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Portland is a PR machine for light rail & streetcar

Here are Some Facts About Portland Oregon          

“It must always be remembered how cost-effectiveness works in the public sector: the cost IS the benefit.” - author unknown




Congestion Relief Scores High on Portlander's Complaints


Congestion relief rates more important than education, taxes or healthcare in Portland.

Here is an open ended question from a recent survey commissioned by a group studying how to reduce congestion on the bridges across the Columbia river


  Q2. What is the most important issue that you would like to see your local and regional government

officials do something about? (Open, probe for one issue only)


Traffic Congestion/Control -------------------------------------------------17%

Education Quality ----------------------------------------------------------11%

Education Funding----------------------------------------------------------11%

Tax Control ----------------------------------------------------------------- %

Road/Freeway Development/Maintenance ----------------------------------- 5%

Growth/Development Control/Land Use ------------------------------------- 4%

Healthcare/Insurance -------------------------------------------------------- 4%

Crime/Public Safety --------------------------------------------------------- 4%

All other responses---------------------------------------------------- 3% or less


Here is another survey, this one commissioned by Metro


DAVIS, HIBBITTS & MIDGHALL, INC.

METRO PUBLIC OPINION RESEARCH – ANNOTATED QUESTIONNAIRE

N=600 Full Sample (N=300 Sample A; N=300 Sample B)

January 6-10, 2006; age 18 plus RDD sample; tri-county (Metro service area)

February 3, 2006


Public Opinion Full Questionnaire.pdf


Although Congestion didn't rate #1 on all questions, it did here:


(Full Sample) 4. What is it that bothers you the most about the quality of life you have in the

region? (OPEN/PROBE FOR ONE RESPONSE)


Traffic Congestion/Transportation ----------------------------------17%

Population Growth ------------------------------------------------13%

Rain/Weather ----------------------------------------------------- %

Cost Of Living----------------------------------------------------- 7%

Crime/Public Safety ------------------------------------------------ 7%

Government/Politics ------------------------------------------------ 5%

Education/Schools-------------------------------------------------- 4%

Taxes---------------------------------------------------------------4%

Environmental Pollution-------------------------------------------- 3%

Employment Opportunity/Jobs ------------------------------------- 2%

People/Attitudes --------------------------------------------------- 2%

Liberalism-----------------------------------------------------------2%

Drugs---------------------------------------------------------------2%

Healthcare --------------------------------------------------------- 2%

All Other Responses ------------------------------------------------ 1% or less

Other-----------------------------------------------------------------%


Here is a survey of downtown businesses

Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc.

Portland Business Alliance Membership Survey

December 2005, n=250, PBA members


Q2. If you had to pick just one issue for local governments in the Portland area to make their

priority over the next year, what issue would that be? (Open, probe for one specific issue only.)


Education funding------------------------------------------------------15%

Improve roadways/Reduce congestion --------------------------------11%

Lower taxes ----------------------------------------------------------10%

Business development-------------------------------------------------10%

Homeless/Pan handlings------------------------------------------------ %

Education (general)----------------------------------------------------- 6%

Government spending -------------------------------------------------- 6%

Public safety ---------------------------------------------------------- 5%

All other responses --------------------------------------------- 4% or less

DK / Na / Refused ---------------------------------------------------- 2%


A Survey done by Portland State University's Institute for Metropolitan Studies

This wide ranging survey contained one question on traffic.

Note that 64.% of respondents were either "completely Dissatisfied" or "Somewhat

Dissatisfied" With our roads and traffic. Yanhill County lead the region at 77.%

Table Q5C: Roads and Traffic.

Completely

Dissatisfied



Somewhat

Dissatisfied



Somewhat

Satisfied



Completely

Satisfied



Neither

Satisfied Nor

Dissatisfied



Don't know



Refused to

Answer



%

n

%

n

%

n

%

n

%

n

%

n

%

n

Total Sample



24.5



204



40.3



336



27.5



229



6.4



53



.



7



.2



2



.2



2



Clackamas County



17.1



22



45.0



58



30.2



39



7.



10



0



0



0



0



0



0



Clark County



27.0



40



36.5



54



27.7



41



6.



10



1.4



2



.7



1



0



0



Columbia County



25.7



35



35.3



48



28.7



39



.



12



1.5



2



0



0



0



0



Multnomah County



21.0



34



38.3



62



31.5



51



6.



11



1.9



3



.6



1



0



0



Washington County



23.4



32



45.3



62



26.3



36



5.1



7



0



0



0



0



0



0



Yamhil County



34.2



40



43.6



51



17.9



21



2.6



3



0



0



0



0



1.7



2



Unpublished Survey done by Metro: Build roads

The actual, unmodified, exactly as received from Metro, survey  


Question asked: Rate these potential transportation improvements for the Highway 217 corridor.


not important

somewhat important

important

very important

Response Average

additional highway lane(s)

13

14

48

266

3.66

interchange improvements

11

48

112

164

3.28

arterial improvements (better north-south access on roads)

28

76

122

108

2.93

transit improvements

66

112

79

75

2.49

bike and pedestrian trail improvements

157

88

44

46

1.94

Total Respondents

343

(skipped this question)

9

Here is how the local newspaper described the above survey


The Oregonian, Thursday, November 10, 2005:

Residents wary as officials consider toll lanes for Oregon 217:


Metro received about 350 survey responses, 42 e-mails, seven letters and 11 telephone calls. About 35

residents showed up at an open house. Speakers from Metro or the advisory committee addressed about

500 people at neighborhood associations, business organizations and service clubs.


Metro officials do not plan to tabulate the survey results because the survey was not scientific, and

respondents did not represent a demographic cross section, Wieghart said. Survey respondents tended to

be male highly educated long-term residents with high incomes.


"It would be misleading to put a graph together," Wieghart said.


Keep large lots, small parks, new development compatibility



Neighborhood Characteristics -

Review of the residential and commercial area characteristics that are important to our community.


Residential Neighborhood Characteristics



Quality



Very & Somewhat Important



Somewhat and Very Unimportant


Small lot size (Less than 7,500 sq. ft.)


70%


Large lot size (7,500 sq. ft. and larger)


83%


Small neighborhood parks within half a mile of home


82%


Undeveloped open space/greenways within half mile of home


84%


Variety of housing types within new developments

(single family, row housed, apartments, etc.)


54%


Maintain existing lot sizes within established neighborhoods


87%


Pedestrian and bike paths


89%


Neighborhood traffic management


92%


Compatibility between existing and new developments


92%


This chart shows neighborhood compatibility (between existing and new) along with traffic management as the highest qualities desired by respondents. It also shows there were two cases where the qualities listed were unimportant to the community; small lot size at 70% and a variety of housing types within new developments at 54%.

The survey from the City of Tigard web site (Executive Overview)  (Local Copy)

The survey from the City of Tigard web site (full report) (Local Copy)