Why Does Your Organisation Need A Travel Plan?
What is a Travel Plan? · What are the benefits? · Why do I need to get one? · How do I get one? ·Organisations which have a Travel Plan appear more responsible, caring and business orientated towards staff, customers, suppliers, and towards the local community. The development of a Travel Plan will support all five of the following initiatives.
1. Satisfying Planning Conditions
Planning authorities manage future travel to and from development sites through regulatory controls such as section 106 agreements. It is becoming increasingly common for planning authorities to ask organisations to develop a Travel Plan to demonstrate how they will minimise the potential traffic impact on their development and, for example, cope with reduced parking availability.
2. National, Regional and Local Transport Policies
National Transport Policy
Building on the Government’s commitment to sustainable development, the Department for Transport (DfT) is actively working to deliver the sustainable development objectives by:
- Tackling congestion (which damages economic competitiveness, worsens local air quality, and adds to the stress of our daily lives)
- Reducing the environmental and health impacts of transport (including transport’s impact on air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, noise pollution and public safety)
- Reducing social exclusion related to transport and accessibility
- Integrating transport and land-use planning to produce more sustainable patterns of development.
The overall objective of this Travel Plan (TP) is to seek to ensure all users of this building use more sustainable forms of transport than single occupancy car travel and so contribute to the Government’s sustainable development policy.
Regional Transport Policy
The Regional Transport Strategy (RTS) sets out a framework for Local Transport Plans (LTP). The RTS provides a steer on land-use policies to ensure major developments support more sustainable travel patterns.
The Regional Policy Framework provides a regional interpretation of national guidance, and addresses projects and priorities which cut across LTP areas.
The Provisional LTP2 identifies Travel Plans as being “central to meeting the congestion and mode shift objectives”, sets out aspects of good practice in Travel Plans, and requires all Travel Plans produced in Tyne & Wear to contain:
- a site assessment
- the results of a staff travel–to–work survey
- clearly defined objectives, targets and indicators
- proposed measures
- timetable
- responsibilities and roles
- staff (and if applicable) union participation
- monitoring and reviewing plan
- proposals for maintaining momentum and publicising success.
3. Business Efficiency
Developing a Travel Plan can improve customer access and reduce costs.
- Human Resources — being a more responsible employer can have benefits in the recruitment and retention of staff
- Transport Costs — by minimising business travel
- Less car parking spaces can reduce capital, management and maintenance costs, and make the land for something else
- A healthier workforce means less staff absence.
Travel Plans may be implemented to enhance your organisation’s image. Your organisation may wish to improve public relations and show that you are a conscientious employer by demonstrating your commitment to Sustainable Development. Within the context of the shifting culture towards sustainability there are increasing concerns for environmental, social and economic issues.
4. Environmental Responsibility
Travel Plans can reduce the environmental impact of your organisation’s activities. Reducing travel reduces air and noise pollution, and traffic congestion.
Many organisations audit their environmental management through the ISO14001 scheme. This is an award which applies to standards of environmental improvements which the organisation can control. Transport plays an important role in most business activities and may, particularly in the service sector, represent one of the operation’s main environmental impacts. Developing a Travel Plan is an important contribution to ISO14001 and other environmental management systems.
5. Social Responsibility
People are increasingly questioning the environmental and social ethics of an organisation.- Corporate Social Responsibility — Includes looking after how your staff travel too and from work
- Investors in People — This national standard sets good practice for improving performance through employees. It requires employers to take specific actions to support and develop their employees. The widening of travel choices and the processes involved could motivate and support employees
- Work Life Balance — Tele-working and flexible and compressed hours not only help employees to better manage their work and home commitments. This can also reduce the amount of travel and peak period travel
- Equal opportunities — Free car parking is common but it is hardly equitable. It is a benefit to car users which is not available for non car users
- Social inclusion — A Travel Plan will help to ensure that your development is accessible to all.