Devon is a large, rural county on the move! Everyone needs to travel to work, take children to school, shop, access medical and health care, and maintain contact with family and friends. But it needn’t cost the earth.

Devon County Council continues to work with a wide range of organisations to encourage everyone to save money on travel costs, and at the same time cut congestion and pollution caused by too many vehicles on the road.

TRAVELWISE
TravelWise is an organisation that helps members network with travel planners and people involved in sustainable transport around the country. It encourages members to share each others’ experience, documents, pictures and ideas in order to further collective knowledge and best practice in this field.

Devon County Council’s work with TravelWise focuses on increased promotion of walking, cycling and the use of public transport to travel to work and school. The aims of this national campaign are ongoing - encouraging people to think before they travel and suggesting that they don't always need to use a car.

Traffic congestion costs British business billions – and in these cash strapped times that is something businesses and individuals alike can ill afford.

For more information go to www.devon.gov.uk/travel_awareness or visit www.travelwise.org.uk or email travelwise@devon.gov.uk

CYCLING

We could all do with a little exercise as well as saving money – and cycling is the ultimate pollution-free, fuel-free transport system. Once you’ve bought or borrowed a bike then pedal power is free of charge.

Cycle Exeter is one example of a scheme in Devon where people are being encouraged to park their car and cycle instead. Delivered in partnership with Exeter City Council, the project is now in its third year and has already delivered more than 18km of new cycle routes and achieved a 25% increase in cycle trips across the network of cycle counters in the city.

For details of new cycle routes, bike parks, children’s schemes and more go to Cycle Exeter The project was made possible by Cycling England.

Devon County Council is investing £5million into improving cycling infrastructure around the whole county, stimulating the local economy by putting the county on the map as a premier destination for cycle tourism.

The money from the Investing In Devon fund, generated by the sale of Exeter Airport, will be used to develop commuter and recreational routes, building on the County Council’s efforts for Devon to become England’s greenest county.

For more about cycling throughout Devon go to http://www.devon.gov.uk/cycling

CAR SHARE
One highly effective way of saving money is car sharing and Devon County Council has worked in partnership with Plymouth City Council and Torbay Council to set up www.carsharedevon.com

This website aims to maximise people's travel options whilst also reducing the number of cars on the roads, cutting pollution, saving money and protecting the environment. Log on to find other people in your area heading in the same direction as you – and to read case studies of successful driving partnerships, and friendships forged. CarShareDevon now has over 6,400 members.

Case study
Glyn Parsons travels to work at County Hall in Exeter with a group of four other car-sharers. They all live in Paignton and Torquay and meet every day at Kingskerswell. When they reach Exeter they are dropped off at their workplaces at Sowton, the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital and County Hall.

Glyn said: “I’ve been doing it since 2005 and when people drop out we have managed to find new ones. It works out that you drive roughly one week in four, so that cuts our individual fuel costs on the 270 a week journey by a quarter. For me I reckon that means it costs me about £30 rather than £120 a month. We get the chance to chat and relax if we’re not driving. It works really well.”

PARKING
If you do have to take your car you can save money on parking by using a park and ride service or even parking for free. Details at www.devon.gov.uk/transport

BUS PASSES
Those aged 60 and over together with disabled residents of England are entitled to a National Bus Pass, which entitles the pass-holder to free off-peak travel on local buses anywhere in the country.

There are other discounts available too, depending on your age and where you live, for example the Devon Smartrider for those over 16 years old and attending North Devon College or the sixth forms at Bideford Community College or Ilfracombe Community College. The details of these and others can be found at www.devon.gov.uk/bus_passes

PETROL PRICES

Fill you car for less. It’s almost certain that the petrol stations near you will be vying for your custom by trying to offer cheaper fuel, but driving around to check who’s cheapest is not cost effective.
There are a number of websites that will do the work for you for free – just type in your postcode.

www.cheaperpetrol.com
www.petrolprices.com

CAR HIRE
If you want to ditch the car altogether and just hire one when you need it, there are low cost car hire schemes are available in Devon, some even hiring by the hour. Car Clubs are a new national trend and there is one operating in Exeter and Topsham, supported by Devon County Council www.co-cars.co.uk

To compare hire prices try www.carhiresearch.co.uk or www.carhirecomparison.co.uk

DRIVE ECONOMICALLY
It really works! Motorists can save between 10% and 25% on their fuel costs – effectively cutting the price they pay at the pumps for petrol to well below £1 a litre (based on current prices).

Drivers in Devon are being offered a free DVD entitled Eco-safe driving - Making A Difference. Those without either DVD or internet access can use computers free of charge at the County Council’s libraries.

There is also special help for Devon companies which operate fleets of vehicles. The County Council’s Drivers Centre is running ‘eco-safe’ driving courses. Drivers’ behaviour is assessed and they are then given advice to make their techniques smoother and more economical. The course costs £55 and each participant receives a detailed handbook. It has been calculated that the cost of the training can be recouped within 15 months by the average driver.

The free DVD is available on request from the Devon Drivers’ Centre, telephone 01392 444773 or email drivers@devon.gov.uk and can also be viewed online at www.devon.gov.uk/ecodrivingfilm.

Case study
Twelve drivers based in Devon County Council’s Ivybridge Local Service Group office underwent a half day’s training course at the Devon Drivers Centre in 2007. This cost £105 per person. The course involved a 14 mile drive followed by an hour’s training and then another 14 mile drive. They learnt how to save fuel through less braking, improved forward planning, better use of gears and lighter use of the gas pedal. There was an overall reduction of 5.8% in fuel consumption. At today's diesel costs of around £5.79 per gallon, a van covering 15,000 miles a year with a fuel consumption before training of 45mpg, would save £112 in 12 months. This more than pays for the course fee, and also significantly reduces the impact on the environment.