For our second challenge of the 2024-2025 program year, we partnered with the Detroit People Mover (DPM), an enhanced public transit service which provides transportation that affects not only the image of the city but also plays a role in the attraction of conventions and tourism, businesses and entertainment to downtown Detroit. Teams of Fellows created recommendations and tangible work products to build awareness about and increase new ridership by Detroit residents. Fellows worked alongside Detroit People Mover staff – Robert Cramer, Madonna VanFossen, Ericka Alexander, Tony Vinson, Chrishaun Stanton and Tiauna West – as well as engaged with stakeholders from across Detroit neighborhoods. Learn more about the project from the Fellow perspective!
Family Ridership Team
Fellow Team (L to R): Brianna Jackson, Chanale Greer, Daphne Donigan, Ana Alvarez, Nick Wingfield
As the Family Ridership Team, we were intentional about working together to complement the amazing work that the Detroit People Mover has already done so far. We were committed to finding ways to engage families in neighborhoods outside of downtown Detroit. We approached this project with a unique lens centering families with youth and young adults in a way that made Detroit not just a mode of transport, but an experience. How might we encourage families in Detroit neighborhoods to become new riders of and champions for the People Mover? That question shaped our deliverables, from youth-specific activities like an “I Spy” challenge to incentives that encouraged families to return. “For adults, the Detroit People Mover gets you to your destination. But, for kids, the Detroit People Mover is the destination,” Detroit residents Seth & Jewel shared with us. That’s exactly what we set out to achieve – a creative, innovative project that turns the Detroit People Mover into a space of discovery, learning, and fun for everyone.
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