New Survey: New Jerseyans Support Statewide Planning and Water Quality Protection

New Jerseyans’ decades-long support for coordinated statewide planning to guide growth and development and protect farmland and open space remains undiminished, according to a poll released today by smart growth, environmental and transportation advocates.

The poll, conducted by the Monmouth University Polling Institute, found that residents are as concerned about protecting drinking water as they are about the economy. Ninety one percent identify protecting the state’s drinking water supply as very important, compared to 88 percent who say that attracting new business is a top concern.

New Jerseyans are enthusiastic about sustainable communities – places where a variety of transportation options already exist and neighborhoods are within walking distance of shopping and other services. Two-thirds of residents believe the state needs more sustainable communities and nearly three in four say they would definitely (46 percent) or probably (27 percent) like to live in such a place.

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Building for the 21st Century: American support for sustainable communities

A recent poll by Smart Growth America has found that in the midst of a struggling U.S. economy, support for smart growth strategies remains high among Americans across the country and on both sides of the political aisle.

Click here to download “Building for the 21st Century: American support for sustainable communities” (PDF)

The poll focused specifically on support for sustainable communities: urban, suburban or rural communities that have more housing and transportation choices, are closer to jobs, shops or schools, are more energy independent and help protect clean air and water. Making communities more sustainable means generating more jobs, lowering housing and transportation costs and using limited public funds more wisely.

As the U.S. economy incrementally recovers, Americans want the federal government to stop spending into deficit and use the money it does have more effectively. Smart growth strategies do just that by reducing infrastructure costs at the state and federal level, strengthening local and state revenues and building economic wealth by investing in existing communities.

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Voters agree: U.S. would benefit from better roads, improved public transportation options

A new survey by the Rockefeller Foundation about transportation infrastructure has found that two out of three voters say making improvements to the country’s transportation infrastructure is very important, and most voters say that in its current state the nation’s transportation system is barely adequate according to.

The new survey, released yesterday, finds that there is wide agreement among voters – even across partisan lines – that leaders in Washington should seek common ground. Nowhere is this more true, the survey finds, than with legislation related to the country’s transportation infrastructure. Voters want better and safer roads and more public transportation options, widely agreeing that the United States would benefit from an expanded and improved public transportation system.

Moreover, few believe that current government spending in this area is efficient and wise, and voters welcome a range of reforms in how transportation projects are financed. At the same time, as is the case with many spending-related issues today, voters are unwilling to personally pay for additional funding of national transportation projects. While wide support exists for encouraging more private investment, imposing penalties on over-budget projects, and establishing a National Infrastructure Bank, there is very little support for increasing the federal gas tax or increasing tolls on interstate highways and bridges.

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