RACF backs Work Wise UK campaign
THIS PRESS RELEASE WAS FIRST ISSUED BY WORK WISE UK.
Working from home could become a necessity not a choice says Work Wise UK.
“Many places, predominantly those already notoriously well known for their backlogs, will see big increases in the number and duration of traffic jams.”
With the population set to rise 10 million by 2025 and more than four million more cars to be on roads by then, traffic is predicted to grow by 44% and the proportion of traffic travelling in very congested conditions will have doubled to 17%, according to the RAC Foundation.
“Many places, predominantly those already notoriously well known for their backlogs, will see big increases in the number and duration of traffic jams,” explained Philip Gomm, head of external communication. “In fact it is not that we have too little road capacity, it is just that we all want to use it at the same time, most notably in the morning rush-hour when car drivers on their way to work, fight it out with parents on the school run and those using buses, bikes, motorcycles and taxis to get to their destinations. Then there are the lorries and vans trying to deliver the goods to the shops that we all rely on.”
National Work from Home Day (today, Friday, May 18), and Work Wise Week, which concludes on Saturday, aims to promote smarter working practices to reduce the overall level of work-related travel, and change the times at which people have to travel, cutting peak-time congestion not only on the roads but also across public transport, trains included.
As major investment in significant new road capacity is unlikely, and possibly undesirable, so road usage has to be managed. Technological advancements mean many more people can now perfectly sensibly complete their work from home, or from remote locations, or even while mobile, often making it unnecessary to travel to a central office location on a daily basis. In addition to this changing attitude to working location, more and more employers are recognising the obvious inefficiency of requiring staff to be at their desks from nine-to-five, necessitating commuting when everyone else is doing the very same thing.
Virgin Media Business agree that work practices need to change if the country is not going to grind to halt through traffic congestion. Tony Grace, chief operating officer, said: “Businesses need to be more flexible about every aspect of the way they work. This will not only engage and motivate a workforce, but also allow a business to tailor how it communicates with its customers. There is no set rule for how people work best. Implementing home working strategies is one way businesses can become more adaptable and cost effective.
“For those companies that do want to become more flexible, they need to be looking at investing in cloud-based software, virtual private networks and investing in new tools such as Unified Communications to ensure that remote teams remain connected and engaged.
“We’re not calling for the end of the office – far from it. Instead, we want business to become as agile and as responsive as possible to the needs of employees and customers.”
Philip Gomm continued: “The beauty of smarter working is that everyone is a winner; even those who cannot inject some flexibility into their daily routines. Each person who can stagger their journey or avoid making it all together is one less person those of us who are tied to rigid rush-hour travel patterns will have to fight for road space with every morning. Now that must be something we all dream about.”
For further information about Work Wise Week and National Work from Home Day, please go to the Work Wise UK website: www.workwiseuk.org.
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Issued on behalf of Work Wise UK by Chelgate Limited
Notes to editors:
• Work Wise UK is a not-for-profit organization which promotes smarter ways of working. It identifies how changes to working practices can save money and deliver greater staff satisfaction.
• Supporters of the Work Wise UK campaign include the CBI, TUC, the British Chambers of Commerce, the RAC Foundation and the Equality and Human Rights Commission and StaffShare.
• Further information about Work Wise UK can be found on the website www.workwiseuk.org
For further information, please contact:
Phil Flaxton, Work Wise Uk
Mobile: 07831 112639 or
Email:[email protected]
Strategic Partners:TUC, CBI, BCC, Staff Share, the Equality and Human Rights Commission.