TRAVEL
GOING PLACES
Wheely good idea
Are you under strict instructions to reduce travel budgets and scratching your head wondering where to start? Executive PA Magazine looks at cycle hire schemes and how they can boost your business
While there are some people who will embrace a com- mute to work on two wheels, not everyone wants to jump on their bike in their office best and make a round trip to work and back. So public bike schemes are, for many work- ers, a welcome sight. You can continue with your usual daily commute but take advantage of the schemes to hire a bike to carry out short journeys around town – perhaps to an off-site department, suppliers or the post office. The benefits are endless and span the environmental
(forget using the pool car for those gas-guzzling, carbon spewing short trips), time saving (if you factor in the usual traffic jams, cycling is one of the fastest ways to get around) and of course health (no explanation needed for this one). Plus you can slash travel costs as the schemes tend to be a good budget option compared to hire cars, train tickets or taxi fares.
Of the course the scheme that is perhaps most well
known is London’s ‘Boris Bikes’ – a fleet of more than 6,000 bicycles docked across 400 London ‘stations’ from Notting Hill to the Tower of London. The bikes can be used on a casual basis – and the first half hour of your
journey is free – or you can take out a membership to access more competitive rates. You’ll be required to pay an access fee (for example £1 per 24 hours, £5 for seven days or £45 for a year) and then a useage charge – rang- ing from £1 for an hour up to £50 for 24 hours. Elsewhere in the country Southport Conferences has cottoned on to the idea of corporate cycle hire and is now offering delegates a bike loan scheme, aimed at reducing the number of business visitors using cars. Awarded ‘Cycling Town’ status in 2008 the town has been operat- ing a very successful scheme for leisure guests so no doubt the corporate hire will be just as popular. In Leeds people are also being encouraged to ditch the car with the Leeds Cyclepoint scheme. Funded by a £500,000 grant from the Department for Transport 350 bikes are available for hire from the rail station, from £8 per day. Talks are also afoot of intro- ducing satellite cycle points at other local stations to encourage passengers to
with your usual daily commute but take advantage of the schemes to hire a bike to carry out short journeys around town
“You can continue ”
undertake part of their commute on bike. And for the cities who have not yet committed to a
public bike hire scheme they’ll be closely monitoring the recent launch in London to see how it fares and how they can implement their own successful cycle hire. So it’s well worth checking out what’s happening in your area. E
AIRPORT HOTEL Gatwick Airport’s new owners are planning to open a three-star hotel in the North Terminal. It’s still waiting planning approval but it’s hoped the 192-bed Hampton by Hilton property will be completed in time for the Olympics.
HOTELS HEALTHIER According to a survey from the American Hotel & Lodging Association the number of hotels featuring exercise equipment in the rooms has nearly tripled, from six per cent in 2008 to 17 per cent this year.
BUSINESS CLASS CUT Southwest Airlines has announced that after merging with AirTrain Airways it will no longer offer premium service on AirTran routes that currently do offer it.
FOOD FABLES Does your boss always complain about the food onboard a plane? Well new research reveals that background noise levels are to blame as they impair our ability to taste the food properly.
SUPER SEATS
Japan Airlines is launching its JAL Sky Recliner – a high-tech, comfy seat offer- ing removable armrests, 51in pitch, 132 degree recline, privacy partitions, touch screen entertainment controls and the ability to play your iPod.
www.executivepa.com » Oct/Nov 2010 » 29
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