innovative approaches to public involvement pauletta tonilas regional transportation district senior...
TRANSCRIPT
Innovative Approaches to Public Involvement
Pauletta TonilasRegional Transportation District
Senior Manager of Public Relations
February 24, 2014
RTD FasTracks Program
• 1 rail line open
• 5 rail lines in construction
• 1 bus rapid transit (BRT) line in construction
• Denver Union Station redevelopment in construction
Public Information/Involvement Program• Multi-faceted PI program
– Public meetings– Email blasts– Website– Social media– Informational materials– Special events– Public opinion surveys– Newsletters– Videos
– Telephone Town Hall Meetings
Former Director Newsletters• Previous way to
connect with the public
• 15 quarterly Director newsletters
• Major time investment
– 100 staff hours per issue
• Little ROI
• Time to try something new!
Telephone Town Hall Meetings• Large conference call; live radio show
• Moderator facilitates meeting
• Calls pushed out to thousands of numbers
• Call-in number available
• Keypad polling with immediate results
• Screened caller questions
• Opportunity to inform, educate and get input
5
Telephone Town Halls vs. Newsletters
15 Telephone Town Halls 15 Director Newsletters
450,000 touches 6,500 touches
74,000 participants 1,300 opens
.12 per contact $1.03 per contact
.73 per participant $5.17 per open
Mobility Study Public Involvement
• Tested town hall meetings in lieu of public meetings
• Two town hall meetings held
• 10,500 participants• Received input on:
– What’s important when riding transit
– How they’d like to get information about the study
Tele Town Hall Lessons Learned• Keep recorded messages short
• Provide script for participants, but don’t over-script everyone
• Encourage dialogue and interaction among participants
• Provide staff support during meetings, but don’t over-staff
• Have info resources on hand during meetings for reference
• Prepare questions and key messages for filler
• Check and double-check call-in number and ID code
• Hold a briefing to run through format and share tips
• Provide food and beverages
• Check voice mail box and respond to questions/comments in a timely manner