By Joel Wascher | The Gr8 Exchange on Transportation, one of the largest ever transportation studies focused on public input process undertaken in a single week, showed that Gwinnett residents are ready to talk about different options when it comes to their transportation network.
Wascher
When asked, “In an ideal world, how would you like to get around? Some 55 percent of total responses chose transit as the only mode they would like to utilize or included it as a portion of their desired transportation network.
In another question where survey participants were asked if they could wave a magic wand and change one thing in Gwinnett, the most popular response was either transit expansion or improvements to the existing transit system (37 percent).
Other findings in the Gr8 Exchange include:
- Respondents prioritize convenience over cost (50 percent of responses vs. 9 percent).
- The most desired outcome of transportation improvements is lowering commute time at 49 percent with access to local destinations following at 34 percent.
- A total of 84 percent of respondents live in Gwinnett County. Some 36 percent of respondents live in Gwinnett, but work in another county.
- The full report can be viewed here.
Chuck Warbington, executive director for the Gwinnett Village Community Improvement District, says: “The input process we utilized for the Gr8 Exchange were by no means scientific, but the results mirror numerous other recent polls that have been conducted. The CID worked hard to bring diverse stakeholders to the table to ensure that the results were a true reflection of the community.”
The Gr8 Exchange took place the week of August 24 as thousands of Gwinnett residents and workers shared their views on the current state of Gwinnett’s transportation network and what investments they’d like to see in the future. A total of 4,000 individuals provided just under 40,000 unique responses via the Gr8 Exchange survey.
The results extended well beyond the survey participation. The goal of this initiative was to engage local residents and employees in a conversation about transportation. Many did not necessarily complete the survey, but did participate in other ways.
Just under 100 individual events were held in association with the Gr8 Exchange; ranging from telephone, town halls meetings and formal city presentations to small group conversations at local cafes..
Warbington adds: “We will deliver these results to local, state and federal transportation partners to help them better understand the priorities of Gwinnett’s citizens. In addition, Gwinnett County will soon be seeking public input for their long range transportation plan and we encourage individuals who participated in the Gr8 Exchange to carry the passion and ideas they exhibited into that planning process.”
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