M II A II R II K
Senior Member
The Art of Seduction in Transportation
March, 4th 2010
Adam Christensen
Read More: http://asmarterplanet.com/blog/2010...rt-of-seduction-in-public-transportation.html
Event Videos: http://www.livestream.com/newintelligence/folder?dirId=40f1037f-43b4-4ce8-b277-b7cc38018844
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Kroon described the importance of rail in his “tiny country,†whose 16 million people make it extremely dense. According to Kroon, rail market share between some Dutch cities reaches 50 percent, an amount that would be unheard of in the United States. And rather than force anyone onto the train, Kroon says the Netherlands Railways “seduces†them instead, through continued technological improvement that makes travel convenient and a commitment to reliability and affordability.
- The concept of “seducing†travelers into transit is one we could do well to emulate elsewhere. Even here in New York City, where transit is quite effective and ridership is relatively high, I would hardly consider the riding the subway a seductive experience, though it does have it’s own charm. Cost and efficiency are critical pieces of creating a public transportation system that seduces ridership. But it’s beyond simple utility.
- Think of premium brands: Apple, BMW, etc. They seduce you on a level above pure functionality. You pay more for the experience. I could find mp3 players far cheaper than the iPod with similar (sometimes better) functionality, yet I willingly pay more so I can have an iPod in my pocket. What if we applied a similar approach to transit? I’m not naive about the realities we face, nor the challenges of this kind of approach. But surely there’s more we can do to entice transit ridership.
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March, 4th 2010
Adam Christensen
Read More: http://asmarterplanet.com/blog/2010...rt-of-seduction-in-public-transportation.html
Event Videos: http://www.livestream.com/newintelligence/folder?dirId=40f1037f-43b4-4ce8-b277-b7cc38018844
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Kroon described the importance of rail in his “tiny country,†whose 16 million people make it extremely dense. According to Kroon, rail market share between some Dutch cities reaches 50 percent, an amount that would be unheard of in the United States. And rather than force anyone onto the train, Kroon says the Netherlands Railways “seduces†them instead, through continued technological improvement that makes travel convenient and a commitment to reliability and affordability.
- The concept of “seducing†travelers into transit is one we could do well to emulate elsewhere. Even here in New York City, where transit is quite effective and ridership is relatively high, I would hardly consider the riding the subway a seductive experience, though it does have it’s own charm. Cost and efficiency are critical pieces of creating a public transportation system that seduces ridership. But it’s beyond simple utility.
- Think of premium brands: Apple, BMW, etc. They seduce you on a level above pure functionality. You pay more for the experience. I could find mp3 players far cheaper than the iPod with similar (sometimes better) functionality, yet I willingly pay more so I can have an iPod in my pocket. What if we applied a similar approach to transit? I’m not naive about the realities we face, nor the challenges of this kind of approach. But surely there’s more we can do to entice transit ridership.
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