The Washington Park visitor survey Fall 2015 Explore Washington Park
Acknowledgements Explore Washington Park (EXP) would like to acknowledge the EXP Board of Directors for their work in supporting our vision and work: Eric Vines, Chair, World Forestry Center Peggie Schwarz, Vice Chair, Hoyt Arboretum Dave Malcolm, Treasurer, Sylvan Neighborhood Association Inessa Vitko, Secretary, TriMet Mike Abbaté, Portland Parks & Recreation Joe Angel, Arlington Heights Neighborhood Association Teri Dresler, Oregon Zoo Allison Duncan, Arlington Heights Neighborhood Association Cynthia Haruyama, Portland Japanese Garden Ruth Shelley, Portland Children s Museum Anna Volkova, Community member Steve Cole, Community member Explore Washington Park Staff Heather McCarey, Executive Director JP McNeil, Program Manager Wendy Patton, Project Coordinator Portland Parks & Recreation Staff Victor Sanders, Program Specialist For additional information about the EXP surveys, please contact JP McNeil at jp@explorewashingtonpark.org. In 2014, PP&R installed a pay to park system in Washington Park. All revenue generated from the pay to park system is reinvested in and around the park. This revenue made this report possible. Washington Park Transportation Management Association 2
The 2015 EXP visitor intercept survey was conducted August 14-15 and August 21-22 at six locations representing the major park attractions: Portland Children s Museum Hoyt Arboretum Japanese Garden International Rose Test Garden World Forestry Center Oregon Zoo The survey was part of a series of surveys conducted throughout the month of August that targeted visitors, employees, and volunteers in the Explore Washington Park (EXP) helps people make decisions about how they get to and around Washington Park, to ensure they have what they need for a fun, enjoyable visit. We strive to improve the experience at Washington Park in the following ways: By ensuring all visitors have a safe, smooth, positive experience. By giving visitors access to better information and ways to get around the park. By providing responsive customer support and guidance to our visitors. EXP was formed as a Transportation Management Association and operates as a 501(c)3 non-profit with a license agreement with the City of Portland for transportation management in the park. park. Though the surveys were targeted at different groups, all seek to identify the mode split (how people travel to the Washington Park) along with several other key indicators, including: Where people came from Number of people in the vehicle Parking location Washington Park free shuttle use Public transit use Demographic info (age, gender, race) In all, 867 visitor surveys were collected. The data from these surveys, along with the 417 employee and 490 volunteer surveys collected, gives us a snapshot of conditions in the park during the peak season. This report is intended to provide a high level look at the survey data. More detailed survey information is available from EXP. Explore Washington Park 3 n
VISITOR PROFILE who s coming to the park? Kate Cummings
Who s in the group? Adults only 50.7% Where are they coming from? International 3% Groups with young children* 34.6% VISITOR PROFILE Member 26% Portland Metro 44% U.S. beyond OR & WA 29% Groups with older children** 14.7% Are they members?*** OR & WA: 2-hour drive 11% Non-member 74% OR & WA: More than 2 hours 13% Gender Race & Ethnicity *Young Children: Under age 7. ***Member of a Washington Park Attraction **Older Children :Ages 7-17 Black 1% Other 0.5% Hispanic 6% Other 5% Asian 9% Male 42.2% Female 57.3% White 79% The visitor profile was crafted to look beyond just without children, visitors from near and far, and demographics, but to also identify and compare attraction members or non-members. groups of visitors, such as groups with and Explore Washington Park 55
DESTINATIONS where are they going? Explore Washington Park 6
Who is in the Group? Parkwide attendance percentage - August 2015* Zoo 51.4% Children's Museum 94% 6% Hoyt Arboretum 28% 72% Japanese Garden 17% 83% Rose Garden 31% 69% World Forestry Center 51% 49% Zoo 71% 29% Groups with Children Adult only Where are they coming from? DESTINATIONS Children's Museum 7.4% Children's Museum Hoyt Arboretum Japanese Garden 28% 10% 62% 7% 72% 14% 15% 31% 62% Rose Garden 29% 4% 67% Hoyt Arboretum 11.0% World Forestry Center 44% 9% 47% Zoo 45% 40% 16% World Forestry Center 0.9% Rose Garden 15.4% Japanese Garden 13.9% Portland Metro NW Regional Outside Oregon & Washington Are they going to more than one attraction? Children's Museum 83% 17% Hoyt Arboretum 61% 39% Japanese Garden 32% 68% Rose Garden 36% 64% *Attendance numbers for Rose Garden and Hoyt Arboretum are estimates World Forestry Center 45% 55% Zoo 80% 20% Visiting One Attraction Visiting Multiple Attractions Using park attraction attendance figures and some educated guesses, we were able to estimate the share of visitors for the month of August by venue. Looking at our typologies, we can see how different types of visitors come to the park to do different things. It may not be terribly surprising to see that the Children s Museum is favored by families with children, but it is interesting to note that the Zoo is such a regional draw. Explore Washington Park 7
MODES how did they get here? Explore Washington Park 8 Kristine Torres
80% How people get to the park 4 Number of people in the vehicle MODES 60% 40% 20% 78% Mean Occupants per Vehicle 3 2 1 3.63 3.36 3.11 3.07 2.79 2.48 0% Auto 16% Transit 3% Walk 1% Bicycle 2% Other 0 Oregon Zoo Children's Museum Rose Garden World Forestry Center Japanese Garden Hoyt Arboretum The heart of the survey is the mode split what transportation mode visitors used to get to the park. Though most people drive to the park, the number of people who drive or take transit varies based on where in the park visitors are heading and also across the different types of visitors. Explore Washington Park 9
How people get to the park based on where they come from Auto Transit Walk Bicycle Other* MODES Portland Metro 80% 14% 2% 1% 2% NW Regional 89% 9% ** 2% 0.5% Outside Oregon & Washington 67% 20% 6% 1% 6% *Based on written comments, most Other responses referred to Uber, taxi, and Pink Trolley trips Explore Washington Park 10 10
How people get to the park by Park Area Auto Transit Walk Bicycle Other MODES Zoo, Children s, Forestry Ctr. 80% 19% ** 1% 0.5% Hoyt Arboretum 82% 14% 2% 2% ** Rose/Japanese Garden 72% 12% 8% 1.5% 6% by Who was in the group Groups with children 85% 13% 0.5% 0.5% 0.08% Adult only 70% 18% 4% 2% 4% by Membership Non-member 77% 15% 3% 0.5% 3% Member 80% 17% 1% 0.5% ** Explore Washington Park 11 11
MOVEMENT how did they get around the park? 12
How are you getting around the park today? Number of Attractions Visiting Shuttle Use 50% Yes 22% MOVEMENT Multiple Attractions 43% One Attraction 57% 38% No 78% 25% 46% How shuttle riders got to the park 3% Where shuttle riders came from 7% 13% 19% 12% 37% Other Bicycle Walk Transit Auto 42% 25% Outside OR & WA NW Regional Portland Metro 53% 0% Walk Auto WP Shuttle 3% TriMet 1% Bike 1% Other 34% Washington Park is a big park it s nearly two miles from one end to the other. Getting around the park can seem daunting, especially for those that didn t drive here. Many people told us that they walk between the different areas of the park. With a free shuttle available to peak-season visitors, others chose this method to get around. A surprising number of visitors said they drove to the park and then used the shuttle to get around. Explore Washington Park 13 13
91,281 Washington Park MAX Station Shuttle boardings by location MOVEMENT Total Shuttle Boardings May-September 2015 International Rose Test Garden Portland Japanese Garden Hoyt Arboretum 18% Shuttle boardings by time of day Elephant House/Children s Playground Holocaust Memorial 14% Vietnam Memorial 9% Sacajawea Statue 5% Other Archery Range 0% 9 AM to 10 AM 10 AM to 11 AM 11 AM to 12 PM 12 PM to 1 PM 1 PM to 2 PM 2 PM to 3 PM 3 PM to 4 PM 4 PM to 5 PM 5 PM to 6 PM 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% Explore Washington Park 14 14
TRENDS how are things changing? 15
Percentage of park visitors using the shuttle 100% Parkwide Visitor Mode Split 2014 to 2015 9% 2014 75% 81% 78% TRENDS 50% 21% 2015 25% 19% 20% 0% 6% 11% 17% 22% 0% 1% Drove Active Transportation* Other** *Active Transportation includes transit, walking, and bicycle trips. 2% **Other trips include Drop-off and Other responses Volunteer Mode Split 2014 to 2015 Employee Mode Split 2014 to 2015 100% 100% 75% 75% 50% 50% 25% 25% 0% Drove Alone Transit Carpool Other Walk Bike 0% Drove Alone Transit*** Carpool Other Walk Bike ***Employee transit for 2014 includes Bike and Bike/MAX option 2015 was the second year in a row that EXP conducted a visitor intercept survey. This allowed us to pull out some trends between this year and 2014. Due to the fact that some questions were updated to help us better understand visitors, some of the comparisons had to be adjusted. Additionally, EXP conducted employee and volunteer surveys for both years, allowing us to see those trends as well. Explore Washington Park 16 16
OTHER DATA what else is happening in the park? Portland Children s Museum 17 17
16,000 Washington Park Trail Counts August 2014-August 2015 OTHER 12,000 8,000 4,000 0 Aug 14 Oct 14 Dec 14 Feb 15 April 15 June 15 August 15 1. Rose Garden Pedestrian Trail 2. Upper Madison Trail 3. Wildwood at MAC Trail 4. Wildwood at Burnside More trail count info available at trafx.net In addition to the summer survey effort, EXP also has trail counters in the park that give us an idea of how many people are using the trail system. Infrared counters are scattered throughout the park, as shown on the map above. Explore Washington Park 18