Travel and Transport Easy Wins

General

  • Ensure that transport and planning are better integrated, so that people can travel to healthcare facilities, work, shops and schools by walking, cycling or using public transport
  • Contact the Energy Saving Trust for information about greening your fleet, including free advice, green fleet review and training.

Travel Plans:

  • Promote ‘active travel’ such as cycling and walking to and from work, and to meetings (including patients and visitors where appropriate),
  • using public transport rather than the car,
  • Provide and promote ‘guaranteed ride home’ schemes (such as emergency taxis for staff who car share or use public transport);
  • Reimburse cycle mileage at a rate that makes it a competitive choice for travel.
  • Provide incentives to share cars and drive smaller, more fuel-efficient cars.
  • Reduce single occupancy through promoting car share schemes and car pool schemes.
  • Provide incentives for active travel and lower-carbon methods of transport rather than schemes which financially reward high-emission cars.
  • If you haven’t done so already, appoint a travel plan co-ordinator – a named person with a clear remit to engage with organisational decision-makers
  • Commit resources – financial and non-financial – for development and implementation of the plan
  • Set SMART targets – targets that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound

For Staff, Patients & Visitors:

  • Initiate a parking scheme that gives priority based on need
  • Ensure all cycle and walking paths are well lit and clearly signposted (including time and distances to destinations)
  • Work with local public transport providers to ensure that buses access the site on a regular basis, particularly linking train and bus stations and park & ride areas. 
  • Use teleconferencing and videoconferencing wherever possible – increasing flexibility, saving travelling time and money;
  • Reduce the need to travel eg through home-working or working from a closer, accessible office when appropriate
  • Implement visible measures to support sustainable travel – cycle storage, teleworking, showers, database of car sharers, bike loan schemes
  • Be flexible about start and finish times for work where possible to enable use of public transport.
  • Identify staff who can work at home, even if just once a fortnight.
  • Encourage meeting venues that are accessible via public transport – and when you send out meeting details, list the non-car options first.
  • Log the number of miles and hours saved by the use of teleconferencing and videoconferencing.
  • Support national initiatives such as ‘Bike2Work’ or the work of Sustrans
  • Promote car sharing by staff, including incentives such as priority multi-occupancy vehicle car parking spaces close to the front door
  • Publish your travel plan – make sure staff and visitors are aware of it and its progress
  • Raise awareness of travel issues through newsletters, bulletins etc.
  • Visibly promote the health benefits of walking and cycling
  • Move cycle racks near the entrance of your building. This shows cyclists you value them and provides a statement of intent for employees and the public.
  • Post up-to-date local bus and train timetables on notice boards.