Help your staff get to work with the Business Travel Pack 1 The way to go Welcome to the Business Travel Pack This pack aims to give you the tools to help encourage more employees to consider walking, cycling, using public transport or car-sharing to get to work. Providing useful information will make it easier for employees to make informed choices for getting to and from work and promotes the benefits of saving time and money, as well as improving health and wellbeing. Visit the BEE Anglia website - www.beeanglia.org Information for businesses Suffolk Norfolk Website: Website: www.suffolk.gov.uk/localinks www.norfolk.gov.uk/roads-and-transport Email: Email: [email protected] [email protected] Twitter: @SuffLocalLinks If you have any comments on this pack or ideas on how we can improve the content to help you, please let us know through our feedback survey at: https://goo.gl/INW5FR 2 Benefits There are a number of ways in which your business will benefit from the business pack and promoting sustainable travel to your staff. For your business: • Reduced pressure on your car park • Reduced business travel costs • Improved staff health and wellbeing • A more active and productive workforce • Reduced congestion • Easier access for employees and customers • Help attract and maintain staff • Demonstrate you’re a responsible employer Employees and customers can: • Save money • Improve health and wellbeing • Arrive quicker and more reliably • Benefit from increased travel options 3 Active travel – walking and cycling Promoting walking and cycling can bring health benefits and cost savings for both the business and its staff. Active travel can make staff fitter and reduce the cost of the commute. Cycle to work scheme The cycle to work scheme is a benefit that you You can set up the cycle to work scheme can set up for your staff. Employers of all sizes yourself, or one of the following organisations can get involved and employees can see real can administer the scheme for you at no cost. savings on the cost of commuting by bike. The scheme allows employees to hire cycles Bike to work – www.bike2workscheme.co.uk and cycle equipment from their employer as Cyclescheme – www.cyclescheme.co.uk a tax free benefit. At the end of the hire term Halfords – www.cycle2work.info an employer may choose to sell the cycle on to the employee at market value. If this A guide on how to implement the scheme happens an employee can save over 30% on can be found online: the cost of the bike and the employer will pay www.gov.uk/government/uploads/ less National Insurance Contributions for the attachment_data/file/11305/cycle-to-work- employee during the hire term. guidance.pdf In addition there is a guide to calculating the market value of a bicycle: Cycle Streets - www.cyclestreets.net Cycle maps in Suffolk- www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/eimanual/ www.suffolk.gov.uk/roads-and-transport/ eim21667a.htm cycling/ Norfolk County Council – Adult Cycling Initiative Norfolk County Council has initiated an With seminars lasting an hour, this is an ideal education, training and publicity campaign introduction for new cyclists, whilst acting as to support the increasing levels of adult a great refresher for those that cycle more cycling around the county. A free workplace frequently. Cyclists are offered a free follow- seminar aimed at commuter cyclists, or up road riding session, which will be client potential cyclists, is available, which covers the focused and concentrate on areas of concern following: raised by the cyclist. • economic, health and environmental benefits of cycling To book a seminar for your workplace, please contact Norfolk County Council on 0344 800 • advice on equipment, routes and 8020 or email the team at roadsafety@norfolk. riding techniques gov.uk. Each seminar is for a maximum of 10 • key safety messages and other advice cyclists, but we can run the seminar multiple that the riders would want to know. times if you have a high demand at your workplace. 4 Hints and tips for encouraging walking and cycling The following have been used by other businesses to encourage more walking and cycling: • Ask staff to identify what prevents them • Identify an employee who is passionate from cycling and walking, and help them about walking or cycling to work and overcome these barriers by making it encourage them to get their colleagues easy and simple to walk and cycle to work to give it a go • Try to encourage staff to give walking or • Providing easy-to-understand site active cycling a go for one or two days travel maps to staff, identifying safe a week, and encourage them by walking and cycling routes to and from offering occasional ‘free breakfasts’ your office or other incentives • Providing pool bikes for local • Provide copies of free cycle maps, where business journeys available, and encourage use of ‘walkit. • Introducing cycle mileage rates for com’ to all your staff staff cycling on business • Implement a ‘Cycle to Work’ scheme • Use of QR codes to download active offering staff loans for bikes and cycling travel information to mobile phones equipment as a tax benefit • Promoting cycle/ walk to work week • Be positive about walking and cycling in to encourage employees all communications with staff 5 Public transport Taking the bus or train to work is a good alternative to using the car. It’s simple, less stressful, frees up personal time and will help ease traffic congestion. It can also be a cheaper alternative, especially when the cost of running a car and parking are taken into account. To make bus and train travel for commuters even better value for money, a number of bus operators in Norfolk and Suffolk offer discounted travel tickets. First Bus Commuter Travel Club You and your employees will be able to access a number of discounted travel tickets to save on the cost of your commute. Visit: www.firstgroup.com/ctclub Greater Anglia Corporate discounts www.greateranglia.co.uk/tickets-fares/business-travel/discounted-season- tickets-for-corporates Ipswich Buses www.ipswichbuses.co.uk/tickets/faresfares/ Borderbus www.border-bus.co.uk 6 Hints and tips for promoting public transport When promoting public transport, you could: • Provide staff with free and easy to read public transport maps, showing your workplace, including ‘how to get here by public transport’ advice • Introduce a noticeboard in the reception area with current public transport information and offers • Encourage car users to use the bus on just one or two days a week to start with, so they can see how easy it is to use the local bus network • Be positive about bus and train travel in all communications with staff 7 Park & Ride Suffolk The Commuter Travel Club offers exclusive Benefits for employees discounted travel to all employees of member organisations, no matter the size or nature • Big discounts on monthly bus passes of the business. It is completely free to join, • No-hassle repeated monthly payment with no ongoing administration fee and First • Pass delivered directly to your door will even provide you with some marketing materials to promote this offer. • Completely unlimited bus travel, any time www.firstgroup.com/norfolk-suffolk/more/ • Price fixed for a year, guaranteed ipswich-park-ride • Flexible with no agreements to sign or Individual employees sign up by calling minimum term the dedicated CTC phone number 0345 340 9021 Discounted monthly tickets can be Benefits for employers purchased by repeated monthly payment and delivered direct. • Offer a great employee benefit at no cost • Reduce the cost of getting to work • Improve your green travel planning credentials • Free to join and no ongoing administration needed • Marketing materials provided • Improved employee engagement and retention • Simple sign up process Norfolk The Employer Discount Scheme allows Will I get a paper ticket or a smartcard? employees of any company who is a member of the scheme to obtain a 10% discount on the Annual Park & Ride tickets are only available purchase of an annual adult Park & Ride ticket. on the Norfolk County Council holdall card. An annual Park & Ride ticket allows unlimited Further details on how to obtain your card and use of any of the Park & Ride services, from purchase your ticket can be found online. As any site for the entire period of its’ validity on verification that you are currently employed any day the services are operating. It can also by a member company is required, these be used for local journeys between city centre tickets can only be purchased in person at the bus stops that are served as part of the Park konectbus information desk in Norwich Bus & Ride network. The discounted price of the Station which is open Monday to Saturday Adult ticket is £495. 0830–1730. Payment must be made in full and there are www.norwichparkandride.co.uk/eds no Direct Debit payment options available on the Employer Discount Scheme. 8 Responsible car use For many businesses and their employees, the car remains an important part of the transport mix. However, there are measures we can take to reduce our environmental impact whilst retaining flexibility and choice by promoting smarter driving practice. This includes more economical and efficient driving (known as “eco-driving”) or car sharing to work. Benefits for business: Employees can benefit from: • Reduces the need for parking spaces • Reduced stress from driving • Reduces business mileage costs • Reduced costs of fuel and parking • Improves site access to customers and staff • Widens the potential recruitment