Connecticut and New York State DOTs expand SMART Ride Stuff Program.


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Over 900 Retailers Now Participating

Since the introduction of S & H Green Stamps in 1876, incentive programs in the United States have evolved and grown tremendously, particularly throughout the past 20 years. Offering everything from dining club membership to preferred shopper rewards, incentive programs have branched out to reach all types of consumers, including commuters.

The Connecticut and New York State Departments of Transportation are contributing to this growth by expanding the Smart Ride Stuff Commuter Rewards Program (a bi-state rewards program for commuters who use alternative transportation) to include over four times the number of participating merchants. The program, which was initially launched in June 1998, has grown from 200 merchants to more than 900 merchants representing over 8,100 locations locally and nationwide.

An aggressive merchant solicitation effort has resulted in expanded offerings in each of the counties as well as a large number of new participating locations of national chains including McDonald's, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Carvel, Friendly's and Subway.

The expansion of the program has resulted in a more developed and diverse program with discounts at more merchants representing a variety of categories including entertainment, recreation and restaurants, to name a few. A new merchant discount catalog is now available highlighting the discounts offered to commuters through the program.

"We expect that the new, expanded catalog will bring more commuters into the program-and then more traffic to the participating locations, " said Peggy Hetherington, marketing director for MetroPool. MetroPool is administering the program for the Connecticut and New York State Departments of Transportation in cooperation with the region's transit operators, County Departments of Transportation and Rideworks of Greater New Haven in Connecticut. "This is a true partnership between the region's transportation providers and the business community to reduce traffic on our roadways, and we are very pleased with the positive response we've received from our merchants, " she added.

Hetherington noted that the program provides an added benefit to users of alternative transportation and also serves as a means to establish a database of commuters who use alternative transportation throughout southern Connecticut and much of the Hudson Valley area.

To be eligible for the program, commuters must take alternative transportation (bus, train, carpool, vanpool, bike, walk or telecommute) at least one day a week. Membership is open to those who live, work or commute through one of the following areas: Fairfield or New Haven County, Conn.; Westchester, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess, Putnam, or Ulster County, NY; or Bergen County, NJ. Commuters can present their membership card, valid Metro-North monthly/weekly/10-ride ticket, or, when validated with the Smart Ride Stuff logo, their monthly bus pass or multi-ride ticket at any participating retail location for discounts.

Sample discounts include: Sam Goody and Musicland provide $2 off regularly priced CDs and cassettes; Friendly's provides a free Happy Ending dessert with the purchase of any lunch or dinner entr�e at participating locations; and Days, Ramada, Comfort and Quality Inns all offer 10 percent off members' stays nationwide. Participating merchants are listed in the catalog that is distributed to all program members, as well as on the Smart Ride Stuff web site (www.ridestuff.com).

Currently, more than 3,000 members are enrolled in the program. The program is being promoted through outreach to transit riders, on-site enrollment at employer sites, advertising, promotional events (including a mid-July event planned at Union Station in New Haven) and additional marketing by participating transit operators and county Departments of Transportation.

The Smart Ride Stuff is the first-ever, bi-state commuter rewards program designed to thank those who use mass transit and alternative transportation as well as encourage others to try by offering discounts at local, regional and national retailers. For more information, call Peggy Hetherington at MetroPool at (203) 324-6700, ext. 308 or [email protected]