Metrolink is the regional passenger railroad for Southern California, consisting of 538 miles of track that connects six counties (Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, San Diego, Riverside and Ventura), and whose ridership grew to nearly 12 million annual boardings pre-COVID.
As with other public transportation agencies, Metrolink’s ridership fell significantly in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Metrolink was traditionally a commuter rail service, but with most workplaces closed, questions rose over if, when, and how the traditional workday commute would resume. As a result Metrolink decided to pivot from a weekday commute business to a passenger railroad and focus on rebuilding ridership.
In partnership with Brandmovers, Metrolink developed a loyalty rewards program that incentivizes customers to use Metrolink for travel in their everyday lifestyles, from work to weekend recreation. Launched in October 2020, the SoCal Explorer loyalty program rewards riders with points and provides tangible benefits and perks, including exclusive offers from businesses and attractions throughout Southern California. Utilizing Brandmovers’ enterprise loyalty platform and OCR technology, Metrolink can connect and grow ridership numbers by understanding purchasing patterns across paper and mobile ticket users; implementing pricing initiatives like fare-capping; tracking sustainability efforts and carbon savings; and driving valuable customer behaviors and engagement.
Download the case study to see how the SoCal Explorer loyalty program helped build ridership, support economic recovery, and contribute to a more sustainable region even in the middle of a global pandemic.
