Travel-friendly workplaces

_{Click to enlarge}
Reasons for commuting by public transport, 2009/10
(NB: Percentages do not add to 100 per cent because respondents can provide more than one reason)
Source: NSW Ministry of Transport, Bureau of transport statistics - 2009/10 Household Travel Survey

Workplaces can play an important role in promoting cleaner travel.

While trips made by public transport are on the rise, 68 per cent of trips to work (commutes) in greater metropolitan Sydney in 2009/10 were made by car, either as a driver or passenger. The diagram on the right shows the reasons behind this (click to enlarge it).

Encourage walking to and from work and meetings.

Let clients know where there is a convenient and secure place to park their bikes.

Creating a workplace transport access guide lets you find out how people currently travel to work, then identify the best options for your particular workplace.

Depending on the size of your workplace, a number of the workplace transport access guide options below can be put in place.

• Promote virtual meetings. Improve telecommunications facilities to make teleconferences a more realistic option.
• Facilitate car pooling.
• Offer public transport MyMulti Passes as part of salary packages.
• Promote cycling. Many workplaces are looking at ways to encourage cycling, with benefits such as improved staff productivity, fewer sick days and less pressure on parking spaces, not to mention reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
• Provide facilities like showers and lockers, and secure and convenient bicycle parking.
• Take part in Ride to Work Day
• Add bicycles to your fleet to use for short trips.
• Read case studies about successful cycle-friendly organisations around Australia in the Cycle Friendly Workplace Guide.
• Encourage walking to and from work and meetings, where possible. Take part in Walk to Work Day.
• Support work from home options. Called telecommuting, it can usually be done some of the time. All staff need is a laptop, phone and internet connection to do their work. Telecommuting saves on travel costs and emissions, can reduce demand for office space and lower energy costs for the employer while allowing employees to work around personal commitments. It can also be more productive as there’s less time wasted in commuting and fewer interruptions.
• Review the organisation's car fleet.
  • More than half of all new vehicles registered each year are purchased for business fleets. Investigate smaller, more fuel efficient or hybrid vehicles for your business and use cleaner fuels.
  • Join FleetWise - a program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution from passenger fleets in NSW.
  • Join Clean Fleet if your business has a commercial diesel truck or heavy vehicle fleet.
• Driving cleaner will save your business money by:
  • reducing maintenance and breakdowns
  • improving reliability and fuel consumption
  • reducing the chance of smoky vehicles fines
  • improving vehicle resale value.
• Encourage your clients and customers to travel cleaner
  • Provide information on public transport services to your business on your company website. Put the 131500 trip planner iFrame on your website and provide links to 131500.com.au in your email signatures.
  • Make sure reception staff have the latest bus, ferry, and train timetables (available on 131500.com.au) bookmarked to direct clients. The light rail and monorail services do not run to a timetable but operate very frequently (light rail every 10-15 minutes and monorail every 3-5 minutes in peak hours, can be less during off peak).
  • Let clients know where there is a convenient and secure place to park their bikes.

_{Click to enlarge}
Reasons for commuting by public transport, 2009/10
(NB: Percentages do not add to 100 per cent because respondents can provide more than one reason)
Source: NSW Ministry of Transport, Bureau of transport statistics - 2009/10 Household Travel Survey

Workplaces can play an important role in promoting cleaner travel.

While trips made by public transport are on the rise, 68 per cent of trips to work (commutes) in greater metropolitan Sydney in 2009/10 were made by car, either as a driver or passenger. The diagram on the right shows the reasons behind this (click to enlarge it).

Encourage walking to and from work and meetings.

Let clients know where there is a convenient and secure place to park their bikes.

Creating a workplace transport access guide lets you find out how people currently travel to work, then identify the best options for your particular workplace.

Depending on the size of your workplace, a number of the workplace transport access guide options below can be put in place.

• Promote virtual meetings. Improve telecommunications facilities to make teleconferences a more realistic option.
• Facilitate car pooling.
• Offer public transport MyMulti Passes as part of salary packages.
• Promote cycling. Many workplaces are looking at ways to encourage cycling, with benefits such as improved staff productivity, fewer sick days and less pressure on parking spaces, not to mention reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
• Provide facilities like showers and lockers, and secure and convenient bicycle parking.
• Take part in Ride to Work Day
• Add bicycles to your fleet to use for short trips.
• Read case studies about successful cycle-friendly organisations around Australia in the Cycle Friendly Workplace Guide.
• Encourage walking to and from work and meetings, where possible. Take part in Walk to Work Day.
• Support work from home options. Called telecommuting, it can usually be done some of the time. All staff need is a laptop, phone and internet connection to do their work. Telecommuting saves on travel costs and emissions, can reduce demand for office space and lower energy costs for the employer while allowing employees to work around personal commitments. It can also be more productive as there’s less time wasted in commuting and fewer interruptions.
• Review the organisation's car fleet.
  • More than half of all new vehicles registered each year are purchased for business fleets. Investigate smaller, more fuel efficient or hybrid vehicles for your business and use cleaner fuels.
  • Join FleetWise - a program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution from passenger fleets in NSW.
  • Join Clean Fleet if your business has a commercial diesel truck or heavy vehicle fleet.
• Driving cleaner will save your business money by:
  • reducing maintenance and breakdowns
  • improving reliability and fuel consumption
  • reducing the chance of smoky vehicles fines
  • improving vehicle resale value.
• Encourage your clients and customers to travel cleaner
  • Provide information on public transport services to your business on your company website. Put the 131500 trip planner iFrame on your website and provide links to 131500.com.au in your email signatures.
  • Make sure reception staff have the latest bus, ferry, and train timetables (available on 131500.com.au) bookmarked to direct clients. The light rail and monorail services do not run to a timetable but operate very frequently (light rail every 10-15 minutes and monorail every 3-5 minutes in peak hours, can be less during off peak).
  • Let clients know where there is a convenient and secure place to park their bikes.