THINK GLOBAL: ACT LOCAL

The CSR Strategy, published in 2013, covers our approach to contributing to a better and greener society. It demonstrates our
commitment to economic regeneration and growth, environmental responsibility and sustainable development and raises
awareness of our achievements and future commitments.

One of the five CSR priorities is to ‘reduce any damaging impact on the environment through continuous improvement,
encouraging staff to be mindful of the effect their actions have on any natural resource, such as water and energy’

WMCA works extensively with the seven district authorities and LEPs to help us deliver a world class public transport system
and support the achievement of regional environmental and air quality targets.

In 2008 WMCA refreshed its workplace Travel Plan to reduce single-occupancy car use and improve staff travel choices over
3 years, until 2011. This Travel Plan has now been updated and new objectives have been set with a wider scope to ensure
comprehensive management of all staff travel, for example business travel to meetings, events and conferences.

‘Movement for Growth’ (MfG) was adopted by the West Midlands Combined Authority in June 2016 as its strategic transport plan.
The document is available at:

https://westmidlandscombinedauthority.org.uk/media/1178/2016-06-01-mfg-full-document_wmca.pdf

The plan sets out the overall approach for transport strategy in the West Midlands to deliver the vision as set out below:
“We will make great progress for a Midlands economic ‘Engine for Growth’; clean air; improved health and quality of life for the people of the West Midlands. We will do this by creating a transport system befitting a sustainable, attractive and economically vibrant conurbation in the world’s sixth largest economy”.

‘Transforming Rail Travel’ commits to striving to:

• Act responsibly to protect our environment and deliver environmental benefits.
• Support the implementation of the West Midlands Local Sustainable Transport Fund programme, ‘Smart Network Smarter
Choices’ and
• Use a partnership approach to seek opportunities for further provision and improvement of cycle storage at local rail stations,
including a joint approach to investigating funding opportunities and scheme development.

One of the key issues identified is improving air quality and proposals include:

ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE
Working with road freight operators to improve driving techniques, operations and training to lessen vehicle emissions, noise and
impacts, whilst promoting the greater use of low carbon/ electric vehicles and the infrastructure required supporting them.

MINIMISING THE CARBON EMISSIONS ARISING FROM AIR FREIGHT IN THE METROPOLITAN AREA
With air freight being one of the most carbon intensive forms of freight the Strategy seeks to ensure all is practically done to reduce
carbon emissions and also focuses on ensuring efficient and reliable access to and from our national airports.

The Local Sustainable Transport Fund funded, Smart Network, Smarter Choices (SNSC) programme invested in transport to
deliver jobs, productivity and low-carbon, sustainable growth. SNSC was a package of measures that involves changing people’s
travel behaviour, while joining up transport networks through initiatives such as:

• Workplace travel planning, WorkWise and measures enabling people to make better informed sustainable travel choices,
especially for shorter trips.
• Improvements to walking and cycling routes, passenger facilities and small-scale road and junction improvements to speed
up journey times and improve punctuality.
• Technology Showcase, working in partnership delivering real-time information, smartcards and using other sustainable
information technologies to provide passengers with personalised, reliable, up-to-date information and ticketing services.

This combined revenue and capital investment has delivered the following achievements:
• 23,350 participants in accredited cycle training and bike maintenance skills
• Provided with face-to-face cycling/journey planning advice at events
• 92 cycling instructors trained to national standards level
• Over 250 employers implementing Travel Action Plans covering over 200,000 employees
• Over 120 schools, colleges and universities implementing Travel Action Plans
• 124,000 staff and pupils and including face-to-face engagement with over 29,000 staff and pupils
• Subsidised bike offer pilot targeted at employees likely to start cycling to work, resulting in 98% of participants cycling regularly
and 62% choosing to cycle to work
• Over 23,300 unemployed people supported to find, start and stay in new jobs via our award winning WorkWise service, with 9
out of 10 continuing to use sustainable travel six months after receiving support
• An average 4% shift from travel to work by car to active travel and public transport

The Cycling Charter outlines key principles that partners will adopt to deliver a step change in cycling across the region. The Charter
also recognises cycling’s contribution to creating more sustainable places as part of an integrated transport system. This includes
“improve the environment by helping to reduce carbon emissions, air pollution and noise” and “create better places to live and visit,
by making it easy for people to move around their local communities”.

A detailed Action Plan was outlined in September 2015 and is currently being delivered with the target of increasing levels of cycling
to 5% of all trips by 2023. The Cycling Charter is based on the following four principles:

• Leadership and Profile
• Cycling Network
• Promoting and Encouraging Cycling
• Funding.