For 10 years, RTA ridership had been declining. After all, Northeast Ohio is historically a driving town. So, how do you communicate the benefits of public transportation to commuters who can’t think outside their cars?

Let’s remind people of the disadvantages of being inside their cars—potholes, gas prices, rush hour, speed cameras, texting, the ozone, etc. RTA is an easy way to avoid all this, and honestly, will they really miss it? Then, let’s make sure our message appears where and when people are thinking about (and hating) driving.

Besides eight years of substantial ridership increases, RTA was recently named North America’s Best Transit System by the American Public Transportation Association, beating such public-transportation-oriented cities as Chicago, New York, and Boston. (Take that, “T.”)