Transit Discovers Social Media

Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are becoming standard components of transit agencies' strategies for outreach and keeping riders informed.

1 minute read

July 20, 2010, 9:00 AM PDT

By Tim Halbur

For many transit agencies that may not have conceived of themselves as the hippest kids on the block, social media are opening up legitimate avenues for public participation, outreach and dissemination of information. The migration to social media has been so rapid of late that for agencies that have not yet joined Facebook or Twitter-no matter how unfamiliar these media may be-the question is not 'if," but "when."

"At the [Transportation Research Board Annual] Meeting in January we had a Sunday morning workshop at 9 . . . and we had a full room," said Jennifer Weeks, senior transportation planner at Parsons-Brinkerhoff and chair of the TRB's Committee on Public Involvement. "I think everybody is like, 'Wow, holy cow-we've got tO get on the bandwagon.' If there are any contrarians, they're shouted down."

Thanks to Josh Stephens

FULL STORY: Transit Agencies Find New On-Ramps to the Information Superhighway

Thursday, July 15, 2010 in InTransition Magazine

Technology Transportation United States Transit TRB Social Media FasTracks View More

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