FTA Selects Four Communities For Pilot Program To Boost Public Transportation Ridership

FTA Selects Four Communities For Pilot Program To Boost Public Transportation Ridership

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) today selected four communities to participate in an innovative pilot program aimed at increasing public transit ridership.  FTA’s Individualized Marketing Demonstration Program is designed to change commuter travel behavior by promoting the use of public transportation through targeted, customized marketing methods.   Selected from more than 60 applicants, the pilot cities are:

Whatcom Transportation Authority (WTA), Bellingham, Washington
Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, Cleveland, Ohio
Sacramento Regional Transit District, Sacramento, California
Triangle Transit Authority (TTA), Triangle Park, North Carolina

“These four communities developed excellent plans to increase ridership through innovative partnerships and leveraging of resources,” said Jennifer L. Dorn, FTA Administrator. “We plan to take the results of these pilot programs and share successful strategies to boost ridership for transit agencies across the country,” she said.

The FTA’s pilot project is based on personalized, individual marketing of potential commuters who might consider using public transit, but need more information.  Transit agencies first identify a neighborhood (approximately 600 households) with existing transit service and those residents are contacted in writing to determine if they are interested in learning more about travel options.  Interested residents are then contacted by phone to determine if they would like information on transit, bicycling or walking.  The outreach continues until residents have enough information to ensure their comfort level with trying different modes of transportation. In a few cases, bus operators make “home visits” to personally discuss public transportation routes and options with residents.

The FTA’s program is modeled after the UITP (International Public Transportation Association) project conducted in Europe, as well as larger scale individualized marketing programs in Australia, which resulted in significant increases in ridership. The pilot project in Europe resulted in a 10 percent reduction in car usage in the targeted area, while the large-scale individualized marketing efforts yielded up to 14 percent reductions. The first U.S. pilot project in Portland, Oregon, reduced car travel by 8 percent in the first area selected for the pilot, and resulted in a 27 percent increase in travel by environmentally friendly modes in that same area.