The aim of this research was to get opinions from the people of Madrid as a source of information when taking technical and political decisions regarding actions on the network. The General Directorate for Roads in the Community of Madrid obtained greater and more versatile information on which to plan its initiatives to improve the highway layout. This information has been obtained by preparing a study that differs significantly from those normally conducted for this purpose. The results of this research, relatively innovative from a methodological point of view, were obtained through an opinion poll carried out in 2,400 Madrid homes, and an en-route survey of 520 drivers. Quantitative results were completed with a series of meetings held among different groups with a special awareness and knowledge of the road (bus, taxi and truck drivers, Civil Guard for traffic, cyclists, etc.), plus the opinions posted on the web page of the General Directorate for Roads. To obtain an opinion regarding service quality on regional roads, four defining components have been considered: alignment, surface, sign-posting and equipment; and six aspects offered by the infrastructures: mobility, safety, comfort, environment, services and information. The results of the opinion poll, supported and corrected with the information provided by the en-route survey and group meetings, allowed certain indicators to be established, whose weighted aggregation gave rise to a quality index for the roads most used by the people of Madrid.It transpired from the interviews that the aspect valued most highly by Madrid people, in terms of services, was safety; otherwise, they mention the difficulty of mobility commonly suffered at certain times and on certain days, together with how road works influence traffic fluidity. The evaluation given to regional roads by interviewees was positive: 6.3 on a scale where 0 was the most negative evaluation, and 10 the most positive. As regards the opinion of the groups interviewed (collective meetings), they pointed out the need to review and improve specific aspects such as rest areas, hard shoulders, accesses to towns and industrial estates, the lack of a separate area for cyclists to circulate, etc. To conclude, we should highlight that the results of this work are quite satisfactory. They have established some indicators whose evaluation may be continuously updated through the web-site, and more systematically, by conducting periodic opinion polls. Some aspects could be improved, but we have started down a productive research path and with immediate consequences: help in taking technical and political decisions to improve the quality of out roads. For the covering abstract see ITRD E135448.
Abstract