‘Get on your Bike’ say FM Managers
December 2009
Organisations should spend money putting in, or make improvements to, bicycle facilities is what more than eight out of 10 FMs believe. A poll conducted by FM world, shows a great interest in improving storage and changing facilities, and a general belief that poor facilities put people off cycling to work.
The need for better facilities is not felt by those working in offices in the countryside or on the outskirts of towns where people travel longer distances to work and roads are quieter, but it is felt mostly by FMs in the larger cities. Parking, too, is not a problem as most out-of-town sites have large parking lots.
One of the FMs commented: “We install racks where feasible, or take advantage of the landlord provision. At our London office there is more demand for facilities and these have been provided but our regional offices less so as the majority of people drive to work.”
People of inner city, will switch to cycling only if facilities are better. But it is also important to canvass people about the need before carrying out expensive renovations of washrooms to include showers, change rooms and drying rooms where wet gear can be aired.
But don’t go too far, as one FM said: “Surely repair services and the like must be down to the cycle owners. Tax breaks for installing facilities is a good idea”. But it should not stop at cycling. “Where investment is made, perhaps tax breaks and or VAT breaks could be used to assist but this shouldn’t just be restricted to cycling, but should extend to public transport initiatives, lower carbon fleets, etc.”
The Cycle-to-Work Guarantee scheme launched by the government is a major campaign to get more employees cycling to work that includes tax breaks.
The campaign is targeted towards large businesses which will provide bike storage, changing rooms and other facilities for employees.
Michelle Williams from Artemis Solutions Group who specialise in recruiting for the Facilities Management sector comments “More than 70 major public and private sector employers are signed up to the initiative that officially started this week”
The Department of Transport said “Most central government departments have signed up as well as major companies including BSkyB, EON and GSK. Dozens of local authorities and hospitals have also agreed to commit to the guarantee, according to the department”.
