Hi all, Have you heard of the Turn It Off campaign? The project aimed to reduce car idling at school drop-off zones and transit “Kiss and Ride” parking lots across Toronto. This was a community-based social marketing campaign that relied on focus groups to determine which strategies would be most effective in changing behavior. Based on feedback from the focus groups, the following communication materials were developed: - “No Idling” signs - these were mounted on concrete bases and shortened so that they would be visible to motorists in their cars
- “No Idling” window stickers – after motorists agreed to commit to stop idling their vehicles, they were given a sticker that was placed on their windshield, making the commitment public and visible
- Information card – motorists were given information stating that reducing idling would save money, reduce air pollution, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions Baseline measurements indicated that 53% of motorists were idling their cars. This represented a significant margin for improvement. Following baseline measurements, certain schools and transit sites received interventions while others did not (control group). Results? At both schools and parking lots, the signs and commitments together were the most effective at reducing idling (by 27%) and idling duration (by 78%). The signs alone did not have any effect on idling incidence or duration. Why weren’t the signs enough? They served as prompts to remind people to turn off their engines, but this only had an impact when coupled with commitments. What may have made the difference here was personal contact with a City of Toronto affiliate who first explained to motorists what the Turn It Off campaign was and then asked for a commitment. When people make a visible commitment to others, they feel social pressure to follow through on that commitment. It also helped that the commitment was being requested by someone affiliated with the City of Toronto, which is considered by many to be a respectable and credible organization. Finally, the City of Toronto affiliate mentioned that there was a growing number of people making similar commitments, which prompted people to believe that there was a social norm developing around anti-idling behavior. All of these strategies together clearly made a difference. For more information on this campaign, click here and here.
- “No Idling” window stickers – after motorists agreed to commit to stop idling their vehicles, they were given a sticker that was placed on their windshield, making the commitment public and visible
- Information card – motorists were given information stating that reducing idling would save money, reduce air pollution, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions Baseline measurements indicated that 53% of motorists were idling their cars. This represented a significant margin for improvement. Following baseline measurements, certain schools and transit sites received interventions while others did not (control group). Results? At both schools and parking lots, the signs and commitments together were the most effective at reducing idling (by 27%) and idling duration (by 78%). The signs alone did not have any effect on idling incidence or duration. Why weren’t the signs enough? They served as prompts to remind people to turn off their engines, but this only had an impact when coupled with commitments. What may have made the difference here was personal contact with a City of Toronto affiliate who first explained to motorists what the Turn It Off campaign was and then asked for a commitment. When people make a visible commitment to others, they feel social pressure to follow through on that commitment. It also helped that the commitment was being requested by someone affiliated with the City of Toronto, which is considered by many to be a respectable and credible organization. Finally, the City of Toronto affiliate mentioned that there was a growing number of people making similar commitments, which prompted people to believe that there was a social norm developing around anti-idling behavior. All of these strategies together clearly made a difference. For more information on this campaign, click here and here.
