For the 9th consecutive year, the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) is partnering with ImpactED at the University of Pennsylvania to conduct an annual comprehensive customer satisfaction survey.

The survey is designed with the goal of better understanding residents’ opinions, behaviors, and preferences as they relate to topics such as drinking water habits, water quality, billing, customer service, water infrastructure, and overall perceptions of the department. The survey has been crucial to PWD’s mission, including improving services and programs to better suit customer preferences.

“At the Philadelphia Water Department, we value our customers — and the services we provide to them. We want to know what we’re doing right, and what we can do better,” says Philadelphia Water Department Commissioner Randy E. Hayman, Esq. “As a public utility dedicated to keeping water both safe and affordable, we need to hear from those we serve. We encourage you to share your experiences, because your feedback helps us better serve our city.”

Operated by the City of Philadelphia and funded through water bills, the Water Department provides drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater services for approximately 1.6 million residents. Additional services include protecting and restoring waterways and maintaining more than 25,000 fire hydrants.

Since launching in 2016, more than 35,000 survey responses have been recorded, including approximately 9,000 individual participants last year alone.

The survey is weighted to compensate for sample designs and patterns of non-responses that might bias results.

Survey results are used to identify the concerns of customers and residents, prioritize needs, and plan improvements.

Based on customer feedback from previous years, PWD has expanded the popular e-billing service, MyPhillyWaterBill, and has boosted its social media and online presence while maintaining traditional methods of communication, such as mailings. 

Feedback is also used to identify community needs and provide targeted outreach.

Through this survey, customer research into drinking water behavior has inspired new programs and initiatives including:

• Philly Water Bar and Drink Philly Tap, a pilot project with the University of Pennsylvania and other community partners.
• Drink More Tap, an art and water education campaign created with Mural Arts Philadelphia.

The survey is available in English and Spanish and takes approximately 10 minutes to complete.

Answers and personal information will be kept completely confidential. No one should take the survey more than once.

Any Philadelphia resident 18 or older who takes the survey can enter a raffle to win $100. The survey can be taken at pwdsurvey.com/go.

Participants with questions can contact (215) 650-7544 or email PhilaWaterSurvey@gmail.com.

Learn more about the annual survey at the Philadelphia Water Department.