University of Washington applies Motivational Interviewing to commuters
Steer Davies Gleave trained the University of Washington’s (UW) Transportation Services team in Motivational Interviewing (MI), a behavior change technique we have been using to reduce&nbcar reliance in cities. 'MI' is a person-centered style of communication which aims to empower people to find their own reasons for change.
This led UW to incorporate MI into their own pioneering transportation demand management program, the ‘Commute Concierge’, which provides individualized assistance to commuters through a single point of contact in the team.
Within its first six months, the Commute Concierge program has helped over 1,000 UW commuters and has received an overwhelmingly positive response from customers. One UW employee commented, “The Concierge service was very eager to help make my commute as easy as possible. I am able to ride to work and home again without the frustration of fighting the traffic and I can listen to my music and text all that I want while someone else does the driving.”
In addition, the Commute Concierge program has already been turning heads of other transportation organizations and universities in the region. UW is working with the Seattle Department of Transportation to roll out the program to other groups who are looking to the program as an innovative approach for fostering greater use of sustainable commute options.
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