BOSTON, Feb 2 — Michelle Wu, the mayor of Boston, has pulled off a PR masterstroke by immersing herself in the daily lives of the city’s residents and sharing her experience on TikTok. She posted a video in which she takes the bus, early in the morning, to better understand the difficulties sometimes encountered by her fellow citizens.

Boston mayor, Michelle Wu, is extremely active on social networks and, via her TikTok account, the elected representative doesn’t hesitate to engage with the local community. And if the comments left by members of the social network are anything to go by, this new approach to politics seems to be very popular.

In this particular case, the mayor accompanied a teacher on the commute to her school, taking the bus with her and putting herself in the shoes of any Bostonian who needs to get to work using the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) network. And what goes for the teacher also goes for the majority of her students, who take public transport to get to school.

Through this video, spotted by GoodGoodGood, the mayor discovers the sometimes difficult conditions of using transportation in her city, such as having to wait in the cold and then stand for many minutes in an unheated bus. In response, Boston’s residents are quick to suggest improvements to their mayor, such as developing express buses, heated buses, access to more reliable trains, and so on.

In taking this initiative, Michelle Wu sought to get as close as possible to her citizens’ concerns regarding public transport, and to see for herself, on the ground, how things could be improved.

This video is (by far) the most viral on the mayor’s TikTok account. And, judging by the comments, local residents are enthusiastic about this type of initiative. In fact, it’s certain to inspire other politicians, in the US and elsewhere.

Since taking office in 2021, Michelle Wu has already made certain Boston bus routes serving disadvantaged neighbourhoods free of charge. — ETX Studio