Survey finds Americans want more public transport

A recent survey by the Washington-based Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a pro-transit environmental-advocacy group, found Americans favored more local government spending on buses, trains, and light rail by a wide ratio: 68 percent to 25 percent. But when asked how to pay for improvements in transit and highways, Americans said no to higher fuel and sales taxes, preferring systems that require developers and commercial landowners to foot the bill
September 17, 2012 Read time: 1 min
A recent survey by the Washington-based 6572 Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a pro-transit environmental-advocacy group, found Americans favored more local government spending on buses, trains, and light rail by a wide ratio: 68 percent to 25 percent.

But when asked how to pay for improvements in transit and highways, Americans said no to higher fuel and sales taxes, preferring systems that require developers and commercial landowners to foot the bill, although they did agree with highway tolls.
Rob Perks, transportation-advocacy director for the NRDC, said voters more often supported specific tax increases for specific local projects than general tax increases.

The NRDC survey of 800 likely voters nationwide and 150 likely voters in Philadelphia found wide support for increasing public transit rather than building more roads to relieve congestion and reduce pollution.

But the survey also found many people resistant to using public transit because they liked driving or because they have found transit inconvenient.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Manchester seeks smart but not selective transport solutions
    January 25, 2018
    Smarter transport relies on better communications both with travellers and between transport providers. Andrew Williams reports. Inrix’s prediction that the cost of traffic congestion will rise by 63% to £21bn per year by 2030 clearly illustrates that, in addition to the ongoing inconvenience and inefficiency, ongoing gridlock is a significant drain on the economy. It is against this backdrop that a Cisco-led consortium has launched CitySpire, a smart transport programme that uses location-based services a
    Read More
  • Travel restrictions cause ITS professionals' knowledge gap
    February 2, 2012
    Andrew Barriball once again campaigns for senior USDOT officials to see sense and lift some of the restrictions on out-of-state travel for transportation professionals. The ability to attend conferences and exhibitions is not a luxury, he says; it is a valid and cost-effective way of advancing the state of the traffic management art
    Read More
  • Auckland considers road user charging to plug funding shortfall
    October 29, 2014
    Auckland, New Zealand, faces a US$9.5 billion transport funding gap to build the fully-integrated transport network set out in the 30-year Auckland Plan that includes new roads, rail, ferries, busways, cycle-ways and supporting infrastructure needed to cope with a population set to hit 2.5 million in the next three decades. If Auckland opts to pay for the fully-integrated Auckland Plan, Auckland Council officials claim the transport network congestion is expected to improve by 20 per cent over the next 1
    Read More
  • US business leaders discuss concerns over transportation funding
    July 11, 2014
    US business leaders briefed Vice President Joe Biden and US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx yesterday on business issues associated with transportation infrastructure during a meeting hosted by the White House Business Council and Business Forward. Meeting participants included executives from large manufacturers, shipping companies, trade associations, and a range of other businesses, including Doug Oberhelman, chairman and CEO, Caterpillar, and Matt Rose, executive chairman, Burlington Northern S
    Read More

Highlighted Content