Unit 5

Road Safety Program Management

Module 5.4Outreach and Communication

Module 5.4Outreach and Communication

Learning Objective Duration 50 Minutes

At the conclusion of this module, participants will be able to:

Develop opportunities to stimulate change through effective communications and outreach techniques.

In this module, participants will learn ways to stimulate change through effective communication and outreach activities.

This module will explore the various elements of a communications plan and a public involvement effort. Topics covered include:

• Effective and Ineffective Communication Approaches

• Elements of a Communications Plan • Traditional and Non-traditional Delivery

Mechanisms• Elements of Effective Public Involvement• Do’s and Don’ts for Public Outreach • Measuring the Effectiveness of Public

Involvement

Improving transportation safety is not based solely on modifications to the roadway and surrounding environment, but also involves changing the behavior and attitude of the individuals who use the transportation system.

Changing traffic safety behavior is difficult and may take several years before real change is evident. Drivers, in particular, often underestimate the

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likelihood they will be involved in a crash despite the fact that on average, one in four Americans will be involved in a crash sometime during their lifetime.

Several examples show us behavior change is possible. The effort in the late 1980s to stop drunk driving resulted in substantial decreases.

Ask: Can anyone think of any other communications campaigns that successfully changed behavior? Answer – Anti-smoking campaign. Research provides us with some examples where public information can be effective including programs that communicate health knowledge not previously known or “new” knowledge.

Ask: Can anyone think of any traffic safety information campaigns that provided “new” knowledge? Answer: Changing the position of child car seats to the back seat to avoid injuries caused by air bags. Another effective approach is programs conducted as part of a broader community effort or in support of law enforcement.

Ask: Does anyone have an example of this type of public information program? Answer: The “Click It or Ticket” high visibility safety belt enforcement campaign.

Other successful approaches include: Campaigns with careful pre-testing and

delineation of a target group that receives the messages;

Longer-term programs that deliver a message in sufficient intensity over time;

Education programs built around behavioral change models, using interactive methods to teach skills to resist social influences through role playing;

Public information campaigns implemented in conjunction with other ongoing prevention activities; and

Fear messages combined with concrete steps to avoid the danger.

Research also provides us with information on what does NOT work in the communications area. Ineffective public information and education or what is commonly referred to in the safety field as PI&E is associated with:

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Passive messaging communicated by signs, pamphlets, brochures and buttons;

Slogans that give simple exhortations for people to behave in certain ways to avoid undesirable outcomes;

Education programs that are lecture oriented and informative only;

Short-term programs with low-intensity messages; and

Use of extreme fear or scare techniques, especially when directed at adolescents and without clear instruction of steps necessary to avoid the danger.

Effective communications programs – like any effective endeavor – need a plan. The first step in developing a communications plan is to identify the target audience. Is the program aimed at the general public or a specific sub-set of the population such as young drivers, pedestrians, or people who drive aggressively or impaired? Focusing efforts on strategies that connect with the target audience is particularly important in today’s environment of tight budgets and scarce resources.

In addition to a target audience, secondary audiences may also be included. For instance, if your program targets young drivers, a secondary audience may include the parents of these novice drivers.

Once the target audience has been identified, determine their level of knowledge about the safety problem; their beliefs, values, or motivations that promote or hinder their willingness to hear your message and what mechanisms they use to obtain information. This information is then used to craft the right traffic safety message.

Traffic safety messages may be designed to modify a behavior, stop a behavior, start a behavior, or be a combination of two or more of these persuasion tasks.

Once an appropriate message has been developed, it is always a good idea to focus test your message or messages with the target audience. A pre-test can identify points-of-view of the target audience, provide unexpected insights or reactions, and help you determine if your strategy gets the desired reaction.Once you have identified your target audience and developed an appropriate message, you need to

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determine the right delivery mechanisms or the tactics you will use to deliver your message.

Delivery mechanisms commonly used to provide road safety information include:

• Public service announcements (PSAs) – radio or television commercials that promote programs, activities, or services free of charge;

• Paid advertising; News programs – radio and television;

• Information programs – radio and television talk shows, interview shows, and documentaries;

• Print media – newspapers, magazines, and booklets; and posters.

The National Road Safety Foundation, AAA, and NHTSA represent three organizations that provide PSAs, brochures, films, and books on traffic safety issues for use by state and local transportation agencies and organizations.

Guidebooks/Desk References can be used by professionals who want to learn more about road safety issues. Information targeted at the general public is typically very concise, brief, and provides little technical detail. Guidebooks and research journal articles provide more technical information for planners and engineers who have traditionally not had access to a road safety education program. The Transportation Safety Planning Working Group developed a Transportation Safety Planners Desk Reference for planners, which provides a context for transportation safety planning and information related to the methods planners can use to sharpen their transportation safety planning skills.

In our information saturated society, transportation safety professionals should also look to non-traditional delivery mechanisms as a way to provide safety information to the public. While important and useful, these mechanisms are designed to be used in combination with other information provided through more traditional delivery mechanisms.

Ask: Can anyone think of an example of a non-traditional delivery mechanism that you might want to use in a transportation safety information campaign? Answer: The web site “You Tube” to provide information to youth.

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Other examples of non-traditional delivery mechanism include variable message boards are mechanisms many jurisdictions use to post road safety messages. Campaign taglines such as “Click it or Ticket”, “Summer Heat”, and “Over the Limit; Under Arrest” are displayed on variable message signs during high enforcement periods or off peak hours to remind motorists to buckle up and refrain from driving under the influence.

Over the past decade, the internet has provided an additional avenue to get information out to the public through on-line advertising and dedicated websites. Online advertising is another popular delivery mechanism particularly for targeted media efforts. State and local agencies can advertise road safety campaigns on agency websites and provide information and links on the web sites of road safety partners to increase the reach of the message. In some cases, an agency will create a separate web site to provide more detailed information and easy access to information. For instance, Maryland developed the “Choose Safety for Life” road safety campaign and created a separate web site at www.choosesafetyforlife.com where interested individuals could down load campaign materials.

Road safety information plays a vital role in law making, planning, engineering, emergency management, law enforcement, and public health. To ensure your safety messages and information are reaching the intended audience several additional tasks will help you refine your communications plan.

Road safety managers must be accessible and willing to connect with stakeholders, which serves two purposes. Stakeholders should be invited to the table for input and they may have a better understanding of the target audience. They can also be invited to participate in earned media events.

Elected officials are often overlooked as stakeholders in the process, but they should be engaged because they have a direct connection to the public and play a key role in changing policy. Be sure to include all the public information officers associated with the agencies and organizations in your road safety coalition.

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Many road safety problems involve public policy, and in public policy, timing is everything. Providing information to the public, elected officials, and professionals at the most appropriate stages of the planning and political process can make all the difference in terms of support for your effort.

Learn about the media in your state and community. Do individual reporters have an interest in either transportation or safety? What types of stories have been written about road safety over the last few months? What are the demographics of individual television or radio stations? What are the advertising rates for print and broadcast media? These are just some of the questions that will help you refine your plan.

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In the case of earned media, where you actually conduct an activity to gain news media coverage, road safety managers need to develop comprehensive press materials including:

• An up-to-date press contact list for all print and broadcast media in your community or state;

• A brief, one-page media advisory which serves as an invitation to the media and is sent several days prior to your event;

• Follow up phone calls to individual reporters or editors to make sure they received the information; and

• A news release for the event itself that provides more detailed information. Along with a news release, other valuable information to include are charts, graphs, or fact sheets about the issue featured at the news event.

Your first task is to make sure your event is “newsworthy” so think about a “hook” that will motivate the media to attend your event.

Ask: Can anyone think of a good media “hook” for a road safety event? Answer: If you are conducting an event on young drivers, make sure young people are at the event and available to talk with the media. Also, it is always a good idea to have uniforms (e.g., police officials) present.

In addition to an event, earned media can also include any activities you conduct to get to know reporters, editors, or news directors.

Finally, you need to evaluate your marketing strategies. You start by defining what “success” should look like before starting a campaign and establish specific measurable goals. During the evaluation process determine if the target audience was reached and if the campaign resulted in increased awareness or knowledge. Observational studies or statistical analyses may be conducted to measure how well the program worked. Other evaluation methods may include telephone surveys, interviews, or e-mail surveys.

Implementing a comprehensive communications plan requires resources including the staff to develop and implement the program and funding to develop

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materials or buy advertising time. In some cases, it may be necessary to hire an outside public relations or advertising firm to help you develop messages.

Before allocating your communications budget, determine the amount needed for earned media and press outreach. States should then determine how much to allocate to the other communication strategies such as advertising, PSAs, materials, and events. Because the development of broadcast quality advertisements, either paid ads or PSAs can be expensive, it is advisable to find existing sources that can be adapted for your state or community.

Another form of communications is public outreach or public involvement activities such as public meetings, open houses, and forums that may be conducted primarily to gain a better understanding of the public’s views and preferences. They can also provide an opportunity to educate the public on road safety issues and give planners and other stakeholders’ feedback on proposed strategies and countermeasures. In many cases, public involvement is a requirement that transportation and land use planners must comply with. Safety planners can take advantage of these events to promote safety strategies or the safety impacts of planned strategies.

In addition to providing a forum to promote your message, public involvement became a requirement for transportation planning with passage of ISTEA, the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act in 1991.

Effective public involvement programs include several key steps:

• Clearly define the purpose and objectives for initiating a public dialogue on transportation safety plans, programs, and projects;

• Identify the group(s) and other stakeholders affected by the safety plan(s), program(s), and project(s) under development;

• Use effective techniques for engaging the public in the process and notifying them of the opportunity to participate;

• Educate the public to increase understanding of the transportation safety problem and potential solutions; and

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• Provide feedback to the public to demonstrate decision makers seriously considered the public’s input.

Public involvement is a two-way communication exchange between the public and government agencies and officials. Transportation agencies and decision makers provide information to the public and use the public’s input as a factor in decision making. The primary objective of public involvement programs is to ensure the concerns and issues of everyone with a stake in transportation decisions are identified and addressed as policies are developed and programs and projects are proposed. Public involvement campaigns can include:

• Public Meetings/Hearings which provide face-to-face contact with the public. Planners, engineers, and decision makers provide information on project alternatives, the planning process, and community impacts. Meetings or hearings also allow the public to voice their concerns and ask questions.

• Less formal open houses or forums that provide an opportunity for the public to have personal contact with decision makers. Models and visual effects are used to provide a representation of projects and strategies. Interactive tools such as models or colored markers are used as visioning tools.

• Conferences/Workshops which can be used to educate stakeholders from other local agencies or organizations and the general public. Road safety encompasses a large number of stakeholders with various degrees of interest. Workshops can focus on a particular aspect of a project or strategy and allow attendees to gather more information on topics of interest or concern.

Ask: Who are the key players? Answer: The planning process involves three key groups – transportation and land use planners, citizens, and elected officials. Transportation and land use planners and other transportation professionals, including other public agencies, develop and implement studies, and propose plans, programs, and projects to address the scenarios. Citizens (the public), either individually or as representatives of interest groups, provide feedback on the goals and

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objectives of the proposed plans, programs, and projects. Elected officials make decisions, provide funding to implement projects, and monitor the progress of policies.

Public involvement strategies include more than meetings. The following tools can be used to keep the public informed and to collect input from citizens on road safety issues:

Websites are especially helpful because they can provide various levels of information, and for those who want more information, it is readily available. Toll free hotlines and the distribution of materials and surveys can be effective for obtaining input from the public. Look for other public meetings or hearings where information can be provided such as a community advisory committee meeting.

Use the media to communicate with the public through news releases and news events and newspaper, television, and radio advertisements. Advertisements, for instance, may encourage the public to get involved in the planning process or provide updates on current or future public involvement campaigns.

Program managers should also consider a variety of communication channels including mailing lists, billboards, posters, brochures, videos/CDs, websites, and PowerPoint presentations to reach the public. Mailing and email lists can be generated from meeting attendance lists or the agency’s website which can encourage the public to provide contact information.

Ask: What are the benefits?Answer: Well-implemented public involvement programs have the potential to benefit road safety and the planning process. Public involvement promotes ownership of policies by involving citizens in the assessment of needs and solutions. Drawing on the public’s knowledge and views of road safety also results in decisions that reflect community values. Finally, public involvement activities provide an opportunity to educate elected officials.

Decision makers can be more sensitive to the public’s concerns during the implementation process. Public involvement can enhance an agency’s credibility by giving agency officials a better understanding of the public’s thinking and improving the agency’s

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relationship with the public. Effective public involvement builds public trust and results in public acceptance and support of transportation safety programs.

The public has an interest in road safety issues, but that interest is usually localized. If they encounter unsafe driving conditions in their communities or on their commutes to work, the issues become important to them. Citizens that lose a family member or friend in a motor vehicle crash obviously have an interest in improving road safety. Road safety is a quality of life issue. People want to be able to walk in their neighborhoods with few pedestrian-vehicle conflicts, they want their children to be able to play safely, and they want their commutes to work to be safe. The public expects state, regional, and local transportation agencies to provide a safe and efficient transportation system, yet often other issues, such as congestion, garner the most public attention.

Ask: What are some safety issues in which the public takes interest?Answer:

• Intersection Safety;• School Zone and School Bus Safety;• Law Enforcement Efforts;• Work Zone Safety;• Pedestrian Safety; and • Motorcycle Safety.

While the public’s interest in road safety may be localized or highly personal, groups exist that target their efforts at improving roadway safety. Examples of these include local chapters of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), local bicycle and pedestrian advocacy groups, and highway safety advocacy groups. National organizations also focus on road safety issues including AAA, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, MADD, and the Governors Highway Safety Association. These organizations can provide valuable information to the public, and in some cases, such as MADD, galvanize the public and its elected leaders to take action.

Public involvement strategies require effective communication skills. Communicating technical information to a non-technical audience requires creativity and practice whether through the written or spoken word. Education is an important part of public

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outreach but must be balanced so participants are not overwhelmed with too much information. Provide only the information the participants need to know to make good decisions, but enough to enable them to weigh alternatives and provide useful recommendations.

Outreach activities allow planners and decision makers to hear the public’s point-of-view and concerns about transportation safety issues. Good listening skills are essential. While outreach activities provide an opportunity to educate the public, it is important to listen to their concerns. It is also essential the public feels their opinions are genuinely considered in the decision making process. Outreach initiatives also require resources, and an effective program leverages resources from other sources such as utilizing public meeting spaces to avoid meeting room charges or requesting an outside group to print materials.

Effective marketing and advertising skills are essential for successful outreach initiatives. Use some of the same techniques and approaches that you use for your communications plan activities and develop eye catching materials to compel the person to read or hear the information.

To ensure maximum participation, the public must be informed in advance and through many of the same communications channels you identify in your communications plan including news releases, newspaper articles, signs, and mass mailings that inform the public of a meeting or open house. Make a compelling case for people to attend the meeting.

Public transportation agencies may have a database of individuals who have contacted the department about safety issues, which can serve as a mailing or email list to reach out to the public.

Public outreach activities require flexibility and strategic planning. Getting people to attend events is the first challenge. Make the event convenient for people in terms of time and location. Hold the event at a location familiar to people such as churches, community centers, or libraries. Hold events in the evening to allow people who work to attend. In some cases, it may be necessary to hold meetings in multiple locations and at different times to accommodate a variety of schedules.

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Agencies must develop a public involvement strategy that is sensitive to cultural diversity. Gaining the input of racial and ethnic minority communities and low income populations can be difficult. Barriers may include language barriers, feelings of distrust for government entities, and other challenges that may make outreach a challenge. Sponsoring agencies can address these challenges by forming partnerships with community leaders and organizations with strong support in minority or ethnic communities. Consider cultural diversity when advertising public meetings and events. Provide information in multiple languages to accommodate populations that do not speak English as a first language. Use multiple techniques to inform the public of activities and projects. Some populations may have more exposure to a particular advertising media such as newspaper printed in their native language, or television and cable stations that cater to specific ethnic groups.

Evaluation of the program is essential. Program managers should evaluate the effectiveness of programs for two reasons. The first reason is to determine the degree to which the agency’s activity is viewed favorably by the public. Second, the evaluation process should determine the degree of success achieved by the initiative. Without evaluation, current programs may waste resources and fail to contribute to the program’s goals. Program outcomes should be used to allocate funds in the most efficient manner. If a program does not show substantial results and a positive outcome, the resources should probably be dedicated to other efforts.

Evaluating public involvement programs is not easy. Program managers should develop a framework for evaluating public outreach initiatives that identifies what programs will be evaluated, who is responsible for conducting the evaluations, how often evaluations will be conducted, and how the evaluation results will be used to improve programs.

Ask: What are some tools used to evaluate public outreach initiatives? Answer: Surveys, focus groups, one-on-one interviews, and public comments provide feedback and assistance in evaluating programs. To adequately evaluate most public involvement efforts, a combination of these tools may be utilized.

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Ask: What constitutes an effective program? Answer: Evaluation criteria should be developed before project implementation to ensure the data needed for proper evaluation are available. Both qualitative and quantitative measures should be utilized to capture the outcomes of public involvement initiatives.

Quantitative evaluation criteria measure the type and level of public involvement initiatives and quantify the level of outreach. Tracking the number of press releases, media outreach contacts, responses to surveys, and attendance at public meetings provides information on the type and level of involvement. Qualitative criteria determine the level of change that has occurred regarding education and awareness. Before and after surveys measuring the level of public awareness of safety initiatives, and the availability of information related to road safety are qualitative measures of the impact of the change that occurs.

This module focused on communications – how to develop effective ways to change roadway behavior through the development of an effective communications plan and how to reach out to the public to obtain their views on your agency’s activities or programs.

We discussed the various elements of a communications plan along with ways to disseminate information and also highlighted the various elements of a public involvement effort.

Finally we discussed what should and should not be done when conducting an outreach activity and ways to measure the effectiveness of your public outreach activity.

Research Results Digest 322 may contain some surprises for you because Dr. Williams claims some of the things we do to educate the public about safe road user behavior are proven ineffective! Read the article and answer the questions to ensure you do not make the same mistakes.

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