information will be analyzed and further inform the update to the long-range transportation plan and aid our regional partners in their transportation planning.