TravelSmart

NEW 2010 City of Banyule TravelSmart Map

The 2010 Banyule TravelSmart map was developed by the Department of Transport and Banyule City Council to provide sustainable transport information on a pocket-sized street map.

Please click on the link below to view Banyule’s TravelSmart map.  

This is a very low res file and not designed to be printed out onto A4 paper etc.  Hard copies of the Banyule TravelSmart map are currently being printed and will be available from our Customer Service Centres at Ivanhoe, Rosanna and Greensborough in the next few weeks.  

The TravelSMART program is an innovative project aimed at encouraging people to choose sustainable travel alternatives such as cycling, walking or catching public transport, and reducing their dependency on the car. With assistance from the State Government, the City of Banyule is working with a number of schools and employers in the municipality to identify and promote these alternatives where possible. In 2006, Banyule employed a project officer to develop the TravelSMART program with the Austin Hospital in Heidelberg and in 2007/2008, a TravelSMART Schools program will be run with the Ivanhoe Grammar Schools.

TravelSMART is an initiative of the State Government and further information is available at the website http://www.travelsmart.vic.gov.au. Within the TravelSMART family there are a number of sub programs –

Education
TravelSMART Education has projects ranging from pre-primary to tertiary institutions using a School Travel Planning approach.

Communities
TravelSMART Communities works directly with households to help people choose sustainable transport solutions that meet their needs for work, education, family, social and recreational activities.

Workplaces
TravelSMART can assist your workplace implement a Green Transport Plan to reduce the financial and environmental costs of travelling to from and for work.

Local Government
TravelSMART works with local government to implement local projects.

Workplaces – Why would your business be interested in TravelSmart?

Employers are increasingly bearing the costs of traffic congestion and according to the Bureau of Transport Economics, that cost is set to nearly triple by 2015. Taking a proactive role in tackling traffic by preparing green travel plan can help businesses to:

Alleviate parking problems
Reducing the amount of workplace parking necessary can save a business money and free up land to be used for more productive purposes. It can also improve site access for customers and essential deliveries.

Enhance company image
Preparing a green travel plan that encourages sustainable transport choices will improve company image as an environmentally aware organisation, and demonstrate a certain level of corporate responsibility. Employers can also improve relations with their immediate community by reducing, or best of all, eliminating, car park overspill.

Employee benefits
A green travel plan can also bring benefits for employees, such as providing them with greater choice in how they travel to work. Encouraging active forms of travel such as walking and cycling can increase staff fitness and significantly reduce the amount of days lost to illness related absenteeism.

Increase productivity
Due to the increase in physical activity of staff, improved levels of energy, fitness and mental health cause a substantial increase in productivity. Furthermore, employees generally feel more alert, have better rapport with their co-workers and tend to enjoy their work more as a result.

What is a green travel plan?

A green travel plan is a package of alternative travel options to the car which also suggests ways to use the car more efficiently for in-work travel and commuting. A typical plan may look at providing incentives for walking, cycling and public transport, as well as promoting flexible ways of working such as working from home, car sharing and company car fleet (choice of vehicle, driver training, fleet operation). Green travel plans are developed by each participating business, with help from the DOI: TravelSMART Office to create written strategies which employers use to influence staff travel behaviour.