Campaign wants millennials to get onboard with transit

110621-ATLANTA:Andrea Jemison recharges her Breeze card at a kiosk inside the Five Points MARTA station in down town Atlanta on Tuesday, June 21st. MARTA votes to raise fares to $2.50, the second increase in two years. That makes for 43% higher fares since two years ago. Monthly passes would go to $95, from $52.50 just two years ago. In spite of the sluggish economy, MARTA says the fare hikes are necessary to sustain the service and prepare for regional transit integration, and that in the last decade it went nearly nine years without raising fares to keep pace with inflation. Phil Skinner pskinner@ajc.com editor's note: CQ

Credit: Andria Brooks

Credit: Andria Brooks

110621-ATLANTA:Andrea Jemison recharges her Breeze card at a kiosk inside the Five Points MARTA station in down town Atlanta on Tuesday, June 21st. MARTA votes to raise fares to $2.50, the second increase in two years. That makes for 43% higher fares since two years ago. Monthly passes would go to $95, from $52.50 just two years ago. In spite of the sluggish economy, MARTA says the fare hikes are necessary to sustain the service and prepare for regional transit integration, and that in the last decade it went nearly nine years without raising fares to keep pace with inflation. Phil Skinner pskinner@ajc.com editor's note: CQ

Thinking about going somewhere? Think transit.

That's the message ATLtransit.org want to get across in a new social media campaign targeted toward millennials. The attitude of the campaign is sarcastic and funny to get peoples' attention and get them thinking about how they could incorporate local bus or MARTA ridership into their everyday lives.

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So why the social media blitz? MARTA, GRTA, bus systems in Cobb, Gwinnett and Cherokee, and the Atlanta Streetcar believe there’s an untapped market of young people who could be riding transit more often. About a quarter of the people who live near suburban park-and-ride lots are millennials, but the age group makes up a much smaller percentage of regional bus system riders. Recent studies also indicate that millennials are more apt to embrace transit than older generations.

To reach this audience, ATLtransit.org will post myriad content on its Twitter and Facebook sites and feature videos on its YouTube Channel about the joys of sitting in traffic (see the sarcasm?).

ATLtransit.org is a project managed by metro Atlanta’s major transit agencies to help customers plan trips.