When regional voters were asked to assess their feelings about Metro, 56 percent said the Metro system is headed in the right direction after recent service and safety reforms.
Seven in 10 voters said they support an increase in public funding to improve Metro services. And 90 percent said the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) must revamp its governance structure to reach its full potential—a position favored by the Federal City Council (FC2).
“Based on these findings, and the strong feelings this survey revealed, we believe now is the time to take bold action to reform Metro’s governance, funding and operations. It’s important to address all three aspects to comprehensively make the changes that will make our Metro system—and our economy—the envy of the nation,” says Ed Walter, FC2 Chairman.
The survey, conducted for the FC2, the Washington Board of Trade, The 2030 Group and Greater Washington Partnership, found that 94 percent of residents agreed that the Metro system is valuable to the greater Washington region, regardless of Metro’s current state of operations.
“The survey was done to help us understand what messages would resonate for a campaign to support our Metro reform initiatives,” says Emeka Moneme, FC2 deputy executive director. “I think that many of the findings surprised us in a good way. We realized there was a lot more public support for metro reform than some public officials believed.”
Edelman Intelligence fielded an online survey October 9‐16, 2017, with 621 registered voters in Washington, D.C., suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia (207 participants from each region). The survey’s margin of error was plus or minus 3.9 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.
“The business coalition has been focused on the business community and the economic benefits of the Metro,” says Maura Brophy, FC2 senior associate for infrastructure investment. “The survey helped us better connect with what riders care about: livability, reliability and affordability.”
