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Projects Updates for Encourage Train Travel for Business Trips

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  1. notes from phone call

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Train Travel for Business Trips

    All

    Thanks for a good call. Attached is the summary of our meeting with to dos. In summary:

    1. Jim will run a FY14 travel report and look into tracking Amtrak
    2. We will develop content for website and messaging by mid-December, including info from Amtrak. Morgan and Stacey from facilities at UIUC will start that.
    3. Final language will be provided to OBFS by early January, after it is circulated among the group.
    4. Cathy will put the info on the website for start of spring semester and OBFS will announce it.
    5. Sustainability Offices (Cindy and Stephanie) will work on targeting the units that have the highest levels of auto travel between campuses.
    6. We will monitor the data to see how effective this was and opportunities for policy change.

    Cindy

    Attached Files: 

  2. meeting minutes from Cindy Klein-Banai

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Train Travel for Business Trips

    Some suggestions that have come from our Sustainability committee are: Regardless of which route we take, we should update the Business Travel page, http://www.obfs.uillinois.edu/travel/, to include something about scheduling inter-campus meetings between UIC and UIS or UIUC to accommodate the Amtrak schedule, perhaps with a table with this information:

    Inter-campus travel: In order to facilitate sustainable and convenient travel between campuses, meeting organizers are encouraged to schedule meetings around the Amtrak schedule. For Chicago meetings, start after 10:30, end by 3:30; in Springfield start after 10:45, end by 4:30; in Champaign, start after 11:00, end by 6:15 (as of October 2013 Amtrak schedule)

    1. We should definitely include the following sustainability drivers:
      1. Economic – less expensive
      2. Environment – reduces emissions and energy consumption
      3. Society – you can work while in transit – benefits office
    2. Consideration of video-conferencing. Perhaps even a listing of where facilities are or how people identify them on their campuses.
    3. Consult with Scott Speegle.

    Thanks,

    Cindy

    Attached Files: 

  3. conference call with Chicago and Payables

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Train Travel for Business Trips

    The call included Jim Martinie and Kathy Young with UA Payables, Cindy Klein-Banai, Stephanie Lage, and Morgan Johnston.  Ben McCall, Shelby Egan, and Ginger Valezquez were unable to join the call.

    This discussion was started through a group in Chicago looking at the travel policy with Amtrak.  Unlike with airfare it wasn’t giving a preference for Amtrak.  Also, even a higher class than the coach class Amtrak is much less expensive than driving, and people may be more productive on the train.  Are there options and promotional opportunities.  Payables was going to look at it and provide us with an update. 

    Policy is set by the Illinois Higher Education Travel Board and it is very difficult to get them to change.  Ginger is the representative for the UI with the Illinois Higher Education Travel Board.  They prescribe the lodging limitations, per diem amount, and travel policies.  Can do procedures and not policies on our side, but they haven’t had much luck with change requests for increasing per diem or lodging limitations.  Cindy said that this would be a little different because we want to ask them to reimburse less than for car travel.

    Probably need to focus on what can be done here and what we do have control over.  Providing some information to Amtrak and train travel under make travel arrangements.  We can update the pages on the OBFS page. Payables was really focused on making procedural changes with the web-page – Kathy would like to work with someone to put the information on the website.  Kathy will submit the information for the changes – Cindy will work with them to help with that, with Stephanie.  Stephanie will bring Gary Miller up to speed about the policy issue, for the Green Governing Coordinating Council.  Morgan will get a contact at IDOT in support of Amtrak travel.

    They were able to come up with a preliminary report that identifies the instances that someone has driven and been reimbursed for mileage between Urbana and Chicago.  That report needs a little fine tuning – by departments.  We can count and sum the info by department with the details.  They will look at instances between Chicago and Springfield, as well. 

     

  4. Meeting set with OBFS

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Train Travel for Business Trips

    Cindy Klein-Banai from UIC reached out to Jim Martinie and Ginger Velazquez at OBFS about train travel. "One recommendation of the Transportation subcommittee falls within the purview of OBFS. It is to modify the University Travel Policy to create incentives to use Amtrak rail.  Doing so would decrease University costs, offer improved safety, and provide environmental benefits in comparison to traveling by automobile.  We have been in touch with Heather Haberaecker, Executive Assistant Vice President for Business and Finance at UIC, who expressed her interest in the use of Amtrak between Chicago, Urbana-Champaign and Springfield..." 

    Ben McCall will be joining the call, as well as Stephanie Lage and Morgan Johnston.  Ben added the following note to Cindy's comments: "In addition to the issue of travel between our campuses, there is also the broader issue that our university's travel policies seem to actually forbid the use of rail travel unless it is cheaper than air travel (while ignoring climate impacts completely)."

    Cindy's office is setting up a conference call for January 23 at 3pm.