Monday, April 09, 2007

Kelowna Travel Survey

by Contributed - Story: 28529 April 09, 2007 / 5:00 am http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-28529-1-.htm#28529

Kelowna and Vernon are spearheading a regional travel survey which will begin on Tuesday April 10. Approximately 3,300 residents from throughout the North and Central Okanagan will be contacted to provide a snapshot of current travel behaviour in the region.They’ll be asked to submit up-to-date information on their travel patterns as part of the “On the Go” One Day Travel Survey. Participants will be eligible to win cash prizes of up to $1,000. The survey will be conducted by Synovate, a professional research firm, on behalf of the North and Central Okanagan Regional Districts.Having accurate and up to date information on the travel patterns of residents will enable communities in the Regional Districts, the Ministry of Transportation and BC Transit to assess current transportation needs, identify trends and develop transportation strategies and improvements.

“A survey of this type is key to future transportation and land-use planning,” says Ron Westlake, Transportation Manager for the City of Kelowna. “Contacting residents from throughout the region will help us assess our current and future needs.”Lorne Holowachuk, Senior Transportation Engineer with the City of Vernon, adds “We are looking forward to obtaining residents’ input on their current travel patterns on a multi-modal basis (walking, cycling and auto). This information will be very helpful in assessing future transportation needs and supporting both the OCP review and the Regional Growth Strategy review for the Greater Vernon Area.”

The purpose of this project is to develop and apply a process to evaluate and select a preferred multi-modal, inter-regional, sustainable transportation management strategy for the Central and Northern Okanagan regions of British Columbia.Synovate will contact random residents by telephone requesting participation. The survey is easy to do – it’s simply a log or diary of the trips made by all members of a household on a single day.The information provided will be grouped together with others and be kept completely confidential.All completed surveys will be entered to win one of 13 cash prizes, including three grand prizes of $1000 each, 10 prizes of $100 each plus lots of great regional prizes from local sponsors!The survey will run from April 10 to May 11, 2007.

No comments: