The Virginian-Pilot
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Regional transportation planners want to know more about traffic woes faced by military commuters so they can try to fix them. To do that, they're asking those on active duty, civilians and contractors who commute to military installations in Hampton Roads to take an online survey.
Working with the commands of the region's 29 military installations, the Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization has developed questions to identify challenges faced by military employees on their daily commutes as well as to gauge their opinions of alternative transportation modes, including carpooling and public transit.
The survey takes five to 10 minutes to complete and will be active through Feb. 20. A link is on the HRTPO home page.
Sam Belfield, HRTPO senior transportation engineer, said he hopes at least 2,000 military personnel take the survey. He said some commuting headaches are commonly known - such as Interstates 64 and 564 into Norfolk Naval Station - but others are not.
"Their eyes and ears are a lot better, because they make that drive every day."
Participants are asked to identify length of commutes and any locations of recurring trouble, including congestion, potholes, flooding, traffic signals and parking. The results will help regional planners and decision makers plan improvements with scarce transportation dollars.
An HRTPO report completed in September identifies some needs and recommends improvements, including more lanes across the Hampton Roads harbor, replacing or rehabbing deficient bridges, light-rail extensions, and high-speed passenger trains to Washington that can get their people to the Pentagon and back in a day.
Military representatives told planners that congestion hurts their ability to maintain military personnel or even bring additional personnel here. Traffic affects not only daily commutes but also travel times between installations during business hours.
Military personnel - including active duty, reserves, retirees and their families - number 300,000, about 20 percent of the region's population. About 125,000 military personnel use area roads daily to get to work.
Debbie Messina, (757) 446-2588, debbie.messina@pilotonline.com
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no evidence
there is no evidence building more roads does anything to improve commutes. Companies just bring in more people and over time you get Houston, it tried to build itself out of a commute problem.
We need more trains and fast. That's how you move a lot of people. Then add good shuttle and round-robin bus service.
It amazes me. Hrt says they
It amazes me. Hrt says they want input on traffic problems, they would like 2000 military respondents by Feb. Great sense of urgency. But , they already know about 64 and 564. One question, if they already know, why haven't they done something to fix it. It seems like Congress is going to do something about it, when they cut the Navy by about 20%. Less jobs =less traffic.