H-GAC Surveying Airport Travelers in Attempt to Improve Ground Transportation

ADAM ZUVANICH | HOUSTON PUBLIC MEDIA – The Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) is surveying travelers and staff at both of the region's two major airports this month with the ultimate goal of improving how people get around on the ground.

The H-GAC, an association of local governments and elected officials that allocates federal, state and local funding for the 13-county Gulf Coast region, announced Monday it is conducting the survey through a partnership with the Texas Department of Transportation and ETC Institute. The latter will be stationed at Bush Intercontinental Airport from Monday through Nov. 12, and at Hobby Airport from Nov. 13-19, to collect "travel, economic and demographic data that will be used to update and improve travel to and from the airports as well as to understand travel behaviors better," according to a news release from the H-GAC.

"Feedback received from travelers will help prioritize future projects for funding throughout the Gulf Coast area," the news release also states. "This is the first time a survey of this kind has occurred in 20 years."

Participation in the survey is voluntary, and those who participate can enter a drawing to win a $200 gift card. The survey includes questions about participants' travel habits, places of origins and destinations, along with how they get to and from the airport. There also are questions about race and ethnicity, household size, income and employment status.