The City of Austin reduced employee commute travel by one million vehicle miles within six months of making its Leave Time Reward (LTR) a permanent incentive. During this period, the percentage of drive-alone trips fell from 53% to 41%. Attribution of these impacts to the City’s time off incentive policy is strengthened because that policy was introduced in the pilot study, then withdrawn after the pilot, then later reintroduced for the permanent program (Reversal Design.) Designated a Landmark case study in 2020.
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Bologna’s Bella Mossa program awarded participants points for walking, cycling or using public transport. Points could be redeemed for discounts or payment towards merchandise and services from 85 retailers, including supermarkets, sports retailers, bike stores, opticians, bookshops, cinemas, restaurants and bars. In 2018, 10,000 people reported taking 995,000 trips by alternative transportation methods, totalling 3.7 million kilometres and saving 711 tonnes of CO2. The program won CIVITAS’s “Bold Measure" award in 2017 and was designated a Landmark case study in 2019.
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Capitol Hill In Motion is a recent evolution of the individualized marketing approach used by King County, Washington State, USA. It illustrates how to further engage communities where most trips are already not drive-alone. With remarkably high signup rates, this campaign also delivered a solid 16% average reduction in drive-alone trips (surpassing the campaign goal and King County’s overall goal of a 10% reduction). Designated in 2017.
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Chicago’s Go Program is an Individualized Marketing program that helps residents walk, bike, ride transit, and use bike share more frequently, while driving alone less often. Compared with past Individualized Marketing efforts in other cities, the Go Programs have pushed the envelope of inclusive, accessible programming that serves a very broad range of Chicago neighborhoods - and the very high participation rates and positive post-program stakeholder input show that this effort paid off. Because of these successes, the Go Program can serve as a model for other communities looking to integrate equity and diversity in Transportation Demand Management programs. On average, 65% of post-program survey respondents report increased walking, biking, or transit usage because of the program. The program’s behavior-changing results led the City of Chicago to designate funding for additional neighborhoods in the future. Designated in 2017.
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By the end of 2017, Brisbane’s Active Schools Travel Program had engaged over 157 primary schools to reduce single car trips by up to 35% and increase walking trips correspondingly. Half of the students at participating schools travel to school by active means, twice the state average. This program illustrates good use of safety instruction and practice, stamped student passports, norm appeals, competitions, and three levels of recognition and incentives. Designated a Landmark Case Study in 2018.
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The Bicycle Friendly Communities (BFC) program provides municipalities with advice and feedback, goal setting assistance, training programs and recognition awards to create more bike-friendly communities. It is a results-oriented program designed to encourage municipal decision makers to consider how their existing cycling programs complement one another and how they can be improved. Detailed feedback from transportation professionals and community stakeholders gives communities an accurate measure of where they are and a detailed roadmap to the future.
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This case study illustrates the successful engagement of a large organization (Environment Canada) in a broad-scale staff participation program. That program, the Commuter Challenge, is a Canada-wide NGO-led event that challenges commuters to reduce the use of single-occupant vehicles during a specific time frame. It is used as an awareness raising initiative and to promote trial of an activity, not as a scientific auditing or survey tool.
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BIXI Montreal is a great example of how to make urban cycling a more practical and attractive transportation option. BIXI makes it convenient for commuters to cycle rather than drive, especially for frequent, short trips. The system was specifically developed to augment Montreal’s existing transit system and between 2009 and 2013 Montrealers made more than 13 million trips with BIXI. It is a turn-key service that is inexpensive and replicable across many countries and cultures. In addition, by making cycling more chic and attractive, BIXI has had a major impact on cycling in North America. Revised in September 2015.
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In Motion participants pledge to shift two drive-alone trips per week to transit, ridesharing, biking or walking. The program uses motivational interviewing, commitments, rewards, engaging materials and norm appeals tailored to each target community. It has been called into action during or in anticipation of major construction, transit restructures or new transit service such as light rail or bus rapid transit. Since creating In Motion in 2004, King County Metro Transit has applied a growing toolkit of community-based social marketing techniques to persuade about 23,000 Seattle-area travelers to drive less. Designated a Landmark case study in 2015. Access the 4.5 minute You Tube video summary using the link near the bottom of the left hand taupe-colored column.
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This well-documented obesity prevention program pilot for low-income families in Carrboro NC (USA) featured three main components. Weekly work sessions in a community garden provided gardening instruction and practice opportunities and a familiarity with the vegetables. A seven-week workshop series covered cooking and nutrition. Social activities and events built and maintained interest in the garden and fostered interaction between garden members. By the end of their participation in the program, 17% (n=6, p<0.004) of obese or overweight children had improved their BMI classification and 100% of the children with a BMI classification of normal had maintained that BMI classification.
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New York City’s Citi Bike is the largest bike share program in North America, and a key element in the city’s transportation network, providing a last mile solution. A similar approach is replicable in the downtown cores of other major cities where taxies, buses and individual cars all intertwine together.
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CommuteSM is Santa Monica’s Transportation Management Association, formed pro bono in 2012 by RideAmigos. In collaboration with the City of Santa Monica, CommuteSM launched Santa Monica’s first-ever Commuter Challenge in 2015 (April 1 to September 1). This challenge encouraged residents and employees in Santa Monica to bike, carpool/vanpool, ride transit, or walk to work, instead of driving alone.
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Love to Ride provides tailored resources and support for increasing commuter cycling, staff fitness, and reducing traffic congestion at work. It uses 'stage of change' to segment participants and cost-effectively tailor communications to them, helping them move along a personal journey of change. A web-based platform and GPS app reach people through their computers, cell phones and tablets, with tailored and timely information. Originally developed in New Zealand, Love to Ride has now been replicated in continental Europe, the UK, US and Australia. It was designated a Landmark case study in 2014.
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CAC's HSBC Clean Air Achievers programs provides youth with a chance to meet high profile athletes and be inspired by personal messages to adopt healthier, more active and sustainable lifestyles. The program has dual goals of reducing air pollution and increasing physical activity levels via active transportation. Designated a Landmark case study in 2013.
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This is a rare, well-documented model for promoting walking and cycling in a small or rural community.
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People are most physically active when their environments are both highly walkable and very green, according to a study by Marquet et al (2022), published in Environment International.
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When healthier menu options were placed first on an online menu, they were chosen more often. However, the order of pacement had no effect with physical (rather than online) menus.
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Being physically active is one of the most important steps that Americans of all ages can take to improve their health. But only half of adults and about a quarter of high school students get the amount of physical activity recommended in national guidelines. Step It Up! The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Promote Walking and Walkable Communities (2015) aims to get Americans walking and wheelchair rolling for the physical activity needed to help prevent and reduce their risk of chronic diseases and premature death. And it supports positive mental health and healthy aging as well.
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This online kit includes social media messages, shareable graphics and videos.
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This 2016 review found that the inclusion of at least 5 SMBC domains (from the National Social Marketing Centre's social marketing benchmark criteria) in school-based interventions could benefit efforts to prevent obesity in young people.
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This document provides a brief summary of options for assessing what portion of any measured behavior changes resulted from your program and what portion resulted from other influences. These options can also be used to attribute the affects of your program on a wide range of related variables such as resources used, pollutants released, accident rates and health status.
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This 2017 study compares two modes of visually presenting information - one using photographs and the other using cartoons - on audience's knowledge, attitudes and behavioural intentions.
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Evidence-based interventions for public health. Includes sections on alcohol, motor vehicles, physical activity, tobacco, cancer, nutrition, pregnancy, vaccines, diabetes, obesity, sexual behavior, violence, mental health, oral health, social environment and workplace.
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This 2015 peer reviewed study finds that individuals who walk at a brisk or fast pace are more likely to have a lower weight when compared to individuals doing other activities.
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According to this 2017 review, the programs are helpful. It is not yet clear if adding activity monitors to the programs provides addititional benefit.
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This meta-analysis investigated how different wearable activity trackers (pedometers and accelerometers) may impact physical activity levels in older adults. Nine studies met the eligibility criteria: Four using accelerometers, four using pedometers, and one comparing accelerometers and pedometers, for a total number of 939 participants. Accelerometers, but not pedometers, increased physical activity in older adults.
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This site offers extensive case studies, tools, resources and research related to workplace commuting initiatives. The Best Workplaces for Commuters program provides national recognition for qualifying employers in the United States.
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Provides photographs, illustrations and multimedia files, with image collections for environmental health, natural disasters, anatomy, biological sciences, heart health, nutrition, chemicals and drugs, diseases (including AIDS) and organisms.
Most of the images in the collection are in the public domain and are thus free of any copyright restrictions.
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While this resource is over a decade old, it is still a rich source of information. Contains an introduction to social marketing, and sections on program description, market research, market strategy, interventions, evaluation, and implementation. Also contains examples, resources, research tools and a media library with videos. Users can develop plans and models that can be imported into common word processors
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Includes many annotated links to other web-based resources supporting social marketing and social change
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