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Stay Back From The Tracks – train safety campaign7b: Issues/crisis management communication – public involvement approach

Lars Erickson, Communications DirectorTranscomm 2017

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REASON FOR CAMPAIGN

• WSDOT’s Amtrak Cascades passenger train service is re-routing to a new bypass through Tacoma, Lakewood, JBLM, DuPont

• Safety was top concern expressed by communities during environmental process

• Route currently only used by slow-moving freight trains

• New service will see 14 daily passenger trains traveling up to 79 mph

• WSDOT committed to create a strong safety education and outreach campaign

JBLM

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TARGET AUDIENCES

• Residents, workers and visitors to Tacoma, Lakewood, DuPont, JBLM communities along the new train bypass

• Used census data to determine demographics• ~ 500,000 population• 75% White, 7% Black, 7% Asian, 10%

Hispanic• 10% active military or veterans• English, Spanish, Korean top languages• 80% drive alone for daily commute

• Researched previous train-related injuries and deaths in Washington state• 69% involved males between 22 and 60

years old• 91 people killed by trains in last 5 years• 83% were trespassers on property owned

by the railroads, not at designated crossings

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TRAIN SAFETY CAMPAIGN

• Goal is to reach as many people as possible in the target area with key safety messages

• Created the Stay Back From The Tracks campaign with many components to reach several target audiences

• Partnered with Seattle Seahawks to maximize visibility and leverage fan base and reputation

• Developed advocates in the communities to help promote train safety messages

• Chief of Police for JBLM military base• City councilmembers, school districts• Local television and newspapers

• Campaign resulted in more than 4 million impressions targeted in the geographic area

• Deemed a major success in meeting goals

• Campaign will continue into next year

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StayBackFromTheTracks.comWEBSITE

• Website serves as the anchor for the campaign

• Doug Baldwin safety video

• Safety quiz

• Tips focused on top three messages

• Links to more information

• More than 9,000 visits to the site

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FACEBOOK AND TWITTER POSTS PROMOTE CAMPAIGN ACTIVITIES

Amtrak Cascades, WSDOT, and Seahawks Facebook and Twitter pages provide an online presence for the campaign

• More than 200,000 people reached

• 111,000 watched videos

• 2,300 directed to webpage to take the Railroad Safety Quiz

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SCHOOL PRESENTATIONS AN IMPORTANT ELEMENT

• Many schools near the railroad tracks

• Students cross tracks to get to and from school

• More than 7,000 students heard the train safety message through presentations

• 28,000 handouts distributed for students to take home

• Video of Baldwin’s visit to schools viewed by 12,000 people

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PAID ADVERTISEMENTS AND POSTERS

• Radio spots on five targeted stations reached 1.1 million

• Cable television ads reached 140,000 viewers

• Print and on-line ads in military and community magazines reached 152,000

• Ads geo-targeted on Pandora reached 600,000

• Video ads in movie theaters seen by 106,000

• Posters convey real-life stories of tragedies

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SEAHAWKS TRAIN

• Rolling billboard travels the Amtrak Cascades corridor every day

• Debuted in October 2016 to much fan fare

• Seen by millions over last 7 months

• Will be on the corridor for another year

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MATERIALS CREATED IN THREE LANGUAGES

• More than 30,000 handouts and posters distributed in English, Spanish, and Korean – the three most prevalent languages in the target market area

• Distributed through schools, community organizations, markets, businesses