WalkSmart and CycleSmart form an integral part of the Victorian State Government's TravelSmart program, run within the Department of Transport. We fully redeveloped the system in early 2008 to bring it up to the latest industry standards, refresh the design, and provide the enhanced manageability and reduced training requirements brought about by basing it on the IASP CMS.
IASP staff have had a part in the WalkSmart program and related systems dating back to 2003 - the original pilot program website (and the later full scale 2005 launch of WalkSmart and CycleSmart) were developed by our Chief Technical Officer.
WalkSmart and CycleSmart allow members of the public with a pedometer (or cycle computer) to record their daily travel habits. Registered users can track their walking and cycling over time, including setting goals (with automated weekly feedback), and keen cyclists can record and track additional data such as their heart rate or commute time. The sites are jam packed with recent news, FAQs about walking and cycling, health information, and more.
Optional daily emails simplify collecting data from participants (participants simply reply with the reading currently on their pedometer or cycle computer). Entering data on the website is just as easy, with a simple calendar entry process making it straightforward to record complex information such as which days a participant did or didn't cycle, and see historical information at a glance.
Extensive data analysis provides easy-to-read feedback for participants on how they've gone over time, and how they compare to others in the program, as well as allowing administrators to perform detailed statistical analysis on the progress of the program.
One of the most powerful features of the WalkSmart system is the ability to roll out 'sub sites' specific to individual workplaces. These subsites are branded with anything from the workplace's logo right up to seamlessly matching the company Intranet.Workplace subsites partition off user information and statistical data, allowing a program manager within the workplace to run competitions, support and encourage their staff individually, and analyse their workplace's statistics separate from other participants in the WalkSmart program.
System-wide WalkSmart administrators can analyse these workplaces' data alongside everyone else's information, providing the benefits of centralisation while providing independence to participating organisations.
To date, IASP have produced workplace subsites for organisations including National Australia Bank, Melbourne Water, Transurban, the Department of Human Services, and more. Kinect Australia, day-to-day managers of the WalkSmart and CycleSmart program, are enthusiastically signing up more workplaces almost every week. IASP is also working closely with Kinect to incorporate WalkSmart into other travel behaviour change programs. Stay tuned!
