Count On Us - Smarter Choices study
Location
Scotland
Application
Count On Us study
Service
Baseline Monitoring, Telephone Surveys, Travel diaries
The Problem
With health issues relating to car emissions on the rise and the growth of an inactive lifestyle combined with ever increasing inactive lifestyles by the population is leading to consideration of how to have a more sustainable and healthier future.
The Solution
Smarter Choices, Smarter Places is designed to increase active travel and public transport use as well as tackle transport emissions. It contributes to a number of objectives in the Scottish Government's National Performance Framework, and Local Authorities' Single Outcome Agreements.
The 4 year consultation exercise is designed to examine the link between car dependency (primarily) and inactive lifestyles and health issues. As research consultants Count On Us are providing public consultation by a number of methods including baseline monitoring prior to the improvements and follow up with telephone surveys in 2010 and 2011 and a final round of travel diary surveys in 2012.
Work on infrastructure improvements and the planning of behaviour change campaigns has already taken place, with the public phase of the work launched in May 2009 continuing until March 2011. Activities include: better public transport services and residential improvements; upgrades in walking and cycling infrastructures; studies into travel patterns and access; intensive marketing and awareness campaigns; and workshops and information packs.
Benefits
- Dedicated in-house CATI unit, appointment setting and sample management allows for fast and accurate turnaround of telephone studies.
- Excellent for general public consultation and securing input from niche audiences and residents in remote or rural areas.
Testimonial
Derek Halden, Principal and Project Manager from Derek Halden Consultancy advised: “The smarter choices smarter places initiative in Scotland includes the largest travel behaviour research programme ever undertaken by Scottish Government. Count on Us contributed to this with telephone surveys of households working to a tight schedule, responding promptly to problems as they arose, and delivering on time.”