Okaloosa County BOCC — August 16, 2016 — Access EC Rider TDP - August Draft Report — reading text

representing 12.8% of trips. ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 23 Section 2 – Baseline Conditions Table 2-11: Transportation Disadvantaged Trips by Purpose and Passenger Type (2013–2014) % Trip Purpose Trips Distribution Medical 63,153 47.0% Employment 48,371 36.0% Education/training 6,718 5.0% Nutritional 12,092 9.0% Life-sustaining/other 4,032 3.0% Total 134,366 100.0% Percent Passenger Type Trips Distribution Older adults 22,582 16.8% Children 17,306 12.9% Low-income 34,956 26.0% With disabilities 16,062 12.0% Low-income/with disabilities 14,172 10.6% Other 29,288 21.8% Total 134,366 100.0% Source: Florida CTD 2014 AOR Employment and Labor Characteristics Employment and labor characteristics also help to understand land use and travel patterns that affect transit service. Like population density, Okaloosa County has a relatively low overall employment density that poses a challenge to finding transit-supportive areas. This is compounded by the fact that Eglin Air Force Base is a major land use that physically splits the county north-south. The region’s major employers are the US military, the Okaloosa and Walton County school boards, and Northwest Florida State College. These large employers create an exceptional demand on the transportation system. After the military, tourism is the second largest contributor to the local economy, “employing an estimated 35,000 local residents and generating approximately 45% of the County’s sales tax collections” (Okaloosa TDSP). Along the coastal areas are more service and tourist‐oriented jobs than in the northern portions of the county. Other large employers include area hospitals and several military contractors. Map 2-9 illustrates the existing (2015) employment density by TAZ. The employment data are also based on socioeconomic data from the NWFRPM. Existing employment densities are highest in the Fort Walton Beach area to the south, Destin, and along the major key corridors like Eglin Parkway, Beal Parkway, and Hollywood Boulevard. Map 2-10 shows the projected 2025 employment densities throughout the county. Employment densities are projected to increase slightly around the outskirts of Crestview and within the Fort Walton Beach, Valparaiso, and Niceville areas. ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 24 Section 2 – Baseline Conditions Map 2-9: Existing Employment Density (2015) Source: NWFRPM ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 25 Section 2 – Baseline Conditions Map 2-10: Projected Employment Density (2025) Source: NWFRPM ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 26 Section 2 – Baseline Conditions Journey-to-Work Characteristics Journey-to-work characteristics for Okaloosa County were compiled from the ACS and are shown in Tables 2-12 through 2-14. These characteristics include mode of transportation to work, travel time to work, departure time to work, mode of transportation by occupation type, and destination of work trip. As is typical in most Florida communities, the primary mode of commuting to work is by driving alone. Currently, only 0.1% of commuters travel to work using public transportation, an important consideration when determining the potential market of choice riders for transit. The mean travel time to work for workers ages 16 and older is 23.1 minutes, indicating that commuters must travel some distance between work and home. The majority of commuters leave for work during the traditional peak hours of travel, which is consistent with the typical commuting patterns of the state. Table 2-12: Okaloosa County Commuting Characteristics Characteristic 2014 Mode to Work Drove alone 85.1% Carpooled 7.0% 2-person carpool 5.8% 3-person carpool 0.9% 4+-person carpool 0.3% Workers per car, truck, or van 1.04 Public transit 0.1% Walked 1.9% Worked at home 3.1% Other - Travel Time to Work < 10 min 16.9% 10–19 min 16.5% 20–29 min 19.0% 30–44 min 18.6% 45+ min 12.5% Departure Time to Work 6:00–8:59 AM 63.1% Other times 36.9% Source: 2014 ACS 1-Year Estimates ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 27 Section 2 – Baseline Conditions With respect to occupation, transit riders who work in sales and office occupations make up the majority of transit riders, consisting of 37% of transit riders, as shown in Table 2-13. Military-specific and service occupations make up the next highest percentage of occupation types, representing 33.7% and 20.1% of transit riders, respectively. Table 2-13: Means of Transportation by Occupation Taxi, Total Drove Public Occupation Carpool Walk* Motorcycle, Estimate Alone Transit* Bicycle, etc. Total 88,814 74,240 7,073 796 1,269 3,173 Management, business, science, arts 31.4% 32.5% 25.2% 2.8% 27.9% 18.1% Service 20.3% 19.4% 21.3% 20.1% 27.9% 36.1% Sales and office 24.3% 25.0% 20.4% 37.2% 23.7% 10.2% Natural resources, construction, maintenance 11.0% 10.7% 14.0% 4.8% 8.4% 20.1% Production, transportation, material-moving 8.6% 8.8% 8.7% 1.5% 0.1% 12.5% Military-specific 4.4% 3.6% 10.4% 33.7% 12.1% 3.0% *Contains a very high margin of error Source: 2011–2013 3-Year ACS Table 2-14 summarizes the employment location of Okaloosa County residents. Based on 2014 ACS data, Okaloosa County had 91,611 employed residents, of which 89.5% lived and worked within the county, indicating a high demand for local employment-based trips. In addition, 8.6% of employed residents commuted to other counties, with the majority commuting to Walton County. Figure 2-3 illustrates the commuting flows within the region. Table 2-14: Okaloosa County Employment by Location (2014) Margin of Place of Work Estimate Error (+/-) Total 91,611 2,772 Worked in state of residence 98.1% 0.7 Worked in county of residence 89.5% 1.9 Worked outside county of residence 8.6% 1.9 Worked outside state of residence 1.9% 0.7 Source: 2014 ACS 1-Year Estimates Major Activity Centers Major trip generators in Okaloosa County include Eglin Air Force Base, technology and defense contractors affiliated with the Base, retail sites, several medical facilities (such as Fort Walton Beach Medical Center, Twin Cities Hospital, North Okaloosa Medical Center, White-Wilson Medical Center, and Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast), Emerald Coast Convention Center, tourist attractions, and government facilities. Examples of major activity centers are shown in Figure 2-4. Major employers in Okaloosa County are listed in Table 2-15, and major manufacturers are listed in Table 2-16. ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 28 Section 2 – Baseline Conditions Figure 2-3: West Panhandle Commuting Flows Source: FDOT 2015 Trends and Conditions Special Report, based on 2009-2013 ACS Figure 2-4: Major Activity Centers Destin Commons Retail Establishment Emerald Grande Resort Photo source: http://www.destincommons.com Fort Walton Beach Medical Uptown Station Retail Establishment Center Photo source: http://uptownstation.com Photo source: http://fwbmc.com/ ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 29 Section 2 – Baseline Conditions Table 2-15: Okaloosa County Largest EDC Employers Manufacturer Employee Range Fort Walton Beach Medical Center 1,000+ Jacobs Technology 1,000+