Transit authority starts ad campaign

The Cape Girardeau County Transit Authority had its busiest day ever on Thursday, providing 140 point-to-point trips to various county destinations.

That's 20 more trips than the daily average a year ago and 82 more trips than the average in 2000.

Despite the authority's dramatic increase in rides over the last several years, director Jeff Brune says he runs across people every day who don't know about the service.

To that end, the authority today will begin a marketing campaign as part of a statewide effort to promote rural public transportation.

The federal government has allocated $120,000 for the marketing of rural public transportation statewide. The Cape Girardeau Transit Authority has $6,228 at its disposal, and that includes allotments from the city of Cape Girardeau's taxi coupon program and Southeast Missouri State University's shuttle service.

The campaign will consist of television, radio and newspaper advertisements aimed at promoting the service and informing the public that rural transportation is for anyone who needs it -- not just seniors.

The federal funding also helped establish a toll-free telephone number where potential riders may call. The one-stop referral number has been a long-range goal of the authority. The county offers various public-funded transportation services for different types of people -- some services get funding specifically for seniors; some specifically for handicapped people and still others for work-related transit.

The toll-free number -- (866) 771-2676 -- will be listed in every advertisement, and the dispatcher will direct the caller to the most applicable service.

Transit Marketing, an Arizona company, did the work on the campaign, including a promotional video.

Video producer Selena Barlow said she and a crew shot more than eight hours of interviews in a week in June last year. The crew spent time in Cape Girardeau, Jackson, Rose Bud, Columbia, Fulton, Hermann and Fredericktown.

She said the goal of the campaign is to increase ridership, make everyone aware of the safety net that is there and to provide transit organization with material to help with fund-raising efforts.

To obtain federal funds for vehicles and capital expenses, the local transit authority has to come up with a 20 percent match. For operations, a 50 percent match is required by the federal government.

Brune has already shown the promotional video to several groups. The video includes testimonials from all types of people across the state.

One man said "transportation is kind of like electricity and water. You don't think about it until it's not there. Then you think about it a lot."

Brune, on the video, likens public transit to other public services like the police and fire departments.

bmiller@semissourian.com

243-6635