Data Driven Public Information & Education Campaigns: An Iowa Example

by Bob ThompsonProgram Evaluator

Iowa Governor’s Traffic Safety BureauJuly 16, 2003

International Traffic Records ForumDenver, Colorado

The Issues

Improving seat belt use

in Iowa - especially

among low use

populations

• Identifying the problem• Markedly lower (64%) on rural roads (on

secondary roads for 1991 survey vs. 79% on interstates & 69% overall)

• Municipal rate in 1991 also 64% but big difference is:

• Fatality rate on municipal roads 1 per 100 million VMT

• Fatality rate on secondary roads 4 per 100 million VMT (statewide just under 2 per 100 million VMT)

Why were Iowans so much less likely to buckle up on secondary/rural roads vs. the interstate?

•1991 Attitudinal Survey•Reflected the following:

“I’m not going far,so why bother?”

• Familiarity breeds contempt• “I’ve driven this road for years

and I’ve never had an accident.”• It’s only local traffic, so everyone

drives carefully• I always wear my seat belt on

trips and on the interstate

In other words,classic decision-making based on myths, half-truths and illusions

The Solution (or at least part of the solution)

Some good old

fashioned P I &

E

GoalsA. Dispel myths about the safety of

familiar, local roads close to home

B. Increase public awareness of the relative crash/fatality risk of rural roads and highways vs. the interstate

C. Improve rural belt usage

D. Reduce rural traffic fatalities

The Campaign

Strong focus on television as the

principal medium (reach the

broadest audience – younger

demographics than newspapers)

supported by complimentary

newspaper campaign, which

featured “slicks” small enough to be

“column fillers”

• Distribution to 25 television stations with extensive follow-up one-on-one contact between ad agency and local program directors

• Distribution to 350 newspapers

Timing is everything . . .

• Aired in spring/summer of 1992

• National push for 70% belt use by 1992 was in full swing

• Received at least some air play on all 25 stations while slicks appeared in over 250 newspapers

The Outcome

• Impact Evaluation – involves university types controlled variables in study, etc. NOT

• who has the money, who has the time?

• Administrative Evaluation – also known as “seat of the pants”

Administrative Evaluation

• Did A & B happen so A must have had an impact on B

• Bottom Line

•secondary belt use jumped 7 percentage points

•overall belt use up 2 percentage points

So something worked . .

• Since that time, education has been coupled with a strong rural enforcement via sTEP

• Today secondary (rural) road seat belt use in Iowa is 87% the highest for any road type

Other Data Driven Iowa PI&E Campaigns

• Alcohol/impaired driving problem

• Young adult drivers, especially males, strongly overrepresented as drinking drivers in fatal crashes

• Men in their 20s represent 8-9% of Iowa’s drivers but 35% of all drinking drivers in fatal crashes

90% of all drinking drivers in fatal crashes have no previous OWI/DUI convictions

The vast majority of OWI arrests in Iowa (77%) are 1st time offenders

The following PSA was a novel approach to combat drunk driving

trailers or promos aired in all three

major theater chains generating more

than $1 million in free exposure . . . to

a relatively captive audience which

represents a near perfect

demographic

The PSA was significant for us

because it opened a new door

– free exposure as

Additional (ultimate) result

• Iowa set an all-time low in alcohol-related fatalities with just 99 in 2002, dipping below 100 for the 1st time

• Reductions in drunk driving fatal crashes for young adult males contributed significantly to this decline

Speaking of impaired driving

• Here’s “one (last example) for the road”

• Motorcycle safety and helmet use in Iowa

• One of 3 states (IA, IL, CO) with no motorcycle helmet law

• Received helmet transfer funds in 1995 totaling $1.9 million

• 85-90% of all Iowa motorcycle fatalities are not helmeted

• No legislative success in this are whatsoever

• Hard core group (ABATE) which will never change

• So a “non-traditional” approach in order

Result or perhaps just case of dumb luck• 43 motorcycle fatalities in 1995• 16 motorcycle fatalities in 1996

Perhaps not a fluke - • 37 fatalities averaged in ’93-’95• 23 fatalities averaged in ’96-’98

Since then, fatalities creeping up with 41 in 2002, so “Biker Bar” re-released

I hope you have enjoyed this as much as I have

Thanks and have fun at the rest of the Forum