Identifying key opportunities for active travel to unlock economic recovery in Renfrewshire

Renfrewshire Economic Recovery – Active Travel Analysis

Renfrewshire is an economically vibrant region adjacent to Glasgow, with a proud history in manufacturing and a strong business network in its Renfrewshire Economic Leadership Panel (RELP). Following the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, supported by the RELP, Renfrewshire Council published their Economic Recovery Strategy, which includes Green Recovery as a key priority.

As was experienced elsewhere, pandemic measures like work-from-home, street closures, and increased use of bicycles and walking often came to be seen as positives. The Renfrewshire Economic Recovery Project, funded by Renfrewshire Council, wanted to learn more about how these changes could contribute to a Green Recovery, and so surveyed employers and employees about travel to work locations, with the aim of producing a list of alternatives for the Council to consider. The surveys revealed that while existing travel to work is overwhelmingly car-based, there is a strong desire amongst both employers and employees to use active travel modes like bicycles or walking.

Calling upon our resources in transportation, urban land use and stakeholder engagement, we reviewed the results and made recommendations to the Council. These include creating links between residential and employment locations and conducting information sessions at workplaces to improve employer engagement with active travel.