When one of your most vital traffic routes has to close for 18 months for renovations, and this is predicted to completely shut off access to your capital, what do you do? You hire Toogethr, that’s what. And they persuade those Amsterdam residents to hop on their bikes. For a total distance of 100,000 km travelled. Read on to find out how.
Toogethr Cycles offers control over major traffic jam
We make mobility and parking simple and we break habits in the search for sustainable solutions, according to Toogethr.com. At the end of 2020, they won a tender issued by the Municipality of Amsterdam. The assignment?
To prevent the traffic jams that seemed inevitable in connection with the closure of the Piet Hein Tunnel. Drivers would be unable to use the vital entry route to the city for a period of at least 18 months.
Points for bicycle repair shop and the Johan Cruyff Foundation
In cooperation with the municipality, Toogether developed an activation campaign plus point-saving program that acts as a clever way to encourage people to travel by bike. Starting in May 2021, every Amsterdam resident will be able to create an individual account on pietheintunneldicht. The app will then register how many kilometers people travelled by bicycle around the tunnel and assign a number of points earned. In addition, users can participate in challenges to collect more points and earn bonus points by choosing routes that reduce congestion on other busy roads and bike lanes. By means of a content calendar, the app offers a smart way to manage the bicycle trips of a large number of people who habitually drove their cars through the tunnel. That includes challenges in the May holiday period and activities focusing on ‘back to work’ in September or ‘rainy days’ in November. Participants can exchange their points for goods and services via online stores, at Bol.com, Zalando and so forth, but also at participating local businesses such as the bicycle repair shop, coffee bar, etc. – or donate them to charities including the Amsterdam food bank and the Johan Cruyff Foundation.
100.000 km by bike so far
To date, Toogethr Cycles participants have racked up 100.000 km travelled in Amsterdam and a grand total of two million km by bike. Although the tunnel should technically be finished by now, the cooperation has been prolonged due to delays. Thanks to its success, the municipality and Toogethr are exploring whether and how it might be possible to continue the smart motivational program in the future. Even when the tunnel is back in good working order.
