Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) Averts Fiscal Cliff with 'Save The Bus' Campaign

Target Audience: The target audiences for the MCTS "Save The Bus" campaign were state and local elected officials and opinion leaders. More specifically, however, we targeted the Wisconsin State Legislature's GOP-controlled Joint Finance Committee, as well as Wisconsin's Democratic Governor, Tony Evers. While Gov. Evers had previously shown support for mass transit and MCTS, the Joint Finance Committee had not, having cut transit aid to Milwaukee County in the previous biennial budget. We hoped to influence their future decision-making by reaching other elected officials, as well as local business leaders, community advocacy groups and the public at large.

Strategy Objective:The objective was to influence state and local leaders to support and ultimately pass a countywide sales tax. This was done by developing an integrated marketing communications campaign called #SaveTheBus. We launched a landing page with infographics, rider testimonials, an email template for riders to customize for their legislators, and business letters of support. Media outlets were contacted and pitched interviews, story angles and editorial pieces, resulting in extensive media coverage. Infographics and corresponding posts were created for social media, followed by five "Man on the Bus" video interviews and a special edition "Rider Insider" e-newsletter. Additionally, print and digital ads were placed in the statewide Milwaukee Journal Sentinel newspaper and local business media.

Situation Challenge: MCTS was hurtling towards a fiscal cliff. With funding steadily declining over the last decade and the impending expiration of federal COVID-19 funding, MCTS was facing a budget shortfall of $26.5 million in 2025. Without dedicated funding, the threat of route cuts—which would impact nearly half of routes spread throughout Milwaukee County—was looming. These service reductions would exacerbate the economic damage caused by COVID-19 and critically damage many local businesses, as well as limit the ability of residents to access jobs. Although a 0.4% county-wide tax had been discussed as a possible solution, it had to first be approved by the state legislature's Joint Finance Committee and then by the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors. This campaign sought influence both to vote "yes."

Results Impact: In July 2023, the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors voted YES to a 0.4% tax increase—the first step to avoiding a fiscal cliff. This positive outcome was due the support of the community, local businesses, community advocacy groups and an overall successful awareness campaign. Editorial outreach efforts netted more than 39 million impressions! · Editorial media coverage: 235 articles · Advertising equivalency value: $321,009.40 · Unique visitors: 16,163,193 · Audience reach: 37,721,568 Organic social media results included: · 180,241 impressions · 4,914 clicks Paid social media results included: · 68,627 impressions · 505 clicks Paid advertising results included: · 776,138 print impressions · 429,233 digital impressions:

Why Submit: This campaign sought to convince the Wisconsin State Legislature's largely Republican Joint Finance Committee to support a special tax for Wisconsin's most Democratic county, Milwaukee. The campaign also had to convince Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors to support a new tax, even though many of their constituents were highly anti-tax. By reaching out in a creative and bi-partisan manner to business, legislative and community leaders, and average citizens, MCTS was able to achieve this goal. This will allow the organization to continue innovating the way people move throughout the Milwaukee area and continue providing massive economic impact for the region. While there is more work to be done, the success of the campaign thus far shows MCTS remains committed to its community and values.