Issue - meetings

Question

Now that we are emerging from lockdown how can this Council work to continue the huge benefits that the environment has received from lower carbon emissions?

Now that we are emerging from lockdown how can this Council work to continue the huge benefits that the environment has received from lower carbon emissions?

Answer

The response to the Covid-19 outbreak has provided evidence that in modern society we can do things differently. Before the start of the pandemic 1.7 million people in the UK regularly worked from home according to the Office for National Statistics. That represents about 2.5% of the UK population. The lockdown caused an instant shift in working habits and methods. An estimated 20 million people now regularly work from home (about 30% of the UK population). In Wokingham, the lockdown resulted in a significant reduction in transport. Workplace commuting went down by 54% during April alone, having direct effects on congestion and consequently on improving air quality and reducing carbon emissions.

As we move into the recovery phase, there is a great opportunity to help shape how we move forward in the medium and long-term. Within the Council, we are working towards understanding the impacts on the employees from the extended home working experience. We are asking our employees to share their experiences and tell us what they have learnt from the last few months and how we can use this learning to shape the work environment of the future.

There are positive things we have learned about how we work and engage with each other, and we have the opportunity to shape a more flexible approach to the way the Council work and serve our customers. Until now, Officers have been allowed flexible working, as we recognise there are many advantages, such as time and money saved on commuting, and the positive impact on the environment. However, we also know that the right conditions need to be in place for it to succeed. In addition, specific working groups have been tasked with assessing the effects of the lockdown, collecting evidence and providing recommendations that will allow us to take evidence-based decisions relating to our staff and accommodation strategies.

More broadly, the Council has been engaging with businesses to understand their working practices and encourage them to consider these new ways of working in their recovery plans. We are working towards promoting ‘Lift-share’ schemes through My Journey to support businesses to develop bespoke travel policies as well as encouraging them to increase the uptake of cycling by promoting the Love to Ride scheme.

Question

We have high car usage in our Borough and we need a good bus service that residents use to help us reach our carbon neutrality goal by 2030. Please can you share what the trend is of local residents using the bus services in the Borough?