King County residents invited to join travel study

For the Reporter

King County residents: The region’s future transportation system needs you.

Beginning in April, more than 90,000 homes throughout King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish counties will receive postcard invitations to participate in a regional travel study to better understand the transportation needs and preferences of the region’s residents.

Participation in the study can help answer questions about how the region can maintain and improve mobility, accessibility and connectivity for residents as population grows and travel patterns evolve. The Puget Sound regional travel study will be conducted through June.

The study will help planners understand the travel behavior of real households, such as the trips people make to work, school, or shopping centers, to help decision makers prioritize transportation projects.

“A lot has changed in the region since the last household survey in 2006,” said Billy Charlton, Program Manager for the Puget Sound Regional Council. “The region now has Link Light Rail, Streetcar service, and some tolling in place. We’ve also faced a huge economic downturn and faced incredible changes in technology that change people’s travel behavior. We expect to see some major differences.”

Resource Systems Group, Inc. (RSG) and ETC Institute, independent research firms, are administering the survey on behalf of PSRC. A random sample of the region’s households will be invited to participate in the survey.

The survey will involve questions about general household information as well as travel details for a given weekday. All individual and household information collected in this study will remain strictly confidential. The aggregated data will be used for analysis and modeling purposes.

For more information, visit survey.psrc.org, email help@psrc.org or call toll free 1-844-393-4436.