Telling Our Story: Local Edition. Overview

Transcription

1 Telling Our Story: Local Edition Overview Telling Our Story (TOS) is a national initiative of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) designed to raise awareness of the daily value of transit. This is being done in support of efforts to secure passage of a new federal transit funding bill. The current authorization ends in Several public awareness activities are being conducted by individual APTA members as part of this initiative in the months leading up to congressional activity. In addition, APTA has developed some stand-alone activities that are designed to create opportunities for local members as well as draw the attention of the national news media and members of Congress. A national event is being developed to take place in Washington, DC, on September 23 to coincide with the 100-day countdown to the authorization deadline. The event will feature stories from across the country collected through the year at the Telling Our Story "Local Edition." A series of coordinated Telling Our Story: Local Edition events will take place leading up to the Washington event. Target markets have been identified but the participation of other APTA member agencies is essential. Working cooperatively with APTA business members especially bus and rail manufacturers and their suppliers member transit agencies are encouraged to tell stories about the impact transit plays in their hometowns as a connection to jobs, education, healthcare, quality of life activities and as a creator of jobs both in the industry and in support of it. The environmental benefits of transit should also be stressed. Such events will be created by the individual members and tailored to fit their local media markets and local story angles. APTA volunteers and staff will provide guidance and a general framework for the planning, structure and conduct of these events.

2 The key product of these events will be the generation of stories in print, broadcast and online formats that may be compiled into a single collection for presentation and use at the Washington event. Strategy/message Create effective local events that advance the goals of Telling Our Story and can be delivered across multiple media platforms. The events and messages should engage the media, transit customers, stakeholders and employees. Common messages should be identified as a means of unifying the distinct local events. While common themes will develop, individual participants retain the flexibility to tell the story that has the most impact for them. They don t have to talk about all the messages, just the most significant one for them. The messages must be: Accurate, fact-based; Focus on the customer wherever possible; Memorable. Draft messages: My transit ride is my connection to work. o Among daily riders of Dallas Area Rapid Transit, more than 75% use DART services to get to work. I have a car, but I choose transit. o Based on customer surveys, more than half of Dallas Area Rapid Transit customers have access to a personal auto. My ride keeps me healthy. o Millions of transit trips are made daily to some of the nation s top medical centers helping customers keep essential appointments with doctors and dentists and other healthcare providers. As the trend toward outpatient medical care continues to rise, access to transit is crucial to ensure patient compliance (follow up visits) and help achieve good treatment outcomes.

3 o Communities who choose to invest in public transportation reduce the nation's carbon emissions by 37 million metric tons annually -- equivalent to the electricity used by 4.9 million households. To achieve a similar reduction in carbon emissions, every household in New York City, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Denver and Los Angeles combined would have to completely stop using electricity. Transit creates jobs and economic impact. o A 2009 APTA study concluded that every $1 billion invested in public transportation capital and operations supported 36,000 jobs. This in turn generated $3.6 billion in sales and yielded nearly $500 million in federal, state and local tax revenues. Stable transit funding helps advance the creation of a green industrial sector. o Jobs created in the private sector sustain the creation of five to ten more jobs by suppliers and sub-suppliers. Expanded transit use lessens America s dependence on imported fuel. o Oil imports account for more than half the American trade deficit in recent years. o The leverage effect of public transportation, supporting efficient land use patterns, can save up to 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline more than three times the amount of gasoline refined from oil imported from Kuwait. Suggested Thinking Points Transit puts money in their pockets: The average American household can save $9,000 by using transit and having one less car (APTA). Transit means jobs: For every mile of light rail built 960 job years are directly supported by the project and 1,590 job years are indirectly supported (Sacramento); DART Rail expansion will produce 32,000 job years of employment over five year period. Transit creates community economic benefit: A local government can receive between 4% and 16% in increased revenue associated with salaries related to transit (CFTE). Transit is environmentally friendly: One person using public transportation rather than driving can reduce carbon emissions by up to 20 lbs a day lbs a year. (APTA)

4 Without adequate funding, transit agencies must cut services and raise fares. This means some riders will lose service. Businesses that supply goods and services to the transit agency will sell fewer products and will have to cut jobs as their business suffers. Tactics/Local Program Examples Special events and promotions Local member agencies and business partners should work together to create events reflecting some of the specific benefits they offer their communities. These stories may be best told by engaging the sources of the story; the people and institutions that rely on transit. Some story examples include: Testimonials from a diverse group of transit customers. Testimonials from business owners and employees who provide transit services and build the vehicles used by transit agencies. Testimonials from businesses and organizations that benefit from a transit connection. Create events that can capture these stories and provide validation of the message. Examples include: Public/customer/employee rallies to celebrate transit use and encourage new transit funding. Capture testimonies in print, online or on video. o Low-cost camcorders (such as a Flip ) make it easy to shoot, edit and post the video. o Testimonies can be sent to a designated agency address. o Provide paper and pens at your events to encourage customers to tell their story. Participate in Dump the Pump day (June 17). Participate in local summer events (July 4 parades, festivals/fairs). Unveil/announce projects started/completed through ARRA or TIGER (stimulus) funds. Secure resolutions of support from local government officials, business/civic organizations. Partner with local environmental or community groups to draw attention to transit connection.

5 Create promotions to generate transit user stories that can be captured in print, online or on video. Tour of local transit equipment supplier/manufacturer by elected officials, chamber members. Invite media. Connect online Engage local online communities of transit users to capture stories. Possible contest on Facebook, Twitter or agency website where winner receives a transit pass (or other prize) for telling their story about using transit. Summertime scavenger hunt for students where they engage with the local transit property by locating items that help tell the transit story and collect them via photos submitted to agency website/facebook page. Tour of agency operations/maintenance facilities by local elected officials, chamber of commerce members. Invite media. Telling Our Story booth for customers at transit center. Customers step into a booth and tell their transit story to video camera. Stories edited into a collection and posted on agency website, YouTube. Petitions Petitions and resolutions of support can be effective. Consider preparing a large signature boards that can be mounted on easels at your events and invite customers to sign them. Another option is to provide petitions printed on standard-sized paper and kept on clipboards to give customers a firm writing surface. Make sure a collection receptacle (specially marked box, for example) is provided to make it easy for customers to submit their stories at your events. Suggested language for a petition to be signed by transit customers would be: (Insert the name of your transit agency) is a vital part of our community. We are telling our story to encourage Congress to provide sufficient funding to help us keep our community healthy and on the move by approving a new transportation funding bill.

6 Transit agency suppliers and other APTA Business Members should engage their employees as well by gathering signatures and stories as described above. Their message is slightly different: We want Congress to pass the transportation funding bill now. Our jobs and our families depend on it. Use existing communication tools, again Incorporate the Telling Our Story theme and art into existing customer, employee and stakeholder newsletters and collateral material. Use them to invite stories and feature those stories in upcoming editions of the publications, station signage and advertisements. Mine the database of newsletter subscribers to solicit stories and publish them on your website. The database could also form the basis for a contest where the best story wins a transit pass or a gift donated by a local business. Putting Local Edition Materials to Work Materials should be sent immediately upon completion of the event to APTA for posting to the APTA website and new media sites. Members should also consider posting their materials on their own websites and new media (You Tube, Facebook, etc.) locations. A stand-alone Telling Our Story: Local Edition page will be created as a link from the main APTA TOS page to host these materials. The page would be updated as materials are submitted. Testimonials will also be compiled for distribution by APTA at the fall DC event. Some examples of deliverables include: News releases or news features for posting on Telling Our Story website. Photos from local Telling Our Story events or other customer or agency activities. Short video clips from local events. Letters or resolutions of support for transit funding. Letters could come from local chambers of commerce, government bodies, elected officials. This program is designed to give local participants maximum flexibility in the development and conduct of their event. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. Above all, the events should be

7 designed to appeal to the local market and produce content that can be incorporated into the larger Telling Our Story initiative. Although the program delivery is the responsibility of the local team, Telling Our Story volunteers are available to help plan local events and brainstorm options. Materials may be sent via to or on flash drive or DVD to: Jack Gonzalez Director, Marketing & Sales American Public Transportation Association 1666 K St., NW Washington, DC Timeline To provide time to review and compile materials for the DC compilation, local TOS events should begin no later than mid-summer. This gives participants as much freedom as possible to conduct their events without competing with other APTA or local agency initiatives. Ideally events are completed and materials submitted no later than the first full week of September to allow time for compilation of a final media package. This schedule is subject to change due to production schedules and the type of final product produced. Measurement/evaluation Conduct events to generate news media coverage, track coverage. Increase web page consumption, subscribers to new media sites at agency and APTA levels. Contacts: Bonnie Arnold Director of Marketing South Florida Regional Transportation Authority / Tri-Rail arnoldb@sfrta.fl.gov Morgan Lyons Director, Media Relations Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) mlyons@dart.org