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ETC Institute specializes in the collection of data related to transportation planning, air quality and community planning issues. ETC Institute excels in the recruitment of underserved populations including non-English speaking persons (Spanish and Asian languages), persons with disabilities, low income mothers with children, inner city and rural poor, and the elderly. ETC Institute's experience in metropolitan planning research for governmental and nonprofit is unparalleled. During the past four years, ETC Institute has conducted survey research in the following major cities and metropolitan areas:

· Atlanta, Georgia
· Bridgeport, Connecticut
· Burlington, Vermont
· Calgary, Alberta (Canada)
· Casper, Wyoming
· Chicago, Illinois
· Colorado Springs, Colorado
· Columbus, Ohio
· Dallas, Texas
· Denver, Colorado
· Des Moines, Iowa
· Detroit, Michigan
· Indianapolis, Indiana
· Kansas City, Missouri
· Las Vegas, Nevada
· Los Angeles, California

Transportation Research Expertise. ETC Institute has conducted transportation related research for nearly two decades. Since 1982, ETC Institute has administered dozens of travel surveys and more than 150 transportation related surveys on a wide range of topics, including: public transit, major investment studies, corridor studies, congestion management systems, intelligent transportation systems (ITS), intermodal freight centers, international trade processing centers, commuter rail, light rail, park and ride, pedestrian/bicycle paths/lanes and many other topics.

ETC Institute’s qualifications with regard to the design and administration of transportation related market research are second to none. Some examples of our experience are provided below:

·a series of on-board transit surveys were designed and administered by ETC Institute for Johnson County Transit, Kansas, to gather travel and customer satisfaction data from current riders. Project Manager: Chris Tatham.

·an origin-destination survey was administered by ETC Institute to travelers along major arterials in Johnson County, Kansas, which is one of the fastest growing counties in the United States. Project Manager: Chris Tatham.

·an on-board transit travel survey was administered by ETC Institute for the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA); it involved the completion of more than 6,000 on-board travel surveys. Project Manager: Chris Tatham.

·a series of on-board transit surveys were conducted for the Kansas City/Wyandotte County, Kansas, Transit System to gather travel and customer satisfaction data from current riders. Project Manager: Dr. Elaine Tatham.

·a regional transportation needs assessment survey was conducted by ETC Institute for the Southern California Association of Governments; the survey was designed to gather household travel data and stated preference information about public transit issues from more than 3,000 residents of the Los Angeles area. Project Manager: Chris Tatham.

·a survey of paratransit users was completed for Johnson County Transit to gather data to improve the way that service is currently provided. Project Manager: Chris Tatham.

·a long range transportation survey was conducted by ETC Institute for the City of Mesa and the Arizona Department of Transportation; the survey involved the completion of more than 5,000 surveys of residents and businesses in the community. Project Manager: Chris Tatham.

·a statewide stated preference survey was completed for the Missouri Department of Transportation (MODOT) as part of the State's Long Range Transportation Plan; the survey involved the completion of more than 2,000 surveys and the facilitation of focus groups with more than 600 residents from 28 counties; the focus groups included an emphasis on the recruitment of special interest groups and traditionally underserved populations. Project Manager: Chris Tatham.

·a long range transportation survey was administered for the South Dakota Department of Transportation and the City of Sioux Falls; the survey involved the completion of more than 1000 surveys of residents and businesses in the area along with focus groups with traditionally underserved populations. Project Manager: Chris Tatham.

·a statistically valid survey was administered to gather travel data from residents who live along the US-69 Corridor between Louisburg and Prescott, Kansas for the Kansas Department of Transportation. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·a statistically valid survey was administered to gather travel data from residents who live along the K-4 Corridor northwest of Topeka, Kansas for the Kansas Department of Transportation. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·a statistically valid survey was administered to gather travel data from residents who live along the U5-50 Corridor west of Garden City, Kansas for the Kansas Department of Transportation. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·a statistically valid survey was administered to gather travel data from residents who live along the US-54 Corridor in Pratt, Kingman, and Kiowa counties for the Kansas Department of Transportation. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·a statistically valid survey was administered to gather travel data from residents who live along the K-61 Corridor between Hutchinson and McPherson, Kansas for the Kansas Department of Transportation. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·a statistically valid survey was administered to gather travel data from residents who live along the K-10/23rd Street Corridor in Lawrence, Kansas for the Kansas Department of Transportation. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·Road Rallies were conducted with more than 500 Kansas residents in each of the six KDOT districts for the Kansas Department of Transportation to gather input from residents about expectations for state highways. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·Road Rallies were conducted with more than 350 Missouri residents in four major cities for the Missouri Department of Transportation to gather input from residents about expectations for state highways. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·three statistically valid surveys were administered to gather travel data from residents, employees, and travelers in the Springfield-Branson Corridor for the Missouri Department of Transportation. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·a statistically valid survey was administered to residents who live along the I-70 Corridor between Kansas City and St. Louis the Missouri Department of Transportation as part of the Statewide I-70 MIS. Project Manager: Chris Tatham

·ETC Institute conducted a long range transit needs assessment survey for the Southern California Association of Governments (the MPO for greater Los Angeles) that involved the completion of more than 2000 surveys of residents and businesses in the area along with focus groups and a series of stakeholder interviews. Project Manager: Dr. Elaine Tatham

Metropolitan Kansas City Downtown Commuter Travel Study
(Kansas City, Missouri)

The purpose of the study was to assess travel characteristics, travel habits, and attitudes toward commuting in the Downtown Kansas City and Crown Center employment centers. The study involved the collection of travel data via household travel diaries to update regional travel demand models. ETC Institute was responsible for the complete project, which included research design, data collection, recruitment of persons who work in the region to participate in the project, development of mailing packages and diaries, mailing of information, telephone follow-up, database development, geocoding of origins and destination, data analysis, and final report and database submittal. Dr. Elaine Tatham served as project manager for ETC Institute.

A travel diary was mailed for each of the licensed drivers in the household. All drivers in the household were asked to complete the travel log for the same day. For consistency with the on-site data collection effort, travel days were limited to Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for the surveys administered by mail as well. Respondents were asked to identify the origins and destinations (based on an approximate street address) for all trips taken on their travel day. The address information provided by respondents was then geocoded by ETC Institute to reflect the TAZ for each origin and destination. Respondents were also asked to provide the arrival and departure time, the purpose of the trip, the type of place they visited, the mode of travel, and the number of occupants in the vehicle. ETC Institute performed double data entry all records.

The goal was to have at least 2,400 completed travel surveys. The actual number obtained was 4,605 due to the 95% completion rate among households that were originally recruited to participate in the study. The high completion rate was attributed to the fact that each person who completed the survey received an Eisenhower silver dollar as an incentive to participate.

Kansas City Area Transit Authority
On-Board Passenger Travel Survey

ETC Institute, working in association with HNTB Corporation, designed and administered an on-board travel survey to users of the Metro in Greater Kansas City. The purpose of the survey was to gather travel and demographic data from users of the current system in order to update regional transit planning models that were being used to plan for the development of a light rail system in Kansas City. The survey involved the administration of more than 6,000 surveys on nearly 100 routes/route sections. The surveys were administered over a two-week period.

ETC Institute performed double data entry for all records. This involved having all records entered into two different databases. The two databases were then merged and discrepancies between the databases were identified. The discrepancies were then checked against the original surveys and corrected. This process ensured that the database was nearly 100% correct.

Tri-County On-Board Public Transit Needs Assessment Survey
(Johnson, Leavenworth, and Wyandotte Counties in Kansas)

ETC Institute was responsible for conducting focus groups with and administering travel surveys to traditionally underserved populations via an on-board passenger survey in a three-county area. The purpose of the research was to gather data that could be used to develop strategies and set priorities for providing transit and paratransit services to underserved populations of a region with 650,000 residents.

The surveys were designed to gather stated preference and travel data from underserved populations in the region. ETC was also responsible for the coding, compilation, and presentation of the demographic and travel data that was gathered. ETC Institute’s responsibilities included survey and sample design, survey administration, data entry, processing, geocoding, and analysis.

ETC Institute employees administered the surveys to underserved populations along transit routes that served traditionally underseved populations in the community. In addition, ETC Institute provided facilitators who led focus groups with underserved persons at designated locations throughout the three County area.

More than 3000 travel surveys were completed. The information gathered has resulted in greatly expanded paratransit services in all three counties.

Greater Kansas City Transit Demand Assessment

ETC Institute designed and administered two surveys and moderated 12 focus groups for the Mid-America Regional Council and the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce as part of a study to develop a new transit service concept for the metropolitan Kansas City Area. The first survey gathered information from more than 600 employers throughout the metropolitan area. The information was used to identify the objectives for a metropolitan Kansas City area public transit system, the importance and priority of transit services compared to other transportation priorities, the types of transit services that would be useful to employers, the willingness of businesses and other employers to provide incentives to encourage employees to use transit, and the role the business community should have in developing and implementing a new regional transit service system. Chris Tatham served as project manager for ETC Institute.

The second survey gathered input from more than 3000 residents from the metropolitan Kansas City area regarding the objectives for a Greater Kansas City area public transit system, the importance and priority of transit compared to other transportation priorities, and the types of transit services that residents would be most likely to use. The resident survey was also designed to identify critical thresholds that impact a person’s decision about whether to use public transit instead of a car. These thresholds included the relative cost of transit to a single passenger car, the amount of time to complete a trip, the distance to/from transit stops and a person’s home or worksite, and more.

As a result of the work that was completed, the region’s three major transportation providers, elected officials, and the business community recently signed an agreement to pursue bi-state cooperation toward the implementation of a regional transit service. The study also convinced legislators in both Kansas and Missouri to provide additional funding for public transportation in the Greater Kansas City area.

Johnson County Transit On-Board Passenger Survey
Johnson County, Kansas

The purpose of the survey was to assess travel characteristics and travel habits among users of Johnson County Transit, a rapidly growing suburban transit system in Greater Kansas City. The study involved the collection of travel data via an on-board passenger survey that was administered by ETC Institute personnel to more than 1,000 riders. The purpose of the survey was to gather data for planning improvements to the County’s growing transit system. The project was completed in association with TranSystems Corporation.

ETC Institute was responsible for the complete project, which included research design, data collection, sampling plan, administration of the survey, database development, geocoding of origins and destination, data analysis, and final report and database submittal.

Respondents were asked to identify the origins and destinations (based on an approximate street address) for their trip; where they entered and exited the system, mode of travel to/from transit stations, time of travel, and variety of other information.

As a result of the research completed by ETC Institute, the County made significant changes to its transit services. These changes resulted in a 20% increase in ridership within one year.

Suburban Mobility Alternatives to Reduce Traffic (SMART) Travel Survey
(Johnson County, Kansas)

ETC Institute was responsible for the complete project including survey design, sample plan, data collection instruments, recruitment, survey administration, database development, geocoding, data analysis & expansion, and final report. A total of 4,522 travel surveys were completed. The project also involved arranging and conducting four focus groups with employees of selected employment centers and with residential populations in the area. Dr. Elaine Tatham served as project manager for ETC Institute.

Missouri Department of Transportation Long Range Plan
Road Rallies and Statewide Survey

The Road Rally concept is a new market research technique that was developed by ETC Institute to allow transportation agencies to use public input to help set standards for regional and statewide transportation systems. During January and February 2000, ETC Institute conducted Road Rallies for the Missouri Department of Transportation with a randomly recruited sample of 346 persons from nearly 100 different communities throughout the State. The primary purpose of the Road Rallies was to determine expectations that Missouri residents have for the State highway system. Chris Tatham served as project manager for ETC Institute.

Each Road Rally consisted of 11-13 different sections of highway. The course was designed to ensure that participants would be exposed to a wide range of highways with regard to both the type (NHS, Arterial, Collectors) and condition of the highway. Each of the sections were 3-5 miles in length; the average course was 45-60 miles long and took 90 minutes to complete.

Participants were accompanied by professionals from ETC Institute who facilitated the administration of the survey. Each of the participants rated the condition of 18 features on each section of highway. The survey was designed so that condition ratings given by participants could be compared to the technical ratings for the same highway features. For example, the rating participants gave for smoothness on each section of highway was compared to the International Roughness Index (IRI) for the same sections of highway. By comparing the condition ratings given by participants with technical ratings for the same sections of highway, the expectations that Missourians have for the condition of the State’s highway system could be identified for each of the State’s major highway categories.

Eisenhower/I-88 Corridor Study
DuPage County, Illinois Corridor Transportation Management Association

ETC Institute completed a study of the "Eisenhower/I-88 Corridor" in suburban Chicago for the Illinois Corridor Transportation Management Association in Downers Grove, Illinois. Nearly 4,200 completed surveys were obtained. This Eisenhower/I-88 project was conducted in association with the Urban Mobility Corporation, based in Washington, D.C. ETC Institute was responsible for designing the questionnaire, collecting and processing data, and preparing the final report. Urban Mobility Corporation was responsible for making transportation policy recommendations. Dr. Elaine Tatham served as project manager for ETC Institute.

Southern California Association of Governments
Transportation Needs Assessment Study (Los Angeles, California)

ETC Institute conducted an extensive public opinion survey concerning transportation tradeoffs for residents in the Arroyo Verdugo region of Southern California (Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena, South Pasadena, and La Canada Flintridge). Chris Tatham served as project manager for ETC Institute. The project involved three phases. The first phase was to design a process for collecting reliable data from persons living in the region. One obstacle that had to be addressed in the design of the collection process involved language barriers since a large portion of the sampled population did not speak English. It was also difficult to gather input for the survey design because of the diversity of residents in the area. Rather than using focus groups, ETC Institute obtained input for the survey by using two open-ended questionnaires. The results of the first open-ended survey were used to develop a second survey. After the second survey was completed, the final survey instrument was designed.

The second phase of the project involved a series of focus groups that were held in North Central Los Angeles. ETC Institute developed the moderator script and provided the moderator. Phase three involved the administration of a telephone survey using the final survey design from phase one of the project. More than 3000 telephone interviews in both Spanish and English were completed.

Montgomery County Regional Travel Survey
Kansas Department of Transportation

ETC Institute administered travel surveys to a designated percentage of vehicles at 18 survey stations around the perimeter of Montgomery County, Kansas during the spring of 2001. Nearly 20,000 surveys were completed during a one-week period.

The purpose of the survey was to obtain data regarding the origins and destinations of vehicles entering the region during the work week. Montgomery County is located in south central Kansas and is a primary employment, shopping, and recreation center for more than 100,000 residents in a two-state region. Major employment centers include one of the largest distribution facilities for Amazon.com and a large airplane manufacturing center for Cessna. The data from the study is being incorporated into models that will be used to determine improvements to US-75.

Surveys were administered for a 12-hour period on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The stations formed a perimeter around the County so that all major access roads to the County, including US-75, US-166, US-160, and US-69 had checkpoints where vehicles entering the region were stopped and asked to provide travel information.

Local police and highway patrol officers assisted the effort, which involved stopping a random sequence of vehicles passing through the checkpoint. The percentage of vehicles stopped was dependent on the routes average daily traffic volume.

Information gathered from each vehicle passing through a station included: origin of trip, destination of trip, purpose of trip, time, number of occupants, and vehicle type. Origins and destinations were geocoded by Traffic Analysis Zones (TAZ).
$1.1 billion.

North Front Range Colorado
Regional Household Travel Survey and On-Site Survey of Traditionally Underserved Populations

ETC Institute conducted this study during the Fall of 2001 for the purpose of updating regional travel demand models. The universe for the survey consisted of households in the North Front Range Metropolitan Planning area of north central Colorado, which includes the cities of Greeley, Loveland, and Fort Collins. The original goal for the project was to obtain completed surveys from at least 1,500 randomly sampled households in the region. The actual number of completed household travel surveys exceeded 2,000.

On-Site Survey of Traditionally Underserved Populations. The project team recognized the importance of capturing travel data for traditionally underserved populations, such as low income mothers with children, non-English speaking persons, disabled persons, segments of the elderly population, ethnic minorities, and others who would have been difficult to recruit by phone. Although these groups were captured in the random household travel survey, an additional survey was administered to members of these traditionally underserved groups to ensure that the travel patterns of these populations were accurately recorded. Although the data from the traditionally underserved population were not included in the majority of the trip rate calculations that are provided with this report, the data have been used to augment cells that would have otherwise been underrepresented.