METEOR PARKING ENVIRONMENTAL & SOCIAL REPORT 2006
CONTENTS 2 The Marketplace 4 The Workplace 6 The Environment 8 The Community IBC Auditing & verifying this report OUR RESPONSIBILITY A message from the Managing Director This is our second annual Corporate Responsibility report.we are proud to be the first (and so far the only) company in our sector to report on our performance in this way. A commitment to responsible business is shared throughout the Go-Ahead Group, and it is an ethos that we fully uphold. Meteor provides ancillary transportation services. In layman s terms this means managing off-street parking, running bus services connecting car parks to airport terminals and providing specialist security services for the parking, transport and other industries. Much of our business is determined by the contractual relationships we have with airport authorities, train operating companies, hospitals or shopping centre managers. Our aim is to go beyond the terms of our contractual agreements.the ways we have done so include introducing opinion meters to give our car park customers an easy way to comment on our service, and trials of electric hybrid technology in our buses. Crime and fear of crime is an issue of growing concern across the transport network. Our security business is made up of a dedicated team of professionals providing a pool of expertise to our clients, which include many Go-Ahead companies.we are particularly proud of our relationship with Southern Railway, where our teams are regularly praised for their professionalism and contribution to passenger security and wellbeing. We hope that this report is of interest and once again welcome any thoughts on how we are performing, or on other issues that we should address. Stephen Turner Managing Director
Meteor Environmental & Social Report 2006 1 WHO WE ARE Meteor is the second largest operator of off-street parking in the UK, managing almost 60,000 parking spaces across over 20 sites.the largest part of our business is airport parking where our end-to-end services include managing short and long-stay car parks, providing security and transporting people to and from terminal buildings. We also manage car parks at railways stations, hospitals and shopping centres and are growing our successful specialist security business, which provides advice to a number of companies. Meteor operates under a number of brands including Pink Elephant. About The Go-Ahead Group plc Meteor has been part of The Go-Ahead Group plc since 2002. Go-Ahead is a major provider of transport services across the UK employing over 24,000 people and carrying around 800 million passengers. Its operations span bus, rail and aviation services (including parking). The Go-Ahead Group believes that local people make the best decisions on running local services. However, the Group also believes in the importance of a common framework for measuring each company s impact on local communities and the environment.this report describes our performance against the framework developed by the Go-Ahead Group. About this report This report describes our performance for the 12 months to 1 July 2006. It is divided into four main sections, which describe the impacts that we have on the world around us and how we approach managing these responsibly: EDINBURGH BLACKBURN BOSTON NORWICH KINGS LYNN LOWESTOFT BANBURY IPSWICH STANSTED LUTON CHELMSFORD HATFIELD LONDON SWINDON CROYDON SLOUGH & & PURLEY MARGATE HEATHROW CANTERBURY SOUTHAMPTON MAIDSTONE ASHFORD Our company structure ensures that local management make local decisions about local services. Marketplace Workplace how we run our services issues that affect the people who work for us Environment how we manage and reduce our impact on the environment Community making the communities where we operate better places to live and work. As part of our annual business planning, we have set targets and goals to improve our social and environmental performance for 2006/7. To keep this report short, we have placed a lot more information on the web www.go-ahead.com/corporateresponsibility
2 Meteor Environmental & Social Report 2006 THE MARKETPLACE Our responsibilities in the marketplace Meteor is a leader in the management of off-street parking and related transportation and in the provision of specialist security services for the parking, transport and other industries. These are exciting and fast-growing markets. Since 1980, there has been a huge growth in car ownership, a fall in car occupancy levels and an 80% increase in road traffic almost entirely due to private cars. This growth in car usage has in turn increased the demand for parking, particularly at destinations like airports, shopping centres and hospitals.the huge growth in air travel has further increased the need for skilled and professional car park management. An exceptional feature of our service is our unrivalled experience providing security. We provide manned security and CCTV services to a number of transport providers, including many members of the Go-Ahead Group. We believe that there are three key areas of responsibility for our business: Customer experience Safety and security Accessibility Our responsibility: customer experience Our business success depends on our ability to meet the performance requirements of our clients. These vary from simple cost and revenue targets to complex measures assessing the quality of the parking experience. We believe in the importance of service and have developed a number of ways in which parking customers can express their views. Our successful customer feedback mechanisms provide an easy and non-intrusive way to comment on our service. This focus allows us to provide informed feedback to our various contracting bodies on the issues that matter most to parking users. Over the last 12 months, our key clients have increased their focus on service delivery and our approach has ensured that we exceed their targets. We have structured this report around these areas. Providing safe transport is our highest priority and we are very proud of our record.
Meteor The Marketplace 3 Car parks with park mark 12 2004/05: 10 Passenger journeys 3.9m Vehicle kms travelled 3.5m No. of crimes in car parks 0 Low-floor buses (%) *100 71.0 71.0 57.5 Overseeing the safety and security of our clients and customers. Our responsibility: safety and security for parking customers, passengers, employees and the general public Our most important priority is to provide a safe and secure operating environment. We are proud of the expertise we have developed in our security business and proud of our contribution to safety on buses and in our car parks. Crime and fear of crime is a major issue for society. Our security business offers strategic advice and practical support for those seeking to deter and detect crime. We offer CCTV installation and monitoring, warehouse security, revenue protection on trains and manned guarding at a range of buildings. We are strong advocates of the Park Mark accreditation scheme, which denotes a commitment to car park security. Police crime prevention officers independently assess car parks applying for accreditation to ensure they meet crime prevention standards. We have increased our number of Park Mark accredited sites to 12. Providing safe transport is our highest priority and we are very proud of our record. By focusing on driver skills we have reduced the number of vehicle collisions this year. Size of bus fleet Average age of fleet: Government-Industry target vs Meteor (years) Government-Industry target (max) 4.46 3.93 Average age of fleet 5.42 74 78 78 80 8.0 5.4 VOSA PSV vehicle test pass rate Meteor 93.55% National average 85.30% Our responsibility: ensuring accessibility for all, particularly people with disabilities At locations where we control the development and design of parking, we can ensure that travel is accessible for all. We provide clearly marked disabled parking bays, easy to use ticket machines and low-floor buses. At other locations, we ensure that all relevant passenger concerns are reported to our client. We are also tackling the issue of able-bodied customers occupying disabled parking bays through increased car park patrols. * Meteor also carry passengers by car and mini van. 74% of fleet is low floor if these vehicles are included. This includes 19 cars/mini vans.
4 Meteor Environmental & Social Report 2006 THE WORKPLACE Our responsibilities in the workplace We are committed to being a first class employer and work to provide a stimulating environment and personal development opportunities for each of our more than 900 employees. Many of those working for us do so on short-term contracts, or on a part-time or seasonal basis. Our aim is to treat all of these employees fairly, particularly when it comes to developing skills. Our responsibility: skills development We are proud of our commitment to training and development and invested over 350,000 in programmes last year. Our in-house training and development team produces bespoke programmes for our staff, including the Putting Me in Meteor customer services programme for airport-based employees. Putting Me in Meteor has been a huge success, further improving our strong record for customer satisfaction. Developing skills for the evolving security business is another focus for us.this year we invested in a three-day Skills for Security course for all of our 300 security employees.this covered security, guarding and conflict management and allowed our employees to gain accreditation and a security licence. We also encourage our employees to pursue the various management training opportunities provided by the Go-Ahead Group. All staff received the Meteor training package in addition to our job specific training.
Meteor The Workplace 5 Our responsibility: employee communication and reducing staff turnover High rates of employee turnover are characteristic of the business sectors in which we operate. Many of our positions are temporary in nature, particularly in the security business. The demands of shift work also make it difficult to retain good people. For these reasons, the overall rate of employee turnover is not a meaningful measure of our performance. Last year we introduced exit interviews for all our departing employees. As a result we have made a number of management changes, including increased investment in training and development and more open communication. We have developed innovative strategies to attract new staff, including our programme to recruit older employees and the recruitment of nine bus drivers from the Czech Republic. Our responsibility: travel to work We participate in the BAA Green Travel plans and also offer lockable cycle containers at some sites. Number of employees Employee turnover rate (%) Diversity by gender (Male) Diversity by gender (Female) 912 961 685 523 *48.4 39.2 32.1 28.3 739 802 577 455 173 159 108 68 We have developed innovative strategies to attract staff, including our programme to recruit older employees. Diversity by age 16-19: 0.7% 20-29: 18.2% 30-39: 22.8% 40-49: 21.8% 50-59: 19.8% 60-64: 9.8% 65+: 6.9% Diversity by ethnic group Asian, black or other ethnic origin 249 White 663 Our airport transfer bus services are more customer focused than ever. * Higher employee turnover rate due to the inclusion of employees transferred under TUPE
6 Meteor Environmental & Social Report 2006 THE ENVIRONMENT Our responsibilities to the environment Governments, companies and many individuals are increasingly concerned about the impact of emissions on climate. All companies have a responsibility for managing these issues. The environmental management of our car parks falls outside our contractual remit in most cases. Our main responsibilities therefore relate to the environmental impact of our buses. Meteor maintains its Stanstead fleet at its nearby workshop. The Go-Ahead Group has a strong position on environmental responsibility and expects all its operating companies to invest in making their fleet as responsible as possible.this is why five of the ten most environmentally friendly bus companies in Britain outside London are part of Go-Ahead, including the top four fleets. For Meteor, decisions on timing for investing in our fleet are carried out in partnership with BAA and other clients, which is a recognised leader in environmental responsibility. We reduce our impact through the fuels we use, good maintenance and investment in emission-reducing vehicles and technology.
Meteor The Environment 7 Our responsibility: reducing emissions Meteor uses Ultra Low Sulphur (ULS) Diesel as our fuel of choice. ULS Diesel is more environmentally friendly than the standard grade. We have adopted the Go-Ahead practice of only purchasing new buses fitted with Continuously Regenerating Traps (CRTs) as standard. CRTs can reduce some emissions by up to 90%. This year, we added three hybrid electric buses to our fleet to test performance and reliability. Hybrid electric vehicles have two power sources, including an electric motor to lower the demand for diesel power. However, our tests showed that these vehicles do not provide the level of reliability we require; as a result, we will not be introducing them further. Our rigorous maintenance schedule includes a regular emissions test. Our systems are independently assessed by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA), which carries out annual and random emissions tests. Our driver training includes techniques to reduce emissions such as ensuring that engines are not idling unnecessarily. Our responsibility: measuring our performance For the second year, the Go-Ahead Group came top of the public transport companies that participated in the Business in the Community Corporate Responsibility Index.The Group scored 89%, a further significant improvement. In the dedicated environment index, we did even better, improving to a score of 91.5%, which included maximum marks for our emissions management performance. VOSA emissions pass rate Meteor 100% % of fleet with Euro II engines or above % of fleet with CRT Air pollution: NOx (g)* per passenger journey Air pollution: PM (g)* per passenger journey Air pollution: CO 2 (kg)* per passenger journey Air pollution: CO (g)* per passenger journey 99 96 96 98 9.7 7.7 8.68 6.43 0.06 0.05 1.00 0.75 0.22 0.18 Air pollution: HC (g)* per passenger journey 0.18 0.17 *This year, we updated the way we calculate our emissions. Our emissions have been restated using the new system and this will be our new baseline. Our full report on the web provides emissions data using both the previous system of calculation and the new data as published above.
8 Meteor Environmental & Social Report 2006 THE COMMUNITY Our responsibilities to the community Meteor is part of the fabric of the airports, hospitals, towns and shopping centres where we manage car parks. We also employ over a thousand people and have responsibilities both to them and their families. Vibrant and successful communities are in everybody s interest. We contribute to our communities through cash and in-kind donations and by encouraging employee involvement. In addition, the Go-Ahead Group provides cash donations on behalf of all its operating companies. Our responsibility: getting involved in the community of Boston, Lincolnshire Meteor has built a strong partnership with Boston Borough Council, helping to provide the town with the best possible parking facilities. Meteor carried out an assessment of parking needs, which resulted in a reduced tariff for cars, free parking for coaches and lorries and the establishment of a permit holders-only site. Meteor was instrumental in establishing a park and stride scheme connecting a car park and a local school. This has been hugely popular with parents and has reduced congestion around the school entrance. At our Boston Pescod Square Shopping Centre car park, we organised a charity funfair and car boot sale raising over 700 for the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance and supported a dramatic fire brigade exercise. We support the Christmas lights in the town centre. We are also involved in supporting a Boston Community Theatre Group production, printing tickets, leaflets, flyers and programmes at no cost.we ran the box office and ran the front of the house for the night.the play was a great success and we were proud of our role. Community spend 18,244: 3.9% of total Group spend ( 460,944) At a local operating company level community investment is driven through support in kind activities, while the Group Head Office handles direct financial donations. The figures above include an element of both these community investment streams.
SUMMARY INDEPENDENT VERIFICATION AND AUDIT STATEMENT The SMART Company was commissioned by the Go-Ahead Group plc to undertake an independent review of their Environmental and Social Report for the period July 2005 to June 2006. A Senior Consultant, who did not participate in the data gathering and report writing process, conducted the verification. The verification was undertaken using the principles of the assurance standard AA1000: materiality completeness and responsiveness.this is the fifth consecutive year that SMART has provided assurance for Go-Ahead and we have undertaken a rolling programme of audits, ensuring all operating companies have been audited at least once during this period. In 2006 a sample of three operating companies were visited as part of the verification process, as well as a visit to the Group Head Office. Sample checks of the data sources were undertaken and interviews were conducted with members of the management team who had been responsible for data collection. We are therefore satisfied that this report is a reliable and accurate reflection of the performance of the company. A full verification report, containing a more detailed analysis together with recommendations for developing the processes for measuring, managing and reporting Go-Ahead plc s environmental and social impacts, can be found at www.go-ahead.com/corporateresponsibility. Zoë Hatherly Senior Consultant,The SMART Company, August 2006 Go-Ahead Meteor is part of The Go-Ahead Group plc. Members of the Group operate bus services (in the South of England, London,West Midlands and the North East of England), commuter train networks and aviation ground handling as well as parking services. Other companies within the group are: aviance-uk Brighton & Hove Bus Company Go North East Go West Midlands London Central & London General Metrobus Oxford Bus Company Solent Blue Line Southeastern Southern Railway Southern Vectis Wilts & Dorset There is no report for Southeastern as the rail franchise was not awarded to us until April 2006.
More information on how Meteor manages its responsibilities can be found at www.go-ahead.com/corporateresponsibility If you have any comments, views or ideas on how we might improve, or have any thoughts on other issues that we should address in this report, please use the enclosed form or write to: Stephen Turner Managing Director Meteor Bassingbourn House Thremhall Avenue Stanstead Airport Essex CM24 1PZ Telephone: 08700 601 001 Email: info@meteor-uk.com This report was put together by The Go-Ahead Group with help from The SMART Company, and designed and produced by Rare Corporate Design, London. Printed by Beacon Press using their environmental print technology which minimises any negative environmental impacts resulting from the printing of this document. includes the use of vegetable based inks, recycling of 87% of dry waste and 95% of cleaning solvents for future use. Beacon Press holds the Queen's Award for Sustainable Development together with ISO14001 and EMAS accreditations. Beacon is a CarbonNeutral company and uses 100% renewable energy, saving 0.461 tonnes of CO 2 on the production of Go-Ahead s 2006 corporate responsibility reports. Printed on Revive Silk which is made from 75% post consumer waste. In order to minimise the environmental impacts of our reports, Go-Ahead is working with The CarbonNeutral Company to assess and 'offset' the greenhouse gas emissions created by the production and distribution of our annual and corporate responsibility reports. 12.31 tonnes of CO 2 will be balanced through native forestry in Northumberland and Snowdonia, making both these reports CarbonNeutral.