Rethinking the Path to Mobility: Texans Talk about Transportation Funding

Abstract

Research has shown that transportation funding is a subject about which the public lacks a strong knowledge base. However, because of the complexity of the funding process, crafting outreach and educational materials that convey necessary information can be difficult. In 2014, researchers with the Texas A&M Transportation Institute conducted a series of 11 focus groups throughout Texas to test three transportation funding outreach and educational items. The research team found that by emphasizing that fuel taxes were excise fees and lost purchasing power over time and that reduced transportation funding led to greater reliance on debt, participants became more aware of transportation funding issues and showed greater interest in addressing them. Furthermore, showing participants what they actually paid in transportation fees and taxes increased their willingness to consider funding alternatives. The research team was also able to elicit greater interest in transportation funding issues by presenting information in relation to per-person costs and impacts and by discussing funding issues at a local–regional scale.