New AASHTO Report Shows State DOT Social Media Trends

It was only a handful of years ago that the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, my work-day employer, began polling its member state departments of transportation about their growing implementation of social media tools.

 

In 2009, less than half of states used Facebook and then most were tepid in their level of engagement. The dominant tool for state DOTs was Twitter, but it was used almost exclusively for sharing roadway traffic conditions and emergency information.

Illinois DOT Launches Innovative ‘Driving Dead’ Traffic Safety Campaign

The Illinois Department of Transportation has tackled an ambitious campaign to eliminate traffic fatalities and it doesn’t look like any other highway safety campaign I’ve ever seen.

The new Driving Dead Series will feature Michael Rooker from the TV series Walking Dead and “involves a cast of central characters living in a Zombie-filled, post-apocalyptic world,” according to an Illinois DOT new release.

The novel approach to build an online campaign focused on a specific audience of younger adults who, according to research, are more likely to get behind the wheel after drinking or drugging.

“Far too many people still mix alcohol, drugs and driving. Young people, in particular, often don’t understand that impaired driving is a crime, and a serious one — and they also are less likely to buckle up,” said Acting Transportation Secretary Erica Borggren. “These same young people ages 21-34 no longer receive news through traditional means. We’re hopeful this new series will catch their attention and give them a reason to log on or check their mobile devices. When they do, they’ll be entertained — and most importantly, they’ll receive a life-saving message.”

State DOTs Expand Use of Social Media but Implementation Challenges Remain

While most state departments of transportation now actively use social media in their regular communication programs, further adoption of the online tools is being hampered by some familiar age-old challenges, according to the fourth annual State DOT Social Media Survey by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

The survey, which is conducted each spring, asks state departments of transportation about their use of social media tools and issues related to deployment of social media tools as a way to measure the adoption, implementation and best practices for the industry. (Editor’s note: Full disclosure time. I annually help write the survey and help analyze the results of this report for AASHTO, which is my employer).

This year’s report found that nearly 90 percent of respondents are using both Facebook and Twitter accounts to communicate with the public, by far the most popular social media tools for state DOTs. By comparison, “In 2010, less than half of state DOTs used Facebook and only 26 states had Twitter accounts.”