Castlepollard Coole Active Age

Description

Extending the reach of a local active age group and engaging with this community of older people to create ambassadors for TFI Local Link Longford Westmeath Community Transport

Aim of Initiative

The Coole Active Age Group travelling on the service (WR33) became part of TFI Local Links communication programme in 2023/2024 to encourage a confidence in demand responsive transport and carry messages to other groups they belonged to.
We worked with Rosaline to create strong messages about the demand responsive nature of our services, and how flexible the service can be. We took testamonials from the passengers and driver to create an autumn and winter campaign and we photographed the women attending this group to create positive social media messages to illustrate three key messages – accessibility, free travel and appropriate route planning.

Who is it aimed at

Older people who consider TFI local Link as a service for people to go shopping and collect pensions- and start to see how the rural transport has significantly increased and has the important function of bringing people together for social reasons

3 Steps critical to success

1. The cohort- these active people are excellent ambassadors for TFI local Link and they are a trusted voice in the community
2. The operator- Salmons- the bus is accessible, the operator is flexible in its route from week to week, with the driver applying common sense to ensure every single passenger’s journey is as short and comfortable as possible
3. TFI Local Link LWR commitment to ensuring it is accessible and appropriate and available – constantly working to link older people to excellent community initiatives.

3 Challenges in Planning / Delivery

1. The bus is on a specific contract so relied on operators willingness to be flexible within a time and geographical area bound space- limits were reviewed constantly –
2. Transport is the induced demand- the success was measured in – did the message reach people and encourage contact with our office- we did not have the capacity to measure this
3. Constantly checking back with our models that they were happy to continue to be our ambassadors promoting the service they used and give us constant feedback to allow us to improve.

3 Outcomes / Benefits

1. The passengers of WR33 were an extraordinary group of models for the transport campaign- smiling faces- demonstrating accessibility and community – it provided authentic images for the campaign
2. Increased reach- the constant review of the WR33’s route created an efficiency that allowed the service to extend outwards and where necessary increase capacity.
3. The message of accessibility being more than a physical issue was made well during the year. With Rosaline and others speaking openly with TFI Local Link about all the barriers older people faced – including unable to call every week (we created a block booking system) , needed to be on buses for short time ( broke the run into a number shorter runs), difficulty with seat belts and reaching bus (driver dismounted from the bus at each collection point), concern and anxiety when DRT was different time ( calls made with times when route was identified), wish to give feedback (Local link called with the activity group on a number of times through the year to collect info)