As people of the current generation, we are naturally inactive as a result of all the new innovations, which have made our lives more convenient than ever before. It is not a surprise that because of our indolence, the environment is suffering as one third of the greenhouse gases in our atmosphere is made up of toxic emissions released from public transportation. Rather than public transit, we tend to choose unsustainable methods of transportation and contribute to the excess CO2 in our atmosphere. In today’s society, the real problem is not the lack of greener alternatives since there are, in fact, countless initiatives that have been established, yet not truly implemented—they have all failed to convince and motivate consumers to choose those greener alternatives. Indeed, there is always a method that may cause more harm for the environment, but is far more easier for us.
The intent to solve this issue is what sparked the creation of Transit+, an app extension for the already existing PRESTO app, partnering with Metrolinx. Currently, PRESTO is simply a card that can be used for transit fare payments. However, in partnership with Transit+, it can encourage a greener lifestyle with the combination of e-fares and a personalized rewards system, based on user interests and their frequent commute routes..
For the most part, we receive funding from the private sector. We partner with companies who want to make profit while earning a green reputation. With our personalized rewards system, every user will find products and services that fit into their unique lifestyle. Whether the user is looking to purchase a cup of coffee, a piece of furniture, or even to spend a night out, they would always be able to find it at one of our partnering retail businesses—not only that, but their commute to that store could even earn them a discount for that exact purchase. Depending on their location, promotions that are nearby would also be displayed on the app, as well as suggestions of alternative routes that would bring them to the best deals in their area. Meanwhile, when users choose to take public transit instead of cars, Transit+ shows them the relative amount of CO2 emission that they have helped to reduce; this simple feature makes them significantly more conscious of the impact of their everyday actions. Moreover, Transit+ will effectively increase ridership, decrease CO2 emissions of cars, and allow users to know that they have contributed their part in creating a greener future. In other words, commuters would not only receive a tangible reward for adopting a greener lifestyle, but also a strong sense of gratification as they see exactly how impactful their actions are
Well, we would like to tell you about Tentree, a Canadian clothing brand that created one of the most-liked posts in Instagram history in 2019. Tentree’s Earth Week campaign involved planting trees based on the number of likes generated by their social media posts. Within several days, users helped achieve over 15 million likes. This is big--it tells us that the general population loves and supports green initiatives--that is, with the criteria that they don’t have to work too hard for it. As Transit+ was specifically designed to cause minimal changes to user lifestyles—by making users feel as though they are gaining perks rather than making any sacrifices—it satisfies this criteria and more.
First of all, we are an ideal partner for Metrolinx. Metrolinx is an agency of the government of Ontario, tasked to create an integrated transportation system that would support a higher quality of life, a more prosperous economy and a healthier environment, which aligns precisely with our mission. Furthermore, companies would be willing to sponsor us to improve their reputation and fulfil their Corporate Social Responsibility for numerous reasons: we help them carry out their green initiatives while also pushing customers their way, increasing profit. But that’s not all, a study by Harvard* shows that even unredeemed coupons significantly increase awareness for a brand, which means that Transit+ guarantees companies free advertisement—so why wouldn’t they sponsor us?
As previously stated, there are two main incentives for firms to partner with us: the enhancement of their “green” reputation, and of course, for financial reasons. However, when looking at Transit+ in an economic perspective, the TTC will not reap as much of a financial benefit since, being a monopoly, by definition it would never be, “making profits”. The TTC operates at a loss for the benefit of the public; however, if more people are incentivised and use the transit system with PRESTO more, (because of Transit+), they can make up some lost revenue and then utilise these extra profits to enhance the overall transit system (e.g. better service, appearance, air conditioning, subway extensions, etc.) This, in turn, would increase future consumer ridership as the user experience would be greatly improved. Fig 1.1: The “economies of scale” component of the monopoly, TTC is exemplified.
It is seen in Fig 1.1 that as ridership (“quantity” axis on graph) increases, the LRAC (long run average total cost) decreases. This demonstrates the aforementioned statement that ridership increases due to the high fixed costs. Essentially, this shows that TTC can always meet the market demand at a lower average total cost.
Extra Benefit for TTC: In 2018, “TTC lost $61 million to freeloading fare evaders in 2018” *. Since Transit+ gives rewards based on how many rides are taken, this may also in turn discourage fare evasion since as mentioned, consumers will be able to use their “free” rewards in exchange for tangible items.
Due to our customizable nature, we plan to partner with public transit commissions all over the world to push their communities to a sustainable future, by leveraging the power of their very own residents. Additionally, our plan is to partner with retail businesses selling products/services and possibly even SPC rewards system as additional incentives, specifically for students, to take the public transit.
We reimagine PRESTO into an engine that drives Ontario towards a greener future simply by incentivizing public transit. Our work is a realistic, and effective way to become more sustainable.
In the future, we will be using our phones for e-payments, and this will require more advanced security. In order to instill trust in our users and ensure their information stays safe, we aim to partner with a bank and utilize their encryption technology. Users would feel secure knowing that the technology is reliable, and banks would benefit through advertisement and the increase of customers.
Prototype: https://marvelapp.com/85195ej/screen/65980514
Website: https://noveraahmed.github.io/ElleHacks-2020/#
*Referenced Sites Harvard study: Unredeemed coupons https://hbr.org/2012/05/unused-coupons-still-pay-off
TTC losses in fare evasions https://torontosun.com/news/local-news/ttc-lost-61-million-to-freeloading-fare-evaders-in-2018
Created by: Masha Malygin Michelle Lai Sarah Fatima Novera Ahmed