CLEAR THE RIGHT OF WAY CAMPAIGN

PROBLEM/CHALLENGE

ADA (Americans with Disability Act) was adopted in 1990 and mandated that cities across the U.S. become barrier-free/accessible and create a transition plan showing how they would get there. The Sidewalk Master Plan is the City of Austin’s current ADA transition plan for sidewalks.

Within Austin, residents are responsible for keeping sidewalks, streets and alleys clear of debris and limbs/vegetation as well as maintaining private trees and all other vegetation in the right of way. However, in October 2019, only 20% of sidewalks were reported as “functionally acceptable”. Moreso, it was estimated that if residents cleared their sidewalks of vegetation and other obstacles, the amount of usable sidewalk in the city could double. The City would continue to replace sidewalks in need of repair and build new sidewalks, but boosting resident awareness in addition could be more effective than construction for positive change within a shorter timeframe.

Overall, keeping right of way areas clear is a simple yet impactful way for residents to contribute to the safety, functionality, and aesthetics of their neighborhoods and cities. It promotes efficient emergency response, enhances infrastructure maintenance, and ensures that public spaces remain accessible and safe for all.

OBJECTIVE

Continue the department’s annual Clear the ROW (Right of Way) campaign that had been dormant for a few years to help spread the word about resident right of way responsibilities.

The campaign chould change annually, allowing for new angles and perspectives on the main message. Every year, it should build upon the cumulative past efforts.

Target audience:

• 18+ year olds, all genders

• Residents in the Austin area

MULTI-YEAR APPROACH

2019 – This year was focused on social media outreach and a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) on vegetation maintenance. The AMA allowed the program manager and two members of the department’s Forestry Team to answer questions directly from the community.

2020 – The full campaign had not run for several years, so this year’s campaign goal was to advertise any and all resident responsibilities for the right of way (streets, sidewalks and alleys).

2021 – This campaign focused more specifically on sidewalks. Select messaging aimed to dissuade residents from using sidewalks as driveways, addressing a concern highlighted by the program manager as a significant problem.

2022 – This campaign underscored the critical importance of unobstructed sidewalks for certain residents' mobility needs.

The Process

Throughout my time at Austin Public Works, I assumed the role of project lead for Clear the ROW and worked in collaboration with a team of 1-3 colleagues, varying based on the specific year, for asset and content creation. I led weekly collaboration meetings to facilitate the exchange of feedback on content, designs, and strategies as well as coordinate efforts, schedule tasks, review progress, and keep the campaign on-track.

Campaign Deliverables

• Print Advertising

• Digital Advertising

• Radio Advertising

• Social Media (paid and organic)

• Media

  • Press Release

  • Talking points and interview prep

  • Video shoot prep

• Emails containing copy and/or social media kits to:

  • Mayor/City council

  • Neighborhood associations

  • Garden clubs and other associations

  • City partner departments

• Newsletter articles, print and digital

• News and TV segments

• Direct Mail Postcard

• Updated Flyer

• Program webpage and FAQ page

  • Content refresh and addition of linked graphic buttons

  • Animation explaining resident responsibilities

  • Video showing right of way accessibility needs

• Spanish advertising (print, digital, radio, TV, and social media, including working with a Spanish influencer)

Print and Digital

Radio Spots

Radio spots began with English and expanded to Spanish. Eventually I reallocated money away from English radio spots to put more money into paid social media ads since social media use skyrocketed during the pandemic.

EV360

This is one of the EVET sub-campaigns and is complimentary to the main EVET collateral.

Bikes and E-RIDE

E-RIDE is one of the EVET sub-campaigns and is complimentary to the main EVET collateral.

Electric Drive Launch

This showcase celebrated the 5th anniversary of the Plug-In EVerywhere program and created an interactive sustainable mobility celebration, ribbon-cutting, and media event that highlighted Electric Drive as an innovative electric transportation hub. I created several pieces specific to the event as well as collaborated on the planning and logistics and worked with photographers and videographers to document the launch.

Social Media

For 9+ months, I managed the EVET Facebook page. This included gathering/collaborating on content and photography, writing posts, finding partners, and monitoring the page activity. The EVET Facebook community has grown 25% and average post reach has grown 229% since I began managing the page.

Additional Metrics

Austin is reported as one of the top ten cities in the U.S. to own an EV. That is due to both the charging infrastructure that EVET is helping put in place and the marketing to let people know that the infrastructure exists.

For the year that this campaign ran, we received over 27,000 visitors to the EVET landing page. Nearly 10,000 were first-time visitors.

The team has received a lot of internal attention from this campaign, with other programs attempting to dissect it so as to copy the success of the EVET program and other departments requesting our availability for the purpose of working on their programs. 

Program Metrics

Sidewalk functionality is continuously assessed and reported annually. Between 2019 and 2022, the percentage of functional sidewalks increased 60%, probably due to joint efforts of the ROW campaigns, the Forestry division’s sidewalk inspections, and the building and repairing of sidewalks that the department oversees.