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Ride Transit & Text Away
Monday, August 24, 2009 5:09 PM  

Billboard: U txt. We drive.A Midwest transit agency is trying to lure new riders with a simple but powerful benefit: "U txt. We drive."

The new marketing campaign was unveiled by SouthWest Transit, a Minnesota-based agency that serves Eden Prairie, Chanhassen and Chaska. The campaign's goal is to show how public transit can boost personal quality time while also helping the public.

The SouthWest logo appears below the ad copy. Officials said that by leaving the driving to the transit agency, texters can be safer - as well as other drivers on the road, who don't have to worry about distracted drivers.

"Originally, this campaign was to be targeted to students who ride our buses to the U of M," said Len Simich, SouthWest Transit's CEO to METRO Magazine. "However, after...learning that 53 percent of all texters are 35 or older, we decided to begin our campaign immediately and use it with all our riders."

Here at METRO, our drivers will concentrate on the road while you can sit back and text to your heart's content. A strict new cell phone policy at METRO ensures that operators will not be using their cell phones while driving - and in fact, no driver's cell phone is allowed in sight. Violation is immediate dismissal.

But you, the rider, can stay safe and text while enjoying the ride.



Posted by Mary Sit
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    • Comments

    Peter Wang said:

    Very true! Lots of people texting on the bus. It's so slow, what else is there to do? Where's my Westheimer Quickline?

    # August 24, 2009 8:05 PM

    Don G said:

    I think perhaps we need to look hard at the facts.

    I can take the Metro buses (with 2 transfers BTW) and text away and it will average 80 minutes to get to one clients (which I go to every week).

    Or....I can drive my car and get there in an average of 28.5 minutes and sit in front of their house and text to my hearts content for 51.5 minutes!

    With my car, I am immune to all outside noises and having to stand at two bus stops in rain or heat, as well as immune to close contact to contagions and not having all the stop-n-starts at bus stops on the routes.

    Why waste close to 1 hour each way just to text?

    # August 24, 2009 9:17 PM

    Don G said:

    I forgot to analysis texting on the rail line versus using my car to get from Fannin S to UH Downtown.  

    According to Metros planner, it is only 29 minutes via trolley.

    According to Google, I can take my car and make it in 16 minutes all while obeying the speed limit which gives me 13 free minutes (each way) to sit and text with no one around.

    # August 24, 2009 9:37 PM

    Jennifer said:

    True! Some buses in our area even provide WiFi for the iPhone geeks...that's just lovely. Other bus and train benefits: putting on makeup, relaxing with audio book (or regular book), chilling & looking out the window so that when I arrive home I am fully unwound and ready to begin my evening, reading things on the way to work that I took home to read last night and never got to.

    # August 25, 2009 11:11 AM

    wakester said:

    I read and send emails on the Cypress 217 bus so much that I sometimes almost use all my battery.

    # August 25, 2009 11:14 AM

    DominicMazoch said:

    Ham version:

    You do CW(Morse code).  We drive!

    # August 25, 2009 8:25 PM
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