The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust – Travel Plan Coordination

In 2023/2024, the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (LTHT) developed and published a Travel Plan. The purpose of the Plan was to identify and progress opportunities for active and sustainable travel, with an aim to improve air quality, reduce carbon emissions and improve health outcomes in the local area. The publication of the Plan put a marker down, ahead of NHS England’s Net Zero Travel and Transport Strategy requirement, for all trusts to develop sustainable travel strategies by 2026. However, the absence of a dedicated lead for the Plan posed a challenge in implementing the objectives it set out. WRM were appointed as the Trust’s Travel Plan Coordinator (TPC) in April 2025, and since then have been managing, tracking, and supporting the implementation of the various items detailed within the Plan.

So far, WRM has supported the Trust on the following:

• Setting up and coordinating the trust’s Travel Steering Group.
• Supporting the implementation of the Travel Plan by developing a specific action plan, which has brought together priorities from site-specific travel plans, and contains 8 strategic objectives and almost 100 travel measures.
• Working with local partner organisations in the planning, consultation, and implementation of joint initiatives.
• Providing assurance to regulators such as Leeds City Council on the travel and transport actions being undertaken.
• Providing travel advice and input into the planning applications of new developments across the trust.
• Co-producing a travel information pamphlet with sustainability colleagues.
• Creating and updating the trust’s Travel Plan webpage.

One of the areas of LTHT’s Travel Plan which required considerable improvement was the collection of up-to-date data on staff travel behaviours and views. Simultaneously, the trust is required by NHS England to undertake a travel survey at least once every 2 years. One of the main projects WRM have progressed since starting in the TPC role has been to develop, deliver and analyse a formal Trust-wide Travel Survey and Report. The digital survey was run over 2 months, with responses collected from almost 1000 individuals. A broad review was conducted on information such as staff commuting, including the transport and fuel types used and potential incentives which could encourage people to switch to active and sustainable modes of travel, such as cycling, public transport, and electric vehicles. A deep-dive analysis was then conducted into staff responses and distances from the trust, which provided carbon impact measurements and a rationale and opportunities to prioritise sustainable travel initiatives.

Whilst WRM’s TPC role at the trust is still relatively new, several outcomes have already been achieved. The effective co-ordination of Travel Plan activity at the trust has led to:

• Increased engagement by staff in the Travel Plan and green travel.
• The trust meeting the national requirements for a travel survey every two years.
• Assurance provided to Leeds City Council on sustainable travel progress, including staff commuting travel mode targets.
• Better data which has helped to inform the travel related aspects of the trust’s carbon footprint.
• £2.1 billion of funding being awarded by the UK Government to WYCA for the West Yorkshire Mass Transit (WYMT) project, which will see a tram line run from the Trust’s St. James University Hospital (SJUH) to the city centre and onwards.
• The sign-off of licenses for on-site e-bike docking stations.

As a result of the measures listed above and the broad package of works WRM have been providing, LTHT elected to extend WRM’s TPC support beyond the first quarter of 2025/26 and into the remainder of the financial year. WRM looks forward to continuing to work with LTHT to progress the initiatives listed within its Travel Plan.

All NHS trusts and integrated care boards (ICBs) are required to produce a Sustainable Travel Strategy, embedded within the organisations’ Green Plans, by 2026. Guidance on what should be included within these strategies is expected later this year, however, early engagement with a broad range of stakeholders including staff, patients, communities, visitors, and suppliers is recommended to ensure any potential issues are highlighted and considered in the development of a travel plan. If you are seeking to get started in developing and/or implementing a suitable Sustainable Travel Strategy with an experienced travel plan provider and coordinator, please reach out to us using the contact form below.