Description
These programs raise awareness of multimodal mobility options and encourage behavior change through marketing campaigns, gamification (competitions), and educational events, aiming to promote mode shift. Activities such as “Bike Month,” employer-to-employer competitions, and “Clean Air Day(s)” promote awareness and participation in alternative modes of transportation. Messaging during these campaigns often relates to making sustainable and healthy choices and can also include communications relating to safety.
Implementation Details
- Support education and outreach aligned with CV Sync construction phases, focusing on safe travel behavior near corridors.
- Develop regionally branded education kits (e.g., reflective gear, multilingual handouts, QR-coded safety maps) for distribution at open streets events and community markets.
- Partner with community-based organizations and Lift to Rise to conduct in-language education campaigns in high-VMT neighborhoods.
- Utilize the SCAG Go Human campaign to activate bicycle and pedestrian corridors, such as CV Lync with safety demonstrations and visibility events in partnership with member jurisdictions.
- Align outreach activities with VMT reduction goals and performance tracking metrics, reporting total engagement numbers.
- Leverage partnerships with SCAG’s Go Human Campaign to host safety pop-ups, open streets events, and distribute visibility gear.
- Target Spanish-speaking and tribal communities through tailored outreach, promoting campaigns through CVAG member cities’ social media, libraries, and community centers, and supporting education and outreach aligned with CVAG regional projects.
- Partner with community-based organizations to conduct multi-lingual education campaigns.
Mitigation Potential
Increasing awareness of mobility options, providing resources, and introducing competitions reduces VMT by increasing usage of multimodal options.
For more details, see CAPCOA, T-7. Implement Commute Trip Reduction Marketing, pg. 89-91 for VMT reduction quantification.
Linked Strategies
Equity Considerations
Use culturally competent messaging and community-driven media. Engage trusted messengers to ensure campaigns resonate with historically marginalized groups. Prioritize outreach in areas with lower active transportation rates.
Funding Sources
Developing, managing and promoting marketing campaigns require funding and staff resources, but are less costly than capital projects. Costs may be shared by many municipalities or partners within the region and can be paid for with CMAQ funding or general Planning funds. These programs are often efficient both for reducing VMT and funding when conducted at a regional scale. Funding sources include the Sustainable Communities Program – Active Transportation & Safety (Southern California Council of Governments), the Regional Active Transportation Program – Riverside Region (Southern California Council of Governments), and the Statewide Active Transportation Program (California Transportation Commission).
Examples/Case Studies
SCAG Go Human Campaign
SCAG’s “Go Human” campaign used street-level pop-up events and multilingual education materials to promote walking and biking safety in underserved communities. Outreach included reflective gear giveaways and community partnerships in high-VMT areas.
(Source: LDR TDM Toolbox, p. 9)
California Active Transportation Program Symposium
This is a two-day event co-hosted by the California Transportation Commission and Caltrans, with support from the Active Transportation Resource Center. This symposium brings together local, regional, state, and Tribal governments to learn, share knowledge, and network with other agency staff, planners, engineers, public health professionals, and advocates. The event aims to foster collaboration and innovation in active transportation projects statewide, offering opportunities to discuss best practices, implementation strategies, and the latest research in the field.