In Whatcom County about 15% of the daily travel is work related. About 80% drive alone to work and about 10% either use a bike or walk to work. The longest travel activity during the day is work related. This could be going to meetings to another county or within the community.

If you want additional information regarding travel behavior in the county then refer to the North Sound Household Travel Survey.

Congestion on the roadways typically occur during the time frame that people need to go to work and coming back home from work. The peak travel in Whatcom County happens around 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM and from 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM.

Have you considered work flex schedules that allow you travel to and from work during the off peak time frames? Also, does your employer allow telecommuting at least one day a week?

Whatcom County offers many shopping amenities throughout the county from downtown districts which offer specialty stores and antiques to regional shopping malls and business districts. There are many people both within the county and even outside the country which travel to these destinations.

Employment in the retail sector is the second highest in the county. About 20% of the jobs in the county are in retail. Retail establishments typically generate one of the highest amounts of traffic and people are also willing to travel longer distances to shop. Also, about 40% of the people that travel to shop carpool while about 50% drive alone.

If you want additional information regarding travel behavior in the county then refer to the North Sound Household Travel Survey.

Do you generate most of your shopping trips close to home? Also, do you travel with others when you go shopping?

Whatcom County has 7 public school districts (Bellingham, Meridian, Mount Baker, Ferndale, Nooksack Valley, Blaine, and Lynden) and a wide range of private schools with various religious affiliations and wide range of educational instruction methodologies. In addition, there are a variety of higher education options in the county with traditional 4 year colleges with graduate school to technical and community college.

The K thru 12 enrollment in the county is about 28,000 students. About 40% of the students use a school bus to travel between home and school and about 35% carpool. The average distance is about 7 miles which typically take about 10 minutes to reach the final destination.

The college enrollment in the county is about 20,000 full time equivalent students. Almost 20% use a bike to make there trip between home and college. However since all of the student are of driving age there are over 50% that drive alone. The distance and time of travel is slightly higher compared to students from K thru 12.

If you want additional information regarding travel behavior in the county then refer to the North Sound Household Travel Survey.

Are parents of school age children considering other modes of travel such as biking or walking?

Parks in Whatcom County showcase the best of the natural and cultural heritage of the county. The parks provide beaches and water access, over 50 miles of trails, great places for family fun, wildlife viewing, rental facilities for your events, outdoor recreation and interpretive programs, and historic sites to deepen your connections to the stories of these places.

On average, people in Whatcom County travel about 17 minutes for many of their daily activities. A household travel survey conducted in 2008 showed that people in the county do not travel very far for recreational activities. It showed that on average they traveled about 15 minutes to enjoy their recreational activities which could include a day at the park or fitness training.

Since travel to recreational activities seem to be shorter compared to other activities, are non-motorize modes such as walk or bike being considered. Or, are other forms of transportation being used to accommodate such things as equipment for your recreational needs?

In Whatcom County there are many options to travel to medical appointments. There is transit service with stops at many medical centers and for the disable there is specialized transportation service. Visit the WTA website for additional information for these services.

The North Sound Household Travel Survey conducted in 2008, found several interesting transportation information regarding how people travel and how far people in Whatcom County travel to obtain medical services. The survey showed that about 3% of daily travel was for medical reasons and on average people in the county traveled about 20 minutes to their medical appointments. Also most people reported in the survey that they used some kind of shuttle service to reach their final destination.

Do you think there is adequate access to public transportation in the county for medical services?

At the Pacific Highway Crossing, average crossing time per commercial vehicle headed to Canada ranges from 9 to 91 minutes. The average time for southbound commercial vehicles ranges from 31 to 46 minutes per vehicle. Demand at this crossing is expected to exceed increases in capacity, which will increase delay and cost. The annual cost of border operations for commercial vehicles is expected to increase by 250 percent to $54 million per year by 2013.

Dedicated ITS truck lanes at the border would allow for expedited preclearance. While the ITS systems necessary are already deployed, physical infrastructure (additional lanes and revamped customs booth areas) are needed on both sides.

If you want additional information regarding goods movement refer to the Washington Transportation Plan Freight Movement document.

What types of infrastructure improvements do you think government should be investing to prepare for an increase in freight movement in the future?

In 2006 over 365,000 truck trips entered Washington from Canada through Blaine, and just over 150,000 trucks entered the state through Sumas. The border at Lynden ranked third highest in incoming truck crossing volume, followed by Oroville and Frontier.

In 2006 an estimated annual value of $16.4 billion moved north on I-5 to Canada. Another estimated annual value of $13.4 billion moved south from Canada on I-5. Only about 40 percent of this traffic originated from or was destined for Washington State. The rest is passing through, to, and from the states of California and Oregon.

In 2002 the greatest commodities imported, by value, from Canada through Washington State were petroleum and other gases, wood (sawn or chipped), crude oil, and exports of repaired imports/imports of returned exports. The highest value non-aircraft commodities exported to Canada were motor vehicles, data processing equipment, and petroleum.

The majority of truck traffic crossing the Canadian border via I-5 is carrying either manufactured or agricultural goods. Reflecting the balance of trade flows, 13 percent of northbound trucks were empty, returning to Canada to transport cargo south, particularly timber products, a commodity which moves almost entirely from north to south.

If you want more information regarding goods movement in the state of Washington then refer to the Washington Department of Transportation Freight System Division.

What do you think the role of government should be in relation to freight planning?

We travel for various reasons such as work, shopping or to visit friends and family. A 2008 household travel survey showed that 3.2% of people that travel in Whatcom County do so to visit a friend or family member, and that the duration of travel is about 20 minutes. In addition, most people travel with other people to visit friends or family.

I will like to hear from you. When you visit family or friends do you typically carpool or use other modes? How long does your travel take to reach your final destination?

Welcome to the Transportation Town blog! Whatcom Council of Governments staff will be discussing a variety of topics relating to transportation in Whatcom County over the next year. Topics include travel behavior, mode choice, and reasons for travel. We’ll also be asking the community living in Whatcom County about their trips and the choices they make to get to their final destination. This will be a good opportunity to express your ideas to shape the regional transportation planning process.

We will consider your input during the development of the Regional Transportation Plan. The plan will be complete by June 2012.