A travel plan (historically referred to as a green travel plan) is a package of actions designed by a workplace, school or other organisation to encourage safe, healthy and sustainable travel options. By reducing car travel, Travel Plans can improve health and wellbeing, free up carparking space, and make a positive contribution to the community and the environment. Every Travel Plan is different, but most successful plans have followed a structured process[1] in their development:
Contents |
The UK Department for Transport defines workplace travel plans as a package of measures produced by employers to encourage staff to use alternatives to single-occupancy car use. The first Travel Plans in the UK were adopted in Nottingham by Nottinghamshire County Council in 1995. Travel plans are now common in the UK, and are becoming common in Australia and New Zealand.
A workplace can choose to develop a travel plan at any time, or could be required to develop a travel plan as a condition of planning consent for an expansion or new development. Typical actions in a workplace travel plan include improving facilities for pedestrians and cyclists (showers, lockers and cycle parking), promotion and subsidy of public transport, and encouraging carpooling, working from home and teleconferencing.
Making it safer and easier for children to walk, cycle or catch public transport to school has long-term health benefits, reduces air pollution and traffic congestion, and helps children arrive at school awake, refreshed and ready to learn.
Because of the many benefits, local councils in the UK, Australia and New Zealand are actively involved in helping schools to develop and implement travel plans. In Canada, a national pilot project running from 2010-2012 is designed to bring stakeholders together to build school travel plans collaboratively. Typical actions in a school travel plan include promoting the health benefits of walking, providing more or better pedestrian crossings, tighter enforcement of parking and traffic rules around the school, providing cycle training, and setting up a walking school bus[2]. School travel planning groups like Green Communities Canada also work on a policy level to encourage multi-tiered governmental policies that support active travel.
There are many examples of successful travel plans for tertiary campuses. Successful tertiary travel plans are usually prepared with the assistance of the local public transport agency. As well as the initiatives listed for school or workplace travel plans, tertiary travel plans can include a U-pass system for student travel on public transport.
The development of travel plans for hospitals is a relatively new and interesting field of travel planning.
A real-estate developer may be required to provide a travel plan as a condition to gaining planning consent. A typical travel plan for a new development will provide for the promotion of sustainable transport through marketing initiatives, and for contributions to public transport and to walking and cycling infrastructure. In the UK, a Travel Plan can form part of a Section 106 agreement under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.