With congestion adversely impacting economic development, housing and quality of life, transport in Auckland is reaching crisis-point. Acknowledging that transformation must take place, the council has set aggressive growth targets for public transport, with a goal of doubling patronage between 2017 and 2022.

It was time to convince reluctant Aucklanders to consider, adopt and embrace public transport, creating more frequent users and growing patronage in the first two months of the year.
Growth on this scale would require a fundamental step change in the attitudes and behaviours of Aucklanders. So Auckland Transport mapped current motivations to uncover powerful customer insights and key moments of reconsideration. The strategy was to have the right conversation, at the right moment, with the right customers, to get people on board.

Go Metro was the platform created for the campaign. It was an advertising vehicle which allowed consistency and unification across four strategic layers; priming Aucklanders by launching the connected AT Metro network of buses, trains and ferries, inviting potential users to try AT Metro, persuading drivers that AT Metro could be a better option for them, and reinforcing the behaviour and commitment of regular users.

Objectives were to grow patronage and create more frequent users. The campaign had a phenomenal impact on public transport patronage in Auckland. Year on year, they’ve created 25,000 more frequent public transport users (the equivalent of 1.9% of Auckland’s population). Patronage this financial year has surpassed Auckland Transport’s target by 8.6% year on year.