The ‘Reduce the ride’ initiative for HUSK is the personification of how breakthrough thinking in a b2b (or b2g) environment, on a very, very limited start-up budget, solved the business problem of successfully launching a new brand in a very saturated market, while solving Belgium’s most shameful mobility problem at the same time.

1/ D’Ieteren, the leading Belgian car distributor (Audi, VW, Skoda, ...), was launching a b2b ‘private taxi transport’ service, HUSK. A saturated market difficult to penetrate. Especially with a start-up budget. Briefing was how HUSK could earn the public's attention, rather than buying it?

2/ There are not a lot of special needs children’s schools in Belgium, and not a lot of special need children’s school busses. So, the few busses in place need to drive for long hours to pick up all children and bring them to school.

3/ Due to underfunding from the government, more than 5000 special needs children spend up to 8 (!) hours in a bus, each day. No, really: 2, 3 even 4 hours in a bus… single ride… every day… special needs children… A national disgrace. To quote Belgiums leading newspaper ‘De Tijd’: “what we do to those special needs children is inhumane”.

To put pressure on the government and shame them into action, D’Ieteren & HUSK Presented: Reduce the Ride. An initiative to get special needs children to school faster. Yes indeed, awaiting a structural solution from the government, HUSK voluntarily made its entire fleet of private minibuses and vans, and its innovative app and planning technology, available to the worst affected special needs children schools. Reducing the average time for a single ride from 2h58 to 36 minutes only! To put a face to the issue we turned 2 special needs children’s story into a documentary film and send it to the press, together with a press release. That’s all it took to get the entire national press to cover the issue and shame the government into action.

Let’s shame the government into action by demonstrating how ‘easy’ it is to find a solution to Belgium’s most shameful mobility problem, while at the same time introducing a new ‘private taxi transport’ brand via earned attention only. Proving that you can do well by doing good. To put a face to the issue a documentary film was created, featuring two special needs children on their 8 (!) hour journey to and from school. The film, together with a press release was targeted to the entire national Belgian press. That’s all it took to get the entire national press to cover the issue and shame the government into action.

The HUSK fleet of minibuses and vans, and its innovative planning technology, was made available (free of charge) to two of the worst affected special needs children schools.

From these first ‘reducing the ride’ of special needs children of two Belgian special needs children schools, a documentary film was created , featuring two special needs children on their 8 (!) hour journey to and from school. The film, together with a press release was targeted to the entire national Belgian press. Interviews with the ceo of HUSK were prepared as to why this initiative, etc.

While waiting for a structural solution, other schools were urged to contact HUSK for a mobility solution. All free of charge, obviously.

A problem plaguing Belgium for years, was solved by HUSK in weeks, by proving the effectiveness of smaller fleets and proper mobility planning. Literally the entire Belgian press engaged, praising the heart-warming HUSK initiative, but also putting enormous pressure on the government and finally shaming them into action. Just 1 week after coverage, the Belgian government decided to free an extra budget of 11 million euros to get the special needs children to school faster, by asking private taxi companies and fleets of minivans to help solve the issue. HUSK landed 80% (!) of that extra government budget. Proving that you can do well by doing good: a new b2b brand launched, a business problem solved, and a government b2b contract landed. But, more importantly, finally a real school transport solution for the special needs children of Belgium.

The purpose of D'ieteren: Improving the lives of our fellow citizens through fluid, accessible and sustainable mobility. (See: https://www.dieteren.be/en/mission-vision/ )

'Improving the lives of fellow citizens via accessible mobility', which is exactly what they did for the shameful school-mobility problem of the special needs children of Belgium, while solving the business problem of launching a new b2b brand - HUSK - at the same