Productive use of travel time and work value of travel time saving

This study presents the results of a UK Department for Transport (DfT) research study to assess rail business travellers productive use of travel time its implication for the work value of travel time savings. The DfT's current approach for the valuation of travel time saving in employers' time assumes that time spent travelling during the working day is a cost to the employers business and that any savings in travel time converts non-productive time to productive use on a one-to-one basis. Recent studies, have suggested that the average percentage of time spent productively on a business travellers rail journey is sufficiently large to question the robustness of these assumptions. This new research has included: a review of previous research in the UK and Europe on this matter; a survey of rail business travellers to estimate the productive use of travel time; an assessment of the productivity of work done while travelling relative to work done at workplace; and an examination of the distribution of productive work over the journey time, and how marginal travel time savings would impact on business travellers productive use of travel time (including the impact of crowding). In addition a consultation process has been used to ensure a buy-in to the results from major employers. The study results will potentially lead to revised estimates of the value of travel time saving in business time and hence updated guidance on DfT's appraisal methodology. For the covering abstract see ITRD E145999