Too many cars in London!

How do you cut the number of cars coming into London every morning? One answer is to make people pay, but Transport for London wanted to find additional, more positive ways to encourage people to use their car less. They knew the customer segments they had to influence, but not how to make them change behaviours, which were ingrained and automatic. They chose to work with Dragon Rouge because of our ability to step into people’s shoes and understand what makes them tick. They asked us to find deep insights into people’s behaviour and attitudes, and then help them translate these into new thinking around product development and communications.

Following in people’s footsteps

We selected our targets – all determined car drivers – and persuaded them to make their journey by a different mode of transport – underground, bus, walking or cycling. Our researchers went with them, seeing and hearing how they felt about the journey along the way. We could spot the barriers – and the opportunities – for behaviour change. We captured these experiences, bringing the different customer segments vividly to life and worked with the TfL product development and marketing teams to pin down what it would take to lure the different types of people out of their cars.

Faster, fitter

The traveller insights inspired a raft of services and communications development, to help Londoners appreciate the benefits of leaving their car at home sometimes. From the health benefits of cycling to the fact that walking is often quicker, the right triggers can be used to connect with the needs and concerns of people as individuals.