Making Car Sharing and Car Clubs Work - Case ... - The Civil Service

MAKING CAR SHARING AND CAR CLUBS WORKCASE STUDY SUMMARIES10 HALTON JOURNEY SHAREGeneral Background10.1 Halton Borough Council (the Council) has set-up a Neighbourhood Travel Team (NTT) withinits Transport Department. The NTT’s remit is to develop transport solutions that help tocounter social exclusion in Halton. The borough, which covers Runcorn and Widnes, is the14 th most deprived in the country. The NTT works in partnership with a range oforganisations including JobCentrePlus, Halton College, local employers and others toprovide personalised journey plans and information on a range of transport alternatives forresidents and workers in Halton, often when they are at turning points in their lives.10.2 The NTT has introduced Halton Journey Share specifically to help counter social exclusion.The Scheme was launched in May 2004. The scheme is open to residents and people whowork in Halton. For the most part, Halton does not have major problems with shortages ofcar parking or congestion, with the one major exception of The Bridge. The latter crosses theMersey, linking Widnes and Runcorn, and significant traffic congestion and delays areexperienced on it on a regular basis.10.3 Car ownership in the area is relatively low, and residents who are long-term unemployed donot have the in-work social networks that can provide access to lifts to work. The NTT wantsto use the car sharing scheme to break down some of the barriers that prevent peoplegetting into work by providing an alternative way of finding a lift, preferably whilst the personis at the Job Centre. Difficulty in getting to work is one of the major barriers that people citewhen they decide not to apply for a particular job.10.4 In addition to the benefits for job-seekers, the NTT also wants to help realise theopportunities to maximise the disposable income of Halton residents who are already inwork. Jobs in the area are relatively low paid, with unskilled and low skilled manufacturingjobs, warehousing and call centres predominating. Halton residents also travel to work inWarrington, Chester and Liverpool. Sharing commuting journeys can provide the opportunityto save a substantial proportion of a low wage. In one case, a council office worker hasestimated her annual savings to be more than £2,000, as car sharing has removed the needto purchase a second car in her household.Operating Structure10.5 The Halton Journey Share Scheme is operated by Liftshare. Residents have the followingoptions:They can log onto the site via their own personal access to the InternetThey can fill in a paper-based form and return it to the NTT, who will then log onto thesite on their behalf and keep them informed of progress on their matchingThey can be matched on-line at Halton College, local libraries and other local venuesthat provide public access to the Internet.Final V1.1, Dec. 2004 - 63 -