Serviced Office Providers Raise the Bar on Green Commuting Standards as Part of Eco-friendly Business Environment of the Future

Environmentally responsible business practice is now an ingrained part of corporate office life across the UK. Office recycling, energy-saving measures and supply chain monitoring are all part of this process as is, increasingly, the issue of green commuting – encouraging the workforce to travel to and from the workplace in as eco-friendly a way as possible.
Many of the larger corporates have the resource and infrastructure to set out incentive schemes and work up green transport strategies for their employees. For example, back in 2005, Pfizer earmarked more than £800,000 a year to encourage its 1000 employees at its Walton Oaks site to opt for a green commute. When planning permission was granted for the site in Tadworth, Surrey, the company agreed to a transport plan setting out stringent green transport goals, including single occupancy vehicle, public transport and car-sharing targets.
But for those businesses at the other end of the spectrum, whose resources won’t stretch that far, the notion of trying to manage a sustainable strategy over an activity that takes place beyond the office boundaries can often be a bridge too far.

Solutions in the serviced officer sector
Recently, however, this has begun to change, as some of the UK’s top-end serviced office providers are turning their attention to the issue. By adopting eco-friendly office procedures and providing an infrastructure which allows for a greener approach to running a business, the serviced office provider enables its occupiers to automatically slot into an existing sustainable culture, rather than having to start their own from scratch. And as part of this, provision for adopting a green commuting strategy is part and parcel.

For example, to support the growing trend of cycling to work, Argyll business centres, a leading operator of executive office suites around London’s West End and City, provides “spa-standard” showers, body products and towels for their occupiers, as well as parking for bicycles.

Green cars -104 g/km carbon output vs 243g/km for a traditional London taxi
It has also formed a relationship with Climatecars, the ultimate eco-friendly car service (for when a bicycle really can’t do the job), which runs a fleet of Toyota Priuses all using state-of-the-art hybrid technology for maximum fuel efficiency and minimum carbon output. Run in the same way as a taxi service, each Climatecar is fitted with a bicycle rack (for those moments when the bicycle needs transporting, too), while inside the car, the client can enjoy a range of Condé Nast magazines for reading material, and a bottle of Belu Mineral Water, from the first water company that does not contribute to climate change.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way
Speaking about the demand for environmentally-friendly services, Emily Taylor, Marketing Director of Argyll business centres said, “we have seen an increase in demand for cycle parking and our high quality shower facilities as more and more Londoners take to their bikes.”

British Commuters

• 25 million people commute to and from work in the UK
• Nationally, just 14% of commuters travel to work by bus or train
• Nationally, 11% of commuters walk
• London has the second highest percentage of commuters who cycle to work – at 5% (behind Yorks & Humber with 6%), and the lowest use of the car
• London commuters face the highest average daily commute in the UK, of 86 minutes (DfT Regional Transport Statistics: 2006)

So, while there is still some way to go in achieving a truly green commuting model, it seems now that the will is there: according to a recent Prudential Car Insurance survey, while 57% of drivers see car use as a necessary evil, 20% of urban drivers experience what they term as “green guilt”. At the same time, a recent Barclaycard survey showed that the proportion of us driving to work fell from 92% in 2003/4 to 75% in 2005. It is therefore up to everyone in business – whether occupiers or office providers, to work together to tackle this significant issue – and the executive serviced office providers propose to be at the vanguard of it.