Results of Monkton Transportation Survey 2016
During February and March of 2016, Monkton residents 18 years and older were asked to participate in a town wide transportation survey either online via Survey Monkey or with paper surveys available at town hall and during town meeting. The survey consisted of 27 questions intended to capture Monkton resident’s transportation practices, needs, and opinions. Similar surveys were conducted in Weybridge, Bristol, and Middlebury.
Seventy two surveys were submitted from Monkton and the following is a summary of the results. The Monkton Energy Committee and Monkton Planning Commission want to thank all who participated for their survey responses and the insightful comments.
What do we use our vehicles for?
64% of respondents use their vehicles to commute to work 3-5 days per week. 35% use their vehicles while at work. The other reason listed for using a vehicle more than once per week is to take kids to school (18%).
66% of respondents said they use their vehicles 1-3 times per day, while 16% said they take 4-6 trips per day. Only 15% said they use their vehicle less than once per day.
40% of respondents indicated that they work in the Burlington area – other locations listed were Randolph, Brandon, Waitsfield, Montpelier, Waterbury, Essex Junction, and UVM Medical Center.
18% work from home, and 11% do not have paid employment.
Over half of respondents (56%) indicated that their travel times were flexible.
87% of us typically drive alone – and when we are not traveling solo, it is with our spouses/partners and/or kids. Only 10% ride-share or carpool, and less than 1% of us uses public transportation.
Public Transportation Options
Over 2/3 of respondents are aware of CCTA (Chittenden County Transportation Authority) and ACTR (Addison County Transit Resource), yet less than ¼ of respondents are aware of Middlebury Transit, GoVT, or Vt Carshare, and 17% were not aware of any of these services.
57% have never ridden a CCTA, ACTR, or MVRTD bus – mainly since the schedule and routes do not work, but also because it takes more time, or is inconvenient, or they just have no need.
43% have used it for work or when they used to live in Burlington. Reasons offered for using it include the environment, social, errands, convenience, or as an alternative in bad weather.
Only 10% of us has used the route 116 bus which goes through Starksboro and Hinesburg to get to Burlington. Reasons for avoiding this were inconvenient schedule and routes, additional time required, and once in the car, it seems just as easy to drive the distance.
What would encourage you to take transit?
Over half of respondents indicated that they would be encouraged to take transit if there was a park and ride where the bus stopped.
45% indicated that the bus services would need to match their work schedules.
Over ¼ of us indicated that they would be encouraged by a Guaranteed Ride Home program, a bus schedule that matched your non-work schedule, real time information, and free wi-fi on board.
Then again, ¼ of us stated that nothing would encourage them to take transit.
Carpooling/Ride sharing
Half of respondents have never carpooled due to inconvenience, schedule mismatches, inconsistent schedules, or lack of need.
61% stated that they do not currently carpool due to the lack of freedom (need to run errands, etc).
29% need the ability to use their vehicle while at work, while 27% indicated they do not know anyone to carpool with.
Approximately 1 in 5 need to pick up or drop off kids during the day or don’t have a flexible work schedule.
10% work more than 1 job.
34% indicated that nothing could encourage them to consider carpooling.
Another 34% thought that a website connecting them to other potential carpoolers or access to a convenient park and ride could encourage them.
19% could be encouraged if they knew where to look for more information, and 15% would like to see information from their employer to help connect them.
For those who did choose some form of alternate transportation in the last month, 29% did it to save money, 19% to decrease emissions, 19% to avoid parking issues, 15% to avoid driving in bad weather and 10% to make the commute convenient.
Alternative Vehicles
82% have never driven in an electric vehicle, yet 40% indicated that they had future interest in purchasing either an electric, hybrid plug-in, or an alternative fuel vehicle (30% maybe, and 30% no).
53% indicated some interest in seeing an electric vehicle charging station in Monkton.
63% of us indicated interest in seeing improved bicycle and pedestrian safety in town, over 50% were interested in seeing a town park and ride and a bus route connecting Monkton to the region.
What should Monkton consider to create alternatives to driving alone?
Based on the survey results, the following appear to be transportation priorities for Monkton.
- Improved bicycle and pedestrian safety (63%)
- Town park and ride (54%) with bus route and/or carpooling options connecting Monkton with Burlington (40%)
- Improved information regarding carpooling and transit