DE MONTFORT UNIVERSITY TRAVEL PLAN PROGRESS REPORT

Transcription

1 DE MONTFORT UNIVERSITY TRAVEL PLAN PROGRESS REPORT 2013 This is the November 2013 progress report on the De Montfort University Travel Plan, prepared by Ian Murdey, Transport Co-ordinator, De Montfort University. It is a supplement to the Phase 2 Travel Plan published in 2008 as part of the university s development plan. Updated 12 November

2 De Montfort University Travel Plan Progress Report 2013 Contents Introduction... 3 Measures under Development for Travel Survey Results 2013 (summary)... 6 Contact with External Organisations... 7 Targets, Monitoring and Review... 7 Appendix 2013 Travel Survey Report... 8 Demographics... 8 Student modal split... 9 Staff modal split Comments The questionnaires included the question: Any other comments? This was an opportunity for respondents to describe any personal circumstances related to their travel Encouragement to change behaviour Facilities used already Journey information

3 Introduction For full details of the Phase 2 Travel Plan please visit or contact imurdey@dmu.ac.uk. Current Site Information The development of the Fletcher Building complex has started as some staff and students from the Faculty of Art, Design and Humanities have moved to the Wellesley House building. The Heritage House Building will be opening early in There are currently over 19,000 students registered at the university plus 1406 full-time and 1465 part-time staff. The total number of staff car parking permits issued for the campus currently stands at 1716 with 992 parking spaces available to permit holders. The campus cycle stands, housing over 630 bikes, all remain extremely busy showing a sustained strong demand for these facilities Developments From the 2012 Progress Report, our targets for 2013 were mainly based on promotion of the existing transport deals that DMU offers staff and students, in particular via social networking, and continued close working with Smartgo Leicester (formally Smarter Travel Leicester) in order to improve the range of promotions. At the time of writing we have increased the number of Twitter followers to 671 and we have 197 Likes on our Facebook page. This is a considerable increase on the numbers of just over a year ago (November 21012: 406 Twitter followers and 135 Facebook likes) and the results of the 2013 Travel Survey have shown an increase in the numbers of staff and students following our activities via those two methods. We have also increased the number of entries in the Sustainable DMU blog. Our relationship with Smartgo Leicester has developed further and we are now part of the Large Employers Group that liaises with Leicester City Council in order to influence future developments to the city s public transport infrastructure. This close working with LCC has also improved the flow of information regarding transport initiatives that we receive from them has also seen a continuation of our support for cyclists at DMU as we hosted and took part in the inaugural Castle Classic Race, introduced a cycle maintenance video page to our website, and re-launched the cycle2work and cycle+ salary sacrifice tax-free initiatives. New cycle storage areas have been provided at Wellesley House and the external Fletcher Building ramp wall. Sustainability and alternative transport are at the forefront of our plans as the development of the city campus moves forward with new cycle facilities planned for the future opening of Heritage House and the replacement of the Fletcher Building. The designs for the Mill Lane pedestrianised area will be published in For car users our new on-line renewal process made it easier to ensure that permits could be distributed more fairly to those with the greatest needs. 3

4 2013 new and ongoing initiatives by month Late 2012 Ramblers provided Guided Walk Leaders training for DMU staff and students. Attended Smarter Travel Leicester Forum Rail Revival. Jan 2013 Met with P&MM to discuss their Cycle+ salary sacrifice scheme. Feb 2013 Installed new cycle hoops to external Fletcher Building ramp wall. April 2013 Hosted a talk from local cycling author Richard Guise. Launched the 2013 Staff & Student Travel Survey. Promoted special offer commuter deal on the P&R. Promoted bus deals including 20% discounts and free bus tickets. May 2013 Travel Survey closed. Attended Mental Health Day with the GTPG stall. Attended Learning at Work Week with the GTPG stall. Attended the preliminary Employer Transport Provision meeting with University of Leicester, UHL, Leicester College and LCC. Attended the STL forum Better Business by Car. New on-line car park permit renewal system launched that allows a better distribution of permits to those with the greatest need. Cycle maintenance web-page created. 4

5 June 2013 Meeting with My Campus Ride regarding a new car share app for students. DMU signed up to the new database. July 2013 Second Employer Transport Provision meeting. Cycle2Work scheme given approval by the DMU Executive Board. August 2013 New cycle shelter installed at Wellesley House. Promoted E-Bikes 5% discount to DMU staff & students. Took part in Leicester Castle Classic Corporate Challenge Promoted Leicester Sky Ride, passing through the DMU campus. Examined possible sites for a new cycle shelter at the New Wharf Halls. September 2013 Positive feedback from students using our cycle facilities: 5

6 Staff start signing up for the new Smartgo Leicester website. Attended student Welcome Event and Freshers Fair promoting transport initiatives to Freshers. October 2013 Attended Sustainable Transport 2013 Conference. Re-launched cycle2work/cycleplus salary sacrifice scheme. Measures under Development for 2014 Launch an updated Vehicle Parking & Cycle Policy. Continuation of the Mill Lane pedestrianisation programme. Ongoing promotion of our membership of Smartgo Leicester and the available reductions on public transport tickets for DMU staff; in particular via social networking sources that students follow. Discussions with LCC regarding possible subsidising of the Park & Ride service. Consideration of sustainable travel options when decisions are being made about campus development. Improvements to cycle facilities for students living in university controlled Halls of Residence. Travel Survey Results 2013 (summary) 517 staff and 752 students responded to the survey and provided usable data; this compares with 394 staff and 845 students in The student numbers have fallen considerably in the past two years. Analysis of the results showed the lowest ever percentage of student single occupancy car drivers and the highest ever percentage of walkers. The percentage share of cyclists has remained stable, which is a positive result. The student results also showed that 64% had used at least one of the sustainable transport schemes that DMU promotes with the most common being a Student Rail Card as in previous years. The most popular initiatives desired by student drivers to encourage them to leave their cars at home were greater rail and bus subsidies. For staff, the results showed a continuation in the patterns of previous years with small fluctuations in each of the modal transport choices but a general plateauing in behaviour change. This reflects the fact that the majority of our transport initiatives are now well embedded within the structures and procedures of DMU and highlights a possible need for new and different schemes in the future. 6

7 The cycle initiatives that DMU provides were the most common sustainable transport options that staff members had already tried out. At least 1 in 10 of staff members have used the cycle parking areas or borrowed one of our high quality D-locks that have helped to keep cycle crime across the campus as low as possible. The numbers of DMU members accessing the transport website continues to rise, as do the numbers of people using the SustainableDMU Facebook page and Twitter feed as sources of information. The full report can be seen in the Appendix. Contact with External Organisations The university is continuing to work with the Leicester City Council Traffic Group with a view to further developing a safer and more welcoming environment for pedestrians and cyclists within and around the campus. Relationships with the City Council staff within Transport Development have continued; in particular with Andy Salkeld, the Cycling Co-ordinator, and Bal Minhas. We remain a partner member of the car share database Leicestershare.com along with the City Council, Leicester City Football Club, Leicestershire County Council, UHL NHS Trust and others. The Walkers Stadium Park & Stride scheme continues to be hosted by Leicester City Football Club Monday Friday with parking for 10 permit holders per day. Our relationship with UHL NHS Trust regarding use of the Hospital Hopper continues. Our membership of Smarter Travel Leicester has strengthened our relationships with other major city centre employers as we try to improve sustainable transport schemes around the city and county that will benefit our staff. The relationship between the DMU and University of Leicester environment teams has continued. Targets, Monitoring and Review The University will continue to conduct annual surveys of staff travel patterns and annual reviews of facilities. The survey will normally be conducted in April / May each year, to ensure as much continuity as possible from previous years and to make comparisons meaningful. The facilities review will normally take place in the summer, but in any case in good time for inclusion in the progress reports, which will be prepared in October with a view to being submitted to Leicester City Council in November, and published internally in the New Year. DMU is also in discussions with LCC, UoL and Leicester College (in partnership with Smartgo Leicester) to evaluate the travel surveys of each organisation with an aim to develop a core set of questions that each can include. This will provide a much greater database of behaviours from which analyses can be made with the aim to create a more joined-up approach to tackling congestion within the city. The main target for Phase 2 is to reduce single occupancy car use among staff to 45%. 7

8 Appendix 2013 Travel Survey Report As a part of the university s commitment to the Phase 2 Travel Plan a travel survey to assess the patterns of staff and student travel behaviour is carried out every Spring; this year the survey ran on-line during April and part of May and was accessible via a link on the Staff Portal internet homepage and via links that were sent to Faculties and Directorates. An was also sent to students asking them to respond to their specific questionnaire and a link was hosted on the Blackboard student on-line portal. Variables measured included modal travel choices, trip distance and frequency and the barriers to transport behaviour change. Selected results from these variables are detailed below. Demographics In total 1269 people provided usable data; 517 of these were staff and 752 were students. This is a slight increase on the 2012 number of respondents due to an increase in the staff response rate (394 in 2012); the student response rate was lower than 2012 (845). As in previous years, the biggest group who answered were undergraduate students (671, 53%) followed by Professional Services staff (397, 31%). Not everybody answered each question but as much data as possible has been used when analysing the results. These figures represent a decrease in student responses (845 in 2012) but an increase in staff (394) responses compared with last year. Approximately 27% of the staff respondents were part-time and 69% arrive at DMU between 8:01 and 9:00 in the morning. Both of those figures are similar to previous years. 67% of the student respondents and 60% of staff were female; very comparable with 2012 (68% and 61% respectively). 5% of staff who responded stated that they had a responsibility as a carer of disabled children or adults; this compared closely with 4% of students. 6% of staff respondents have a disability although less than half of those (43%) stated that it affects how they travel. 8% of students also have a disability and for only 21% of those does it affect their travel choices. 8

9 Student modal split Student travel choices from can be seen in Table 1 below. Table 1. Student modal travel choices ; % (to nearest 1%) a Single car driver 20 b Car share as driver Car share as passenger Hospital Hopper n/a 1 1 <1 < Park & Ride n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a <1 1 1 Other Bus Train Bicycle Walk/Run Motorcycle <1 <1 1 0 Other <1 < Variable n/a n/a n/a 1 < a May not add up to 100 due to rounding effect b Figures combined in the survey 70 Chart 1: Student modal travel choices Percentage Bicycle Car Share As Driver Car Share As Passenger Single Car Driver Hospital Hopper Motorcycle Other Bus Train Walk/Run/Skateboard Park & Ride Other/Variable Missing It is very pleasing that these results have returned to the patterns of the pre-2012 surveys that showed general decreases for Single Car Drivers and increases for Walking/Running/Skateboarding. In fact the 2013 data show the highest ever percentage of the latter and the lowest ever of the former. This is now the fifth year in a row that 9

10 Walk/Run/Skateboard has accounted for more of the students coming to DMU than all other travel types put together; this is good for the health and fitness of the students and also for our carbon footprint. The numbers of students cycling is another positive result as it has maintained its modal share from Hopefully in 2014 we will be able to improve on this figure, which would be our best student cycling result since the surveys began. As in 2012 the response rate from students has continued to drop. Although this does bring into question the validity and reliability of the data, the maintenance of previous trends for the majority of the travel choices suggests that such problems are minimal. However, we need to work hard to ensure that we increase the number of student responses in

11 Staff modal split Staff travel choices from can be seen in Table 2 below. Table 2. Staff modal travel choices ; % (to nearest 1%) a Single car driver b 55 b 60 b 54 b Car share as driver Car share as passenger Hospital Hopper n/a n/a n/a n/a Park & Ride n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a Other Bus Train Bicycle Walk/Run Motorcycle 1 0 <1 < b 2 b 1 b 2 b Other Variable n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 1 <1 1 0 a May not add up to 100 due to rounding effect b Figures combined in the survey 70 Chart 2: Staff modal travel choices Percentage Bicycle Car Share As Driver Car Share As Passenger Single Car Driver Hospital Hopper Motorcycle Other Bus Train Walk/Run Park & Ride Variable/Other The staff results from 2013 show a continuation in the patterns of previous years with small fluctuations in each of the modal transport choices but a general plateauing in behaviour change. This reflects the fact that the majority of our transport initiatives are now well embedded within the structures and procedures of DMU and highlights the need for new and different schemes to be added. 11

12 A possible future example would be the reintroduction of a salary sacrifice Cycle to Work scheme, which, anecdotal data suggests, would help to encourage even more staff to choose to cycle to DMU. Despite the lack of any major advances this year it is still well worth noting that our walking and running rates among staff remain high as do our cycle commuting rates, which are still much higher than the national average of (approximately) 3%. 12

13 Comments The questionnaires included the question: Any other comments? This was an opportunity for respondents to describe any personal circumstances related to their travel. Staff 180 comments were left, regarding a number of different issues. The responses were markedly different in tone to those made in previous years: the most popular type of comment by far was to provide positive feedback regarding the policies of the university Travel Plan. These represented 29% of the comments that were made and 10% of the total overall number of staff respondents to the survey. This is a very pleasing result and reflects the hard work that has gone into the Travel Plan over the past 10 years. There were 12 (2% of overall respondents) comments from people explaining that their choice of transport to DMU was dictated by parental responsibilities. Most of these felt that flexibility of work options was reduced because of difficulties with finding a parking space and that the parking policy was not supportive of working parents. Only one comment was left regarding the disabled parking facilities: this person asked for greater enforcement of the policy regarding non-disabled permit holders parking in disabled parking bays. 5% of the total number of respondents would like to see DMU increase the number of car parking spaces but 1% would like the Exclusion Zone extended. Students 283 comments were made; the lack of parking for students was by far the most popular area with many respondents (around 51% of those who left a comment) stating that they felt areas for student parking should be made available on campus. This represents approximately 19% of the total number of student respondents even though only 12% reported themselves as coming in by car. This suggests that a greater number of students would travel by car if parking spaces were available and strengthens the argument that, by providing alternatives to driving and restricting parking provision, the Travel Plan has helped to reduce commuting to DMU by car whilst still enabling people to get here. As in 2012, a number of comments were left regarding the perceived lack of cycle locking provision around campus. A full list of our cycle parking areas can be seen at We will aim to improve knowledge of our existing cycle provisions among the students over the next year whilst also increasing cycle storage provision as a key part of the campus transformation. A small number of students also stated that they would like free public transport provision for travelling around the city; the Hospital Hopper service does provide free travel for all DMU members to a limited number of destinations. Encouragement to change behaviour A question was included in the survey that asked: Would you ever consider changing your USUAL form of transport? For staff, 116 of the 244 (48%) single car drivers said that they would consider or be able to change behaviour. The most common requirement to be able to make that change was, as in previous years, Greater bus subsidies (37% of those drivers willing to make a change) followed by Greater rail subsidies (22%). As members of Smarter Travel Leicester, we currently offer a range of discounts on a variety of public transport tickets for staff including both bus and 13

14 rail companies. We will endeavour to increase the number of tickets and companies that the discounts are valid for and aim to promote the offers more successfully. Extra shower and changing facilities were also requested by 22% of the staff drivers willing to change their behaviour; as the campus continues to be developed it is hoped that we will be able to offer new and improved shower areas. It is interesting to note that 10% of drivers willing to change stated that a reduction in the number of car parking spaces offered on campus would encourage them to seek alternatives as this is something that may occur naturally as a result of campus development. 43 student single car drivers stated that they would be willing to change their travel habits. This represents 56% of all the student single car drivers who answered the survey. Public transport subsidies were again very popular with 47% wanting greater rail subsidies and 28% wishing for greater bus subsidies. This reflects the finding from previous years despite the offers that local public transport providers currently make for students. Either these offers are not substantial enough or we need to promote them more successfully. Fuel price increases (28%) would also encourage a change of behaviour and 9% would like greater shower and changing facilities even though those which we have are not yet operating at capacity. This is therefore another facility which we need to promote better. In 2011 we introduced Twitter feed and Facebook page to help to promote initiatives to students. Hopefully as the number of followers increases the provision of information will improve. Facilities used already A further question asked about existing alternative transport initiatives and whether respondents had used them. 64% of students had used at least one of the initiatives compared with 57% in 2012 The most salient by far remains the student rail card with 49% of respondents having used one; this has grown from 37% in the past two years. The next most popular was free Hospital Hopper travel (11% of total student responses). The number of students using our cycle parking was 9% compared with 6% in As only 4% report cycling to DMU regularly it is clear that some students are prepared to be flexible with how they travel. This is a good result as it implies that further gains can be made. Cycle initiatives also remain very popular among the staff members who have used an alternative to driving: The top most commonly used initiatives remain sheltered cycle parking and lockable cycle parking, both 11% of all staff responses, and free loan of a lock or lights - 10% up from 7% in The numbers of students (4%) and staff (12%) accessing the transport website continue to rise, which shows that the resources spent on promoting the website are having an effect. Similarly, as initiatives introduced only last year, it is good to see that the SustainableDMU Facebook page (students 4%: staff 5%) and Twitter feed (students 6%: staff 8%) are also increasingly being used as sources of information. Very few staff had used the subsidies for buses (8%) and rail (1%) despite both initiatives being high on the Encouragement to change behaviour list. 14

15 Journey information The survey included a series of questions regarding the journey to DMU including travel times, distances, frequencies and vehicle types. These questions will be analysed by the Institute of the Environment and Sustainable Development (IESD) in order to calculate the CO 2 emissions of the University as a part of our commitment to a more environmentally friendly campus. 15