Presentation on the 2012 Urban Futures Survey made to the Mayor's Council

1. Mayors’ Council on Regional Transportation
April 29, 2014
2012 Urban Futures Survey:
What kind of transportation do we want
and how do we want to pay for it?
www.urbanfuturessurvey.com
Ken Cameron, FCIP, RPP
kdcameron@kdcameron.com
Jacint Simon, Urban Studies Masters Candidate, SFU
jsimon@sfu.ca

2. Definition of Terms
“PlaceSpeak”
 Vancouver-based social enterprise - Ken Cameron is a director and
investor
 An online, interactive consultation platform that allows proponents
(municipalities, utilities, developers) to sponsor consultation topics and
receive feedback from citizens who participate voluntarily at no cost
“Urban Futures Survey”
 A comprehensive survey of public attitudes in Greater Vancouver developed by the late
Dr. Walter Hardwick.
 Conducted in 1973, 1990 and 2012.
 2012 survey was a research project of PlaceSpeak conducted with a grant from the Real
Estate Foundation of B.C., the Cities of North Vancouver and Surrey, TransLink and
Vancity

3. Ranking Challenges
Challenges 2012 1990 1973
Change
1990-2012
Provision of health care 1 3 9 +2
Traffic congestion 2 7 6 +5
Homelessness 3 NOT ASKED NOT ASKED NA
Increasing housing supply 4 8 8 +4
Air pollution from industry 5 1 1 -4
Water pollution from industry 6 2 2 -4
Air pollution from cars 7 4 3 -3

4. “Rank, in order of preference, the issues that you
personally feel most urgently require government action.”
Transportation 30%
Housing affordability 27%
Preservation of green spaces 12%
Job creation 8%
K-12 education 7%
Loss of rental housing stock 5%
Rising property taxes 5%
Changing appearance of neighbourhoods 2%
In-migration from outside the Metro Vancouver area 2%
More recreational facilities 1%

5. Traffic congestion and commuting experience
Net Agreement = total agreement - total disagreement
-40 -20 0 20 40 60
Vancouver
Surrey, White Rock
Burnaby, New West
Richmond, Delta
Port Moody, Coquitlam
North Shore
Langley
Maple Ridge, Pitt…
“I frequently experience
severe traffic congestion.”
0 20 40 60 80
Vancouver
Surrey, White Rock
Burnaby, New West
Richmond, Delta
Port Moody, Coquitlam
North Shore
Langley
Maple Ridge, Pitt…
“Getting to work is no
particular problem for
me.”

6. Ranking Policy Issues (11 total)
The residents of the region do not support the idea of easing
congestion by building more roads.
Issues 2012 1990 1973
Change
1990-
2012
Expanding the public transit system 1 5 2 +4
Making more efficient use of present
transportation 2 3 3 +1
Promoting comprehensive community planning 3 6 5 +3
Preserving the natural environment 4 1 1 -3
Improving highway transportation 9 9 10 0

7. “Both public transit and highways will be
essential to Metro Vancouver in the future.”
Net Agreement = total agreement - total disagreement
40 50 60 70 80 90
Vancouver
Surrey, White Rock
Burnaby, New West
Richmond, Delta
Port Moody, Coquitlam
North Shore
Langley
Maple Ridge, Pitt…
Regional Differences
40 50 60 70 80 90
18 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 54
55 to 64
65 to 74
Over 75
Generational Differences

8. “The private motor vehicle is
essential to our sense of freedom.”
Net Agreement = total agreement - total disagreement
-40 -20 0 20 40 60
Vancouver
Surrey, White Rock
Burnaby, New West
Richmond, Delta
Port Moody, Coquitlam
North Shore
Langley
Maple Ridge, Pitt…
Regional Differences
-60 -40 -20 0 20 40 60
18 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 54
55 to 64
65 to 74
Over 75
Generational Differences

9. Transportation Preferences - 1990
● Prepared to pay more for transit
● Preference for transit over roads
● User pay principle preferred
● All taxation methods rejected
● General taxation methods were strongly rejected

10. 2012 - User pay principle supported;
property tax strongly rejected
25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70
Property Tax
Gasoline Tax
Transit Fares
Vehicle Licensing Fees
Vehicle Sales Tax
Road or Bridge Tolls
Parking Fees
Transit Funding Options in Metro Vancouver
(Percent of support for each funding option)

11. Summary
 Transportation (ie. transit) is the
top concern
 Public receptive to user pay;
opposed to general taxation,
especially property tax
 Key will be the “value
proposition:” “what will I get and
how much will it cost me?”

12. Sponsored by

13. Mayors’ Council on Regional Transportation
April 29, 2014
2012 Urban Futures Survey:
What kind of transportation do we want
and how do we want to pay for it?
www.urbanfuturessurvey.com
Ken Cameron, FCIP, RPP
kdcameron@kdcameron.com
Jacint Simon, Urban Studies Masters Candidate, SFU
jsimon@sfu.ca

14. Survey Characteristics
• 1407 respondents representing 8 sub-regions or 22 municipalities.
• The margin of error is +/- 3.1 at the 95% significance level.
• The survey data was reweighted by gender distribution and
geographical location.
• Angus McAllister of McAllister Opinion Research compiled the
survey data. Ian McKinnon of Pacific Issues Partners, and Chair,
National Statistics Council reviewed the Technical Report.
• 82% of respondents voted in 2011 Municipal
Elections