Entry Category
Best DEI Program
Name of Intervention/ Program
The First Ride Matters
Background and Situation Analysis
The Seattle region is at a mobility breaking point. Ranked seventh-most congested city in the U.S., drivers are losing an estimated 66 hours a year in traffic. As return-to-office trends accelerate, congestion is getting worse, with negative health and environmental impacts.
At the same time, the region is undergoing a once-in-a-generation transformation of its transit system. Historic investments, including the $3 billion Lynnwood Link bringing light rail north of Seattle and updates to King County Metro’s bus network, are expanding transit access and easing congestion.
Recognizing that large-scale transit service changes can be difficult to navigate, especially for people new to transit or facing language barriers, Metro launched an inclusive campaign designed to guide North King County residents through the changes and build confidence in trying transit.
The campaign was built around two complementary social marketing strategies: remove financial barriers through a prepaid $25 transit card and make participation easy and accessible through multilingual, community-based outreach, simple enrollment pathways, and step-by-step guidance. Together, these strategies transformed a complex system change into an accessible first transit experience, particularly for low-income households and residents with limited English proficiency.
Priority Audiences(s)
The campaign prioritized North King County residents who could benefit most from improved transit but face barriers to accessing information and services, particularly low-income households and people with limited English proficiency. Census data and Metro’s Rider/Non-Rider Survey (n=3,556) identified four priority language groups with high rates of limited English proficiency:
- Chinese (5% of the population; 38% speak English “less than very well”)
- Spanish (4%; 26%)
- Vietnamese (1%; 43%)
- Korean (1%; 40%)
The campaign also prioritized lower-income households, recognizing that transportation costs can present a significant barrier to trying transit.
Behavioral Objectives
Guided by these insights, the campaign aimed to reduce the financial and practical barriers that prevent people from trying transit and encourage long-term ridership. Objectives included:
- Generate 20,000 transit trips by first-time and lapsed riders.
- Equitably distribute 4,800 pre-paid $25 transit cards to reduce payment barriers, with at least 11% going to households speaking a language other than English and 33% to lower -income households.
- Encourage transit use beyond the initial $25 incentive, building confidence and long-term ridership.
Description of Strategy/Intervention
Metro’s research found that residents actively seek information when transit feels unfamiliar, that first experiences strongly influence long-term travel behavior, and that infrastructure investments alone do not guarantee adoption. Research also uncovered a social barrier: some residents associated transit with negative stereotypes, yet responded positively to creative featuring friendly, everyday community members.
In response, the campaign focused on reducing both financial and practical barriers to trying transit. A prepaid $25 transit card lowered the financial risk of a first ride, while multilingual materials, simple instructions, trusted community messengers, and culturally relevant creative reduced uncertainty and made participation easy.
To ensure incentives reached those most likely to benefit, the campaign used a phased distribution strategy that prioritized low-income and multilingual households before expanding to the broader community.
The campaign also hosted a photoshoot with friendly, diverse local transit riders, showcasing them in creative to replace stereotypes with authentic, welcoming imagery, reinforcing that transit is for everyone.
Implementation
The campaign removed barriers at every stage of the participant journey—from learning about the program to taking a first ride. Residents could request a transit card online through a QR code, by mailing back a simple request form, or in person through trusted community organizations. Cards arrived by mail with clear onboarding materials, while bilingual ambassadors provided personalized assistance at community events.
Every tactic reinforced the same strategy: reduce the cost of trying transit while making participation as simple and accessible as possible. When demand exceeded expectations midway through the campaign, general-market signups were temporarily paused to preserve access for priority audiences and protect the campaign’s equity goals.
This strategy was delivered through three integrated tactics:
Direct Mail & $25 Transit Card Fulfillment: The team built a targeted mailing list segmented by income, language, and acculturation level, sending in-language mailers to 23k multilingual and low-income households. The mailer’s “try transit” messaging broke riding into simple steps, shared relevant routes, and made it easy to request a $25 transit card via QR code or a tear-off form. Transit cards were sent by mail with a welcome letter and brochure.
Community Partnerships: Recognizing that government is not always a trusted messenger, Metro partnered with Korean Community Service Center (KCSC), Latino Community Fund (LCF), and The Anchor Group (a Black- and multicultural-focused PR firm) to deploy bicultural, bilingual ambassadors who answered transit questions and distributed $25 transit cards at community events. KCSC engaged residents at 10 events and community locations and shared transit information at home visits. LCF tabled at 22 events and amplified service change information through a Spanish radio interview that received 3,000+ Facebook plays. Anchor hosted a back-to-school “Transit & Tunes” event at North Seattle College, drawing 250 attendees.
Advertising & Multicultural Influencers: A two-tiered ad campaign delivered service change messaging in the five priority languages through digital, transit, and multicultural media, while targeted Meta ads promoted the transit card offer by language, location, and income. Trusted local influencers Jaime Mendez (a Spanish-speaking former Univision Seattle Anchor) and Dannishee (a Mandarin-speaking lifestyle vlogger) created short in-language videos promoting the transit card offer and service changes, which ran as paid ads and on their channels. Se Habla Media also livestreamed an interview with Metro staff.
Evaluation Methods and Results
The Lynnwood Link Connections campaign exceeded every objective, demonstrating that combining meaningful financial incentives with friction-free program access can drive both immediate adoption and lasting behavior change.
Objective: Generate 20,000 transit trips by first-time and lapsed riders.
Result: Boarding data shows that riders took 38,000+ transit trips using campaign-distributed cards in the first eleven months, exceeding the goal by 90% and indicating strong trial of the new service. Unlike earlier extensions, the Lynnwood Extension met its ridership projections.
Objective: Equitably distribute 4,800 pre-paid $25 transit cards to reduce payment barriers, with at least 11% going to households speaking a language other than English and 33% to lower -income households.
Result: The campaign distributed 7,402 prepaid transit cards, surpassing the goal by 54%, confirming that removing fare and access barriers successfully enabled participation. Equity outcomes exceeded targets; 37% of transit cards went to households speaking a language other than English (+26 percentage points above goal), and 51% to lower-income households (+18 percentage points above goal), reflecting the effectiveness of in-language outreach and community-based distribution.
Objective: Encourage continued transit use beyond the initial $25 incentive.
Result: Post-campaign feedback showed lasting impact. In a post-campaign survey, 32% of participants reported riding transit more after receiving their transit card, and 95% plan to continue riding after the initial balance is used. Participants also reported reduced car use, greater confidence navigating the system, and a stronger sense of community.
The mix of tactics proved effective in reaching residents. Thirty-five percent of post-program survey respondents reported learning about the transit card offer through the campaign mailer, reaffirming the effectiveness of direct mail for transit campaign recruitment. Another 16% heard about the offer through a Meta ad, and 5% heard about it through an online ad. Combined with face-to-face outreach, these tactics generated broad awareness, with 25% of respondents reporting they learned about the offer through word of mouth.
Together, these results demonstrate that pairing financial incentives with convenient, culturally accessible program design can convert first-time transit users into confident, repeat riders, maximizing the return on major public transit investments.
Entry Number: 25