Mobility: It’s about how we move

What does “mobility” mean to you? Does it mean predictability in travel times, or the ability to access needed goods and services? Is it the investment of time and effort, or the expense and choice in how and when to travel or move goods? There is no right answer here, as all these factors are linked to mobility. Mobility also encompasses congestion reduction, as well as connectivity to other modes, access to information, travel costs, and having access to different modes.

Land use patterns and policies have an impact on mobility options. Some options, such as expanding transit services, may be better suited to adapt to new land use patterns than others. The ability to travel to jobs and other activities is an important contributor to each individual’s quality of life and to the economic vitality of Washington’s communities. These issues are critical for individuals in both urban and rural areas and are overarching elements of this goal.

Pricing can help to improve mobility when demand outpaces capacity. Congestion pricing, tolling, and increased parking costs could help to improve mobility by changing the time at which people choose to travel or providing an incentive to carpool, use transit or other modes of travel.

What does mobility mean to you? What do you think about using pricing as a way to manage congestion or change travel times? Are there transportation options that are currently unavailable that would improve your personal mobility?

In addition to leaving comments on this blog, we encourage you to use the online public input tool to tell us about the transportation issues and priorities that are important to you.

You can also read the WTP plan and related documents online.