Project Objective
The #GetAjaxMoving project aims to create awareness, build excitement, and encourage Ajax residents to use transportation demand management (TDM) tools as part of their daily routines.
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- Date: 2016-2018
- Town: Ajax, Canada
- Partner: Town of Ajax
Ajax, ON is a town of 110,000, located east of Toronto. Like many suburban communities, Ajax faces the challenges of congestion and carbon emissions due to its dependence on car travel. In response, the Town of Ajax set a goal – that by 2031, 30% of all trips will be made by walking, cycling, or public transportation.
To support this goal, 8 80 Cities, in partnership with the Town of Ajax, launched a transportation awareness initiative to encourage residents to use five different sustainable modes of transportation: walking, cycling, transit, carpooling, and telecommuting.
We visited community centres, libraries and popular events in town to set up pop-up engagement booths and talked to residents about their commute. We designed a series of TDM toolkits outlining the benefits of each sustainable mode of transportation.
We created fun, mini games to educate children about using a different way other than the car to get to school and other places. While the children were playing, we used the opportunity to also engage with their parents and chat with them about travel choices.
In the second half of the project, a neighbourhood was selected to be part of an Individualized Marketing campaign. Residents from over 100 households were greeted door-to-door by our team, and they were offered a form to request free transportation resources, including maps, TDM toolkits and brochures, according to their personal needs. With a personal touch, the campaign helped many residents in making the switch to sustainable transportation.
Overall, we talked to more than 1,000 residents of all ages and abilities at various events, gave out more than 900 TDM toolkits altogether, and reached over 20,000 residents through social media. Our Individualized Marketing campaign prompted nearly 70% of the participants to walk more often, and nearly 90% of them said they would be more likely to use sustainable modes of transportation in the future.
Within a short period of time, the #GetAjaxMoving campaign has made significant progress by reaching out to thousands of residents and community members through digital and personal interactions. While moving towards sustainable transportation requires a cultural shift in the long term, the Town of Ajax now has a solid foundation to build upon and invest more in amenities and infrastructure.
