Travel Smart Communities
The National Transport Authority under the Sustainable Transport measures Grants scheme funded the delivery of a community based travel behaviour change programme in South Dublin County in 2011/2012.
This initial phase of Travel Smart Communities focussed on communities in Lucan and Clondalkin in the vicinity of the Kildare Rail line and N4 Outer Ring Road QBC's.
South Dublin County Council undertook to deliver a behaviour change campaign to these communities. A range of community based measures, including Personalised Travel Planning, School Travel Planning, Community Events, engagement with Community Groups and Community Challenges to encourage modal shift from car to more sustainable modes for all trips.
Travel Smart Communities Phase 1 is one of the first large-scale Travel Behaviour Change Programmes undertaken in an Irish Context. The campaign targeted 14,000 households. Travel Advisors directly engaged with 4,000 households through door knocking and sought to influence the remaining 10,000 households in a more general way.
Data collected from a broad range of sources demonstrates a community wide modal shift away from private car use to more sustainable modes with the most notable shift being from private car to walking with significant increases in numbers walking locally. This programme has demonstrated that over a short timeframe a package of 'soft' measures can begin to deliver positive changes in travel behaviour.
Travel Smart Communities; Building a New Mobility Culture in South Dublin County, Report on Phase 1 can be viewed in the related documents area below;