Help steer the future: Okanagan Travel Survey returns

News Release

Starting today, randomly selected households throughout the Central Okanagan and Vernon will receive a letter inviting them to participate in the 2024 Okanagan Travel Survey between Oct. 7 and early November. Anyone who receives a letter is encouraged to complete the survey, as participation is crucial for directing decision in their community as well as throughout the region.

“The Canadian census collects some information on travel to work behaviours, however, it lacks information on all the other trips that residents take in their daily lives including school, personal appointments and errands,” said Suzanne Therrien, Transportation Planner. “The Okanagan Travel Survey, last conducted in 2018, provides critical information on trips taken by residents to ensure that future transportation planning accounts for all needs.”

Participating households will be asked about their typical daily travel destinations, timings and modes of transportation through a confidential online survey or phone call.

“Transportation planning includes road improvements, traffic reduction strategies, transit route and service improvements or active transportation patterns,” said Anne Huisken, Transportation Planner for the City of Vernon. “Information provided in this survey allows us to make evidence-based plans on which transportation needs to prioritize based on behaviors and patterns of residents.”

The research firm Ipsos will be conducting the survey on behalf of Kelowna, Vernon, West Kelowna, Peachland, Lake Country, the Regional District of Central Okanagan, Westbank First Nation and the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.

For more information about the survey and why it is being conducted, visit www.rdco.com/transportation