TxDOT seeks Valley residents for travel survey to determine projects

The Texas Department of Transportation is looking for Rio Grande Valley residents willing to participate in a household travel survey in order to determine which transportation projects are most needed.

The RGV survey, like surveys in other parts of the state, is being conducted for TxDOT by American Travel Survey/ETC Institute, which has worked with the state’s transportation department for two decades and offers incentives in the form of gift cards (up to $100) to encourage participation.

TxDOT said its survey of Valley households is being done in collaboration with the RGV Metropolitan Planning Organization across several regional metropolitan areas.

“TxDOT is looking to create a more efficient transportation system tailored to the unique needs of the Rio Grande Valley area, and drivers can help make that happen by taking a travel survey,” the agency said. “This survey will provide data about local travel patterns and will assist TxDOT and their partners in deciding which transportation projects will enhance the regional transportation networks.”

For the household surveys, ETC will mail postcards to targeted households to sign up for the survey at www.lonestartravelsurvey.com.

“Once 2,500 households have been confirmed, selected residents will record travel for 24 hours on an assigned weekday during the school year, using a downloaded phone app or by entering travel online,” TxDOT said.

Anyone can participate in the survey, which should take about 15 minutes to complete depending on travel experiences, the agency said.

Household travel survey participants will be asked to provide information on the household, including number of household members and vehicles. A specific travel date will be selected On that travel date, each household member will provide travel diary information, including all the locations traveled to and details of those stops.

For the business survey, ETC will mail letters directly to businesses in the region to recruit participation, TxDOT said.

Once owners have agreed to take the survey, a date will be assigned to have survey respondents fill out information about their travel,” according to the department. “There will also be counting equipment to capture the amount of vehicle traffic in and out of a location.”

In helping determine how much, where and when local residents travel in a given area, the surveys highlight local travel patterns and needs, which helps TxDOT and local transportation modelers — RGV MPO in this case — make decisions about transportation projects affecting communities, ETC said.

Public participation matters because it means improved roads and helps better direct state transportation funding to where it’s most needed, the company said.

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