Regional Transportation Plan

PSRC staff Zoomed with middle and high school students in Arlington, Edmonds and Issaquah, and youth from across Pierce and Kitsap counties over the last few months as part of the outreach process for the Regional Transportation Plan.

Local elected officials also participated in the discussions and shared more details about the kinds of transportation changes happening in their cities.

Youth participants agreed that the future of transportation will be:

• Environmentally sustainable
• Efficient
• Accessible for people with different mobility needs
• Safer for pedestrians and cyclists
• Flexible
• Driven by innovative technologies and ideas

Students also created digital imagery of what they think transportation will look like in 2050 and mapped where and how they travel, noting hard to reach places they would like to go.

Overall, the students mentioned some common struggles in getting around, including where bus stops are located, how safe they feel biking or taking transit by themselves, long drives, traffic, parking in busy areas, and inconvenient weather. They also mentioned going for more walks in their neighborhoods with friends during the pandemic.

If you know of a youth commission, council, or other organization based in the central Puget Sound region that would be interested in participating in transportation outreach, please contact Maggie Moore at mmoore@psrc.org. We’d love to meet with you!

PSRC conducted a representative survey of over 1,900 residents from the four-county region on aspects of regional transportation beginning in March 2021.

The survey covered public needs within existing transportation infrastructure, motivators or barriers to the use of public transportation, priorities for the future regional transportation system, and the impact of COVID-19 on travel and work behavior. Follow up interviews were conducted to explore feedback shared in the survey and hear more from individuals about their personal experience of the transportation system.

Respondents were asked to choose their top 3 priorities for a complete and reliable transportation system. This chart shows the top responses.

“Well-maintained roads and highways are important nationally! It doesn’t matter where; safety is important anywhere – whether it’s regional or local roads.” -Spanish interview group

Overall results from the representative survey showed that reliable, well-maintained roads and highways were the top priority for respondents, followed by high speed rail connecting to places in and outside the region and reliable, well-connected transit service for local neighborhoods.

Follow up interviews on this question also showed support for the expansion of the public transit system with desire for frequent and accessible options for getting around the region without a personal vehicle. Interviewees also suggested that high speed rail was viewed by respondents as the light rail system and several respondents specifically said their priority is the speedy, continued expansion of the light rail system.

Transit service is the highest-rated infrastructure across the region among those who responded.

Survey respondents rated transit as the highest rated infrastructure component where they live and where they work. Other well rated infrastructure included sidewalks and crosswalks, infrastructure for people with disabilities, lighting, protected bike facilities, and road conditions.

“By and large, areas that don’t have sidewalks are areas that need sidewalks the most.”
-English interview group

However, interviewees stated certain elements of infrastructure were lacking near where they live and work. Many said the sidewalks near where they live do not meet their needs because they are not well-maintained, cracked, jagged, have puddles when it’s raining, or end abruptly. Others identified infrastructure for people with disabilities, lack of lighting and lack of protection from weather as missing elements

Motivation for using public transportation

Respondents to the representative survey said easier access to transit and shorter trip times are most likely to motivate respondents to use public transit across the region. Across the region, many respondents plan to drive alone or walk at least three days per week after the pandemic.

Interviewees travel around the region in a variety of ways, including public transit, personal vehicles, ridehail services, walking, and biking. Many are using public transit less now than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic, mainly because of health concerns, working from home, or cost-saving measures.

“I have a disability and cannot move around very easily. Because of the current road construction detouring my bus routes, I need to walk a long way to get to the bus stop. Since there are hills around where I live, it becomes very inconvenient to take the bus. - Mandarin interview group

Other motivators to taking public transit more often included:

• Access to park and rides
• More frequent buses that are consistently on-time
• Protect and improve the environment
• An opportunity to relax and unwind from the day
• Avoiding parking issues like limited parking and high parking fees

About the survey method

The survey was fielded through randomized mailings, outreach through community based organizations and flyers posted in grocery stores. Responses were collected in English, Spanish, simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese and Vietnamese. To validate and build upon information in the survey, 22 interviews were conducted with individuals in four languages: English, Mandarin, Spanish, and Vietnamese. To increase representation by groups who are historically underrepresented, priority was given to individuals aged 18-34, people with a disability or has someone in their household with a disability, and/or people with household incomes less than $50,000.

We still want to hear from you! The survey is posted online with additional questions on specialized transportation needs and services.

PSRC seeks input on mobility needs for Regional Transportation Plan

PSRC is doing outreach to identify the mobility needs of people with special transportation needs as part of the work to develop the Regional Transportation Plan.

This has included virtual meetings with mobility coalitions, community groups, specialized transportation providers, regular transit providers, and other stakeholders in the region.

Specialized transportation services serve people who have difficulty transporting themselves due to age, income, or disability. Examples include paratransit buses, shuttles, volunteer driver programs, and school buses.

Also, many people with special transportation needs also rely on regular, fixed-route transit services to get around.

Outreach meetings included a short presentation on the Coordinated Mobility Plan, an interactive poll and encouragement to follow up with the online Future of Transportation Survey.

What we heard:

Top Mobility Challenges

• Longer travel times compared to driving personal vehicles
• Lack of services at times when they are needed
• Difficulty getting to medical appointments, pharmacies, and grocery stores
• Lack of information about available services
• Lack of physical infrastructure, such as curb ramps as a problem to get to desired destinations
• Long wait times when transferring between services

Emerging mobility needs identified by the community include:

• Better communication between drivers and riders with special transportation needs (especially those with a disability)
• Less complicated eligibility review process to ride/qualify for specialized transportation, like ADA Paratransit
• Perceived safety while on a bus or at waiting areas to ride transit

PSRC staff will continue outreach and work to prioritize strategies to address the needs expressed by the community. This will include the development of performance measures to track the progress of specialized transportation services, improve coordination between different types of services, and other aspects of transportation.

Learn more about the Coordinated Mobility Plan and the Regional Transportation Plan by visiting PSRC’s website. Share your story using specialized transportation services and learn about more ways to get involved on the Engage page.