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Title:

Uses of Social Media in Public Transportation: Summary of Findings from TCRP Synthesis SB-20

Accession Number:

01372725

Record Type:

Component

Abstract:

Social media is a group of web-based applications that encourage users to interact with one another. Examples include Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. This paper presents findings from TCRP Synthesis SB-20, Uses of Social Media in Public Transportation. The paper focuses on the findings from the survey conducted for the synthesis and the more detailed cases. Thirty-five public transportation agencies in the U.S. and Canada participated in an online survey, and six were selected for more detailed interviews. Most of the surveyed agencies used Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. Twitter was frequently used for providing time-sensitive information like service alerts, while agencies selected both Twitter and Facebook for disseminating agency news, meeting and event notices, contests and promotions, and general service information. Communicating with current riders was the most important goal for agencies and also the area where they considered social media to be most effective. Survey respondents were especially likely to use these applications to reach everyday riders, young adults and students. At the other end of the spectrum, agencies considered social media to be least effective for reaching seniors and low-income communities. Surveyed agencies stressed the importance of integrating social media with more traditional forms of rider communication and valued social media for providing unfiltered customer feedback. They reminded agencies to obtain the necessary internal approvals before moving forward and to understand the staffing requirements. Finally, social media can be a moving target and the challenge is to stay flexible, expect the unexpected, and adapt accordingly.

Supplemental Notes:

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AP030 Public Transportation Marketing and Fare Policy

Monograph Accession #:

01362476

Report/Paper Numbers:

12-2733

Language:

English

Corporate Authors:

Transportation Research Board

500 Fifth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001 United States

Authors:

Bregman, Susan

Pagination:

18p

Publication Date:

2012

Conference:

Transportation Research Board 91st Annual Meeting

Location: Washington DC, United States
Date: 2012-1-22 to 2012-1-26
Sponsors: Transportation Research Board

Media Type:

Digital/other

Features:

Figures; References; Tables

Candidate Terms:

Social networking

Geographic Terms:

Morgantown (West Virginia)

Subject Areas:

Administration and Management; Data and Information Technology; Passenger Transportation; Public Transportation; Society; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning

Source Data:

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2012 Paper #12-2733

Files:

TRIS, TRB

Created Date:

Feb 8 2012 5:11PM