AK Online-mail Back Recreational Survey

Online/mail-back survey [administered to recreational users only]

Thank you for participating in our follow-up survey. If you recall, you completed the first part of the survey in-person at [INSERT SURVEY INTERCEPT LOCATION]. This follow-up survey is about [ALASKA RESIDENTS/NON-RESIDENTS: that same trip/your trip to Alaska], and it should only take about 18 minutes of your time to complete.

First, we’d like to ask you a few general questions about your trip and about information sources you used during your trip.

1. (TDUR4) How many total nights did you spend away from home on this trip? (Please check one response)

Dropdown: 0 -14, 15+

IF 1 or more nights checked in Q. 1, ASK:

2. (TDUR6) In what type(s) of accommodations did you and your personal group spend the night(s)? (Check all that apply.)

___ Rental lodge or cabin

___ Hotel, motel, rented condo/home or bed & breakfast

___ Cruise ship

___ Alaska Marine Ferry or other boat

___ RV/trailer camping

___ Tent camping

___ Backcountry camping

___ Personal seasonal residence

___ Residence of friends/relatives

___ Other accommodations (please specify)

3. (TINFO3) Which information sources did you and your personal group use during your trip for transportation or travel-related information? (Check all that apply in the “Used” column.) For each source used, how helpful was the information you received? (For each information source used, check one response in the “how helpful” column.)

	Used During Trip?		2) How helpful?
			Not at all helpful	Slightly helpful	Moderately helpful	Very helpful
Federal or State websites
Other websites
Social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
Podcasts
Maps (e.g., Motor Vehicle Use Maps for National Forests)
Brochures or pamphlets
Travel guides/books
Newspaper/magazine article
Alaska Milepost
Radio/TV broadcasts
Word of mouth (friends or relatives)
Word of mouth (local businesses or residents)
Package tour companies/providers (Alaska Railroads, airline, cruise, independent etc.)
Visitor bureaus, Visitor centers or Information centers (e.g., Alaska Public Lands Information Center)
Previous visits
Other (Please specify)
Did not use any sources

4. (TINFO2) From the sources marked above, did you and your personal group receive the type of information that you needed?

___ Yes

___ No  IF No, What was the information that you and your personal group needed that was not available? Please be specific. __________________

___ Not sure

5. (TINFO24) During your trip, did you and your personal group use any of the following electronic devices to obtain transportation or travel-related information? (Please check one response for each item.)

	Used	Did not use	Not sure
Laptop
Tablet computer (e.g., iPad)
Smartphone (e.g., iPhone, Android)
Cell phone/Text (without internet)
Global Positioning System (GPS)
Marine/Aircraft radio (2-way radio)
Other portable electronic device please specify______________
Other portable electronic device (please specify:_____________)

6. (TINFO24a) Please indicate if you had any of the following problems when trying to obtain information on your electronic device. (Check all that apply.)

___ Service not available (e.g. no internet connection)

___ Could not find the information I was seeking

___ Information was incomplete, not detailed enough

___ Other problem (please specify:_________________)

____ No, did not experience any problems

7. (TINFO26) On this trip, were the signs directing you and your personal group to your destination(s) adequate? (Please check one response for each item.)

	Yes	No	Not applicable
Signs on state highways
Signs in communities
Signs along trails
Signs at airports
Signs at ferry terminals or docks
Signs at railroad stations/depots
Signs inside Federal Lands (National Parks, National Forests, National Wildlife Refuges, etc.)

7a. (TINFO27) [If no for one or more items]: Please explain any issues or problems you had with the signs. Please be as specific as possible. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The next set of questions is about the sites you visited and activities you engaged in.

8. (TDEST11) Were you and your personal group able to visit all of the Federal public land sites that you planned to visit on this trip?

___Yes – GO TO Q. 11

___ No

9. (TDEST11) [IF NO]: Which sites were you not able to visit? _________________________________

10. (TDEST11) What reasons prevented you from visiting those sites? (Check all that apply)

___ Not enough time

___ Didn’t realize how long it would take to travel to destination(s)

___ Transportation to/from the destination was too costly

___ Transportation to/from the destination was not available

___ Transportation to/from destination was not frequent enough/convenient

___ Transportation-related mechanical problems

___ Area was closed/Road closure

___ Bad weather

___ Other (please specify:__________________________________)

11. (TACT9) Were you able to participate in all the activities that you and your personal group had planned on Federal public lands?

___ Yes

___ No – GO TO Q.14

12. IF YES: (TACT10) Which activity(s) were you and your personal group not able to participate in?

______________________________________________________________________

13. (TACT11) Which of the following reasons explain why you did not engage in the activity?

(Check all that apply.)

___ Rules or regulations did not allow for activity

___ Area was temporarily closed to the public

___ Not enough time

___ Safety concerns

___ Not enough information about the activity

___ Too crowded

___ Could not get a reservation

___ Difficult road or trail access

___ No road or trail access

___ Unsatisfactory conditions of facilities

___ Resource damage due to overuse

___ Bad weather

___ Wildfire/other natural hazard

___ Other (please specify:___________________________)

Next, we’d like to ask you about your travel experience, including questions evaluating different aspects of your trip.

14. (TRANUSE7) This question asks about your use of transportation during your trip and has two parts. First, please indicate which of the following forms of transportation you and your personal group used during your trip. (Check all that apply in the “Used” column.)

Next, for each form of transportation that you and your personal group used, please use the 1 to 5 scale to rate your satisfaction, on average, with your travel experience.

	1) Used?		2) Satisfaction Rating
			Very Dissatisfied	Dissatisfied	Neither Satisfied or Dissatisfied	Satisfied	Very Satisfied
Private vehicle (car, truck, motorcycle, RV)			1	2	3	4	5
Rental vehicle (car, truck, motorcycle RV)
All-terrain vehicle or off-road vehicle			1	2	3	4	5
Commercial Tour bus			1	2	3	4	5
Other public bus			1	2	3	4	5
Train			1	2	3	4	5
Denali Visitor Transportation System (Shuttle bus)
Train			1	2	3	4	5
Cruise Ship			1	2	3	4	5
Motorboat			1	2	3	4	5
Alaska Marine Ferry System			1	2	3	4	5
Kayak, canoe or raft			1	2	3	4	5
Commercial aircraft (includes air taxis, helicopters)			1	2	3	4	5
Private airplane (includes ultralights)			1	2	3	4	5
Bicycle			1	2	3	4	5
Foot/hiking			1	2	3	4	5
Other (please specify:___________)			1	2	3	4	5
Other (please specify:___________)			1	2	3	4	5

14a. (TRANUSE7) [For any forms of transportation rated “1” or “2”]: Why were you dissatisfied with your travel experience?____________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________

15. (EVAL2) Thinking about your trip as a whole, please use the 5-point scale to rate how well your travel experience lived up to your expectations. (Please check one response)

Significantly below my expectations	Below my expectations	Met my expectations	Above my expectations	Significantly above my expectations
1	2	3	4	5

[IF RATED 1 – 2]: Why did your travel experience fall below your expectations? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

16. (EVAL8) During your trip, did you experience any delays or other problems making connections from one form of transportation to another? For example, a weather delay making a connection from a bus to a train?

___ Yes  IF YES, Please indicate the nature of the problem. Please be as specific as possible.

____________________________________________________________

___ No

___ Not applicable (didn’t make any transportation connections during my trip)

17. (EVAL13) During your trip, how satisfied were you and your personal group with each of the following services or facilities on Federal public lands (e.g., National Parks, National Forests, Wildlife Refuges, National Conservation Areas, Wild and Scenic Rivers)? (For each item, check one response. If you had no experience with a particular service or facility, please check “Not applicable.”)

	Very Dissatisfied	Dissatisfied	Neither Satisfied or Dissatisfied	Satisfied	Very Satisfied	Not Applicable
Condition of Roads	1	2	3	4	5	6
Condition of trails	1	2	3	4	5	6
Number of trail markers	1	2	3	4	5	6
Parking availability	1	2	3	4	5	6
Availability of transportation to the sites I wanted to visit	1	2	3	4	5	6
Availability of restrooms	1	2	3	4	5	6

18. (EVAL21) During your trip, to what extent do you feel the following issues were a problem when you were visiting Federal public lands (e.g., National Parks, National Forests, National Recreation Areas, National Wildlife Refuges)? For each item, please check one response.

	Not a problem	Small problem	Moderate problem	Big problem	No opinion
People walking on, across, or along the road	1	2	3	4	5
Interactions between motorized and non-motorized forms of transportation	1	2	3	4	5
Too many people at scenic overlooks	1	2	3	4	5
Motor vehicle sounds that interfered with natural sounds and quiet	1	2	3	4	5
Aircraft sound that interfered with natural sounds and quiet	1	2	3	4	5
Cars parked illegally (e.g., on road shoulders)	1	2	3	4	5
Too many regulations	1	2	3	4	5
Too few regulations	1	2	3	4	5
Traffic congestion
Other (Please specify:________)	1	2	3	4	5

19. (OPIN7) Thinking about your trip, would you have liked to have seen more of, the same, or less of each of the following on the Federal public lands that you saw or visited (e.g., National Parks, National Forests, National Wildlife Refuges, National Conservation Areas, and Wild and Scenic Rivers)? For each item, please check one response.

	Less	Same	More	No Opinion
Trails for hiking, biking, or horseback riding
Trails for all-terrain vehicles
Roads for passenger vehicles
Primitive roads (e.g., high clearance roads)
Campgrounds
Signs that include directions or wayfinding information
Safety cabins
Remote airstrips
Boat launches, moorings and docks
Accessible-friendly (e.g., for wheelchairs) sites and facilities
Other (please specify:_________________)
Other (please specify:_________________)

In this last section, we have a few questions on safety.

20. (SAFE2) Prior to your trip, did you or anyone in your travel group search for information about safety measures?

__Yes  IF YES, What were the safety concerns that you searched? Please list up to three of your top concerns._____________________________________________________________________

__No

21. (SAFE7) While on Federal public lands in Alaska, did you or members of your personal group experience any safety concerns (e.g., concern about potential injury) as a result of the following: (For each item, please check one response).

Experienced:	Safety Concern:
Wildlife encounter	Yes	No
Bad weather
Got lost
Poor road conditions
Poor trail conditions
Vehicles parked along the side of the road
Interactions between vehicles and bicycles
Interactions between vehicles and pedestrians
Ran out of gas or other supplies in a remote area
Lack of cell phone coverage
Needing emergency services
Other (please specify:______________________)

IF YES TO ANY ITEMS: Please describe:___________________________________________

22. (SAFE9) Considering all trips you have made on Federal public lands in Alaska, have you ever been involved in a transportation-related accident or safety incident? (Please check one response.)

___ Yes, once

___ Yes, more than once

___ No – GO TO Q. 29

___ Can’t recall – GO TO Q.29

23. (SAFE9a) Was (were any of) the transportation related accident(s) or safety incident(s) reported?

__ Yes  IF YES, to whom?:______________________________________________________

__ No

__ Don’t know

24. (SAFE9b) Please describe the transportation-related accident or safety incident(s). If more than one, please describe the most serious: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

25. (EVAL4) Please use the space below to share any additional feedback on your travel experiences during your trip. In particular, we are interested in learning about any transportation-related issues or problems you faced. Please be as specific as possible.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

26. (EVAL6) Do you have any suggestions for how travel/transportation to or through Federal public lands can be improved?

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

You have completed the survey. Thank you so much! Your participation is deeply appreciated.

OMB control number 0596-0236