SUMMARY REPORT SUMMARY B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Transportation Plan Public Engagement Summary Report – January 2015 Prepared by Kirk & Co. Consulting Ltd. & Mustel Group PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT SUMMARY REPORT SUMMARY ENGAGEMENT PUBLIC About Kirk & Co. Consulting Ltd. Kirk & Co. Consulting Ltd. is a recognized industry leader in designing and implementing comprehensive public and stakeholder consultation and engagement programs. Utilizing best practices, Kirk & Co. designs consultation and engagement programs to maximize opportunities for input. Kirk & Co. works with internationally recognized polling firms to independently analyze and report on large volumes of public and stakeholder input. About Mustel Group B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year TransportationB.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Plan Mustel Group is a Canadian marketing and public opinion research firm. All engagement input received by survey and written submission has been independently verified and analyzed by Mustel Group. The views represented in this public engagement summary report reflect the priorities and concerns of engagement participants. They may not be representative of the views of the public and other stakeholders because participants self-selected into the B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Transportation Plan engagement, and therefore do not reflect a random sample. The views represented in the public attitude survey reflect the views of a representative sample of British Columbia residents who were randomly selected to complete the same online survey as engagement participants. The final sample of 1,150 residents completing an online survey yields a margin of error of +/-2.9%, at the 95% level of confidence. The subsample of 250 residents from the Lower Mainland completing an online survey yields a margin of error of +/-6.2%, at the 95% level of confidence. The subsample of 100 residents from each of the remaining regions in the province completing an online survey yields a margin of error of +/-9.8%, at the 95% level of confidence. B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Transportation Plan Public Engagement October 14 – December 12, 2014 Summary Report 0 Table of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Background . 2 Purpose . 2 Public Engagement Overview: October 14–December 12, 2014 . 2 Public Engagement Participation . 3 Public Engagement Topics . 3 Notification . .. 4 Public Engagement Methods . 6 Public Attitude Survey: November–December 2014 . 7 Roll-Up of Key Themes from Engagement Meetings . 8 Key Theme Summary from Engagement Meetings . 10 Results: Engagement Survey and Public Attitude Survey . 48 Q1 0. Moving People and Goods Safely and Reliably . 48 Q2 0. Growing the Economy . 50 Q3 0. Connecting and Strengthening Communities . 55 Q4 0. Top 3 Priorities for Transportation Infrastructure Improvements . 58 Q5 0. Additional Comments . 61 Written Submissions . 64 Regional Distribution . 67 APPENDICES Appendix 1: Detailed Results for the Central Interior (Cariboo) Appendix 2: Detailed Results for the Central North Appendix 3: Detailed Results for the Fraser Valley Appendix 4: Detailed Results for the Kootenays Appendix 5: Detailed Results for the Lower Mainland Appendix 6: Detailed Results for the Northeast Appendix 7: Detailed Results for the Northwest Appendix 8: Detailed Results for the Okanagan Appendix 9: Detailed Results for the Thompson Nicola Appendix 10: Detailed Results for Vancouver Island–South Coast Appendix 11: Public Attitude Survey Appendix 12: Discussion Guide and Survey Appendix 13: Notification Materials Appendix 14: Twitter Town Hall Appendix 15: Engagement Meeting Summaries EXECUTIVE SUMMARY BACKGROUND In October 2014, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MoTI) initiated a province-wide public engagement to gather input regarding transportation opportunities and priorities as part of the development of B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Transportation Plan. The Ministry developed a Discussion Guide and Survey that included an overview of B.C.’s transportation PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT SUMMARY REPORT SUMMARY ENGAGEMENT PUBLIC network, completed projects and improvements, some of the Province’s current transportation commitments and future plans. It also outlined some of the challenges and opportunities B.C. faces over the next 10 years and invited the public to provide feedback about their transportation priorities. PURPOSE British Columbia is developing its next 10-year provincial transportation plan called B.C. on the Move, and the Province wanted to make sure that priorities and issues of importance to people across the province were considered in the development of the plan. To do this, the Province initiated a province-wide public engagement to help identify transportation opportunities and priorities as the Province continues to build the economy, connect communities, protect the environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, provide transportation infrastructure such as road, rail, airports and ports, and to meet the growing desire to travel by transit, walking or cycling. B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year TransportationB.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Plan PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT OVERVIEW: OCTOBER – DECEMBER 2014 Province-wide public engagement was held from October 14 to December 12, 2014. MoTI sought feedback from the public, local governments, First Nations, and stakeholders in a variety of ways, including the Discussion Guide and Survey, online survey, engagement meetings and a Twitter Town Hall. The input received and summarized in this report will be considered, along with technical information, as the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure develops its next 10-year plan: B.C. on the Move. This plan will be ready in early 2015 and will set out a series of short-, medium- and longer-term goals focused on: • Moving goods and people safely and reliably • Growing the economy • Connecting and strengthening communities • Maximizing collaboration and investment with partners, including First Nations, the federal government, regional and local governments, and the private sector 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY EXTENSIVE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT PARTICIPATION There were a total of 14,226 participant interactions during B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Transportation Plan engagement: • 559 people attended 104 engagement meetings • 12,661 completed surveys were received EXECUTIVE SUMMARY • 825 additional submissions were received (including emails and letters 1 ) • 181 people participated in a Twitter Town Hall Some people may have participated through multiple methods, such as attending a meeting and completing a survey. PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT TOPICS 2 Engagement participants and those who participated in the public attitude survey were asked to provide feedback on strategies and actions for transportation investment in B.C. related to: • Moving goods and people safely and reliably • Growing the economy • Connecting and strengthening communities • Maximizing collaboration and investment with partners, including First Nations, the federal government, regional and local governments, and the private sector Participants were also asked to provide feedback about their top priorities for transportation infrastructure improvements in the province. VANCOUVER ISLAND COMMUNITY MEETING REPORT In September 2014, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, Jordan Sturdy, met with over 70 groups on Vancouver Island. Priorities were discussed with First Nations, local governments, Chambers of Commerce and other community leaders. Throughout these meetings, Parliamentary Secretary Sturdy heard about the need for continued investment in the Island’s transportation network to support communities and local economies. The full report can be found at engage.gov.bc.ca/transportationplan/ 1 588 of the 813 submissions were a in standard form letter submitted by residents requesting a bypass in Quesnel (see page 64). 2 Please see Discussion Guide and Survey in Appendix 12 for complete description of engagement topics. B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Transportation Plan | Public Engagement Summary Report | January 2015 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY NOTIFICATION Notification about opportunities to participate in the B.C. on the Move engagement was comprehensive, and included the following: • Invitation and Follow-Up Emails to Stakeholders 1,700 stakeholders were notified of opportunities to participate in engagement meetings or to PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT SUMMARY REPORT SUMMARY ENGAGEMENT PUBLIC complete a survey and submit it online or by email or mail. • Follow-Up Phone Calls 1,850 phone calls were made to remind stakeholders of the opportunity to participate in engagement meetings, or to complete a survey. • Social Media 167 tweets were sent from @TranBC, 126 tweets were sent from @govTogetherBC, and 100 tweets were sent from @BCGovNews. The hashtag #BContheMove was used 2,200 times (includes original, mentions and retweets). There was a total of 624 contributors, with a total reach of 1,062,300. • Highway Signs Notification of the opportunity to provide input online was posted on 86 changeable highway message signs throughout the province, from November 17 to December 12, 2014, on signs that did not require road condition and/or incident-specific messaging. • Website B.C. on the Move: A 10-Year TransportationB.C. on the Move: A 10-Year Plan A dedicated engagement website, engage.gov.bc.ca/transportationplan was launched on October 14, 2014. All engagement materials were available on the website. • News Releases Four news releases were developed by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.