In partnership with the MSRC, the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) piloted an express shuttle service for the United States Department of Energy's 2013 Solar Decathlon and XPO, which was hosted for the first time outside of Washington D.C. at the Orange County Great Park in the City of Irvine. Some 64,000 visitors experienced the 2013 Solar Decathlon and XPO, held over eight days in October 2014 at the Orange County Great Park. About 800 students built 19 advanced technology solar houses on site for free public tours. In addition, the XPO complemented the Solar Decathlon by offering an exposition that provided visitors with an opportunity to learn about clean, renewable and efficient energy solutions.
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The Solar Decathlon Express service was offered during each of the eight days the Decathlon was open to the public, which spanned two weekends beginning Thursday, October 3, 2013, through Sunday, October 6, 2013, and Thursday, October 10, 2013 through Sunday, October 13, 2013. The express route served four pick-up locations located at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) campus and the Irvine Spectrum before entering the Great Park. The express service was offered in coordination with the City of Irvine's iShuttle service, which offered shuttles between the Irvine Transportation Center and event location.
The Solar Decathlon Express made available three compressed natural gas buses for boarding every 30 minutes during the eight days the event was open to the public. On time performance was excellent with the shuttles available from 10:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. which conveniently served the public event which opened at 11:00 a.m. and closed at 7:00 p.m. In keeping with OCTA's current fare structure, the service required a $2.00 fare per boarding, with all applicable passes accepted which facilitated for more seamless transit transfers.
In light of the expected attendance at the event and with access to the Great Park limited to a two-lane entrance, OCTA applied in coordination with the City of Irvine for Major Event Center Transportation Program funding to ease traffic congestion and to provide visitors and participants a clean and convenient alternative to traveling by automobile.
he Solar Decathlon Express shuttles proved effective with over 432 boardings throughout the eight day public event. Ridership showed significant increases during the second week of the Solar Decathlon, as the awareness of the event and the shuttle service grew.
In relationship to the overall message of the event, OCTA positioned their marketing campaign around saving energy by taking the Solar Decathlon Express Route 686 to the venue. The marketing campaign targeted both current OCTA customers as well as those who were not current or frequent transit users. The marketing campaign included print, online, and bus advertising for the comprehensive campaign.
- Bus advertising included the installation of 10 exterior ads and over 1,200 interior bus cards provided in both English & Spanish.
- Newspaper advertising included online banner ads on OCRegister.com, along with print materials on the OC Register and Excelsior.
- OC & IEOC stations were adorned with 15 event posters.
- Printed materials included the distribution of 25,000 bilingual brochures and schedules.