A new toolkit is now available for employers who are interested in introducing active travel commuting options for the growing number of employees exploring cycling and walking.

The Active Travel Toolkit shows employers how they can best enable people to get to work on foot and by bike

Launched by Transport for London (TfL), but also applicable in part to areas outside the capital, the Active Travel Toolkit shows employers how they can best enable people to get to work on foot or by bike.

Interest in active travel has shown a sharp increase during the pandemic, including due to the limited capacity on public transport while social distancing measures remain in place. TfL data has shown strong increases in the numbers of people cycling in London since the pandemic started, with an increase in cycling of 97% seen recently on the weekend of 19-20 September, compared to the same weekend last year.

Active travel also brings benefits to employee health, business flexibility and helps cut the costs and hassle involved with using cars to commute, including the need for parking spaces.

But getting buy-in from employees themselves is essential for delivering active travel initiatives; in a business engagement pilot scheme conducted by TfL in 2016, workplaces that had appointed champions and invested in training saw five times as many participants per business compared to businesses that did not.

The TfL toolkit explores ways to incorporate and encourage active travel and outlines tips and extra resources.

TfL is also continuing its work to help ensure active travel is a safe solution for employees. This includes a new cycleway that’s opened in South East London, providing a fully protected cycle route to central London for the first time. The 3.6km route runs between Tower Bridge Road and Rotherhithe and forms part of Cycleway 4, which will stretch towards Woolwich and be one of London’s longest cycle routes once complete.

Three new Santander Cycles docking stations have also opened along the route while new docking stations at nearby Canada Water and Bermondsey station will follow later this year.

Gareth Powell, TfL’s managing director of surface transport, said: “We are pressing ahead with our bold plans to make streets across London safer and more attractive to people walking and cycling.”

TfL’s Active Travel Toolkit is available on the TfL website