Sustainable travel
Taking our travel impact into account
Travel and Transport is a core theme of Heriot-Watt University’s Climate Action Framework. When it comes to achieving sustainable progress in this area, we must foster a campus environment that promotes sustainable commuting; strive to enhance campus connectivity; and continually improve accessibility for everyone.
We are taking steps to better understand the travel profiles of our global community to help us facilitate and develop measures to reduce the impact of travel throughout our campuses.
The forthcoming 2025 Sustainable Campus Travel Plan offers a comprehensive approach to reducing the environmental impact of travel to and from our Edinburgh campus, through encouraging the use of low-carbon transport options. It highlights plans to make public transport, cycling, walking and considerate car use more convenient for everyone.
By providing effective, accessible and visible infrastructure and facilities to enable low-carbon commuting to our global campuses, we can empower and support our global community in taking personal and collective action to achieve the SDGs – one of our Climate Action Framework’s ten strategic commitments.
Our Connected Hybrid Working principles have been refined to enable flexibility of working location, supporting the use of online meetings to reduce the need for travel, whether an overseas meeting or a local commute.
We are committed to developing approaches to manage and significantly reduce our travel impact and build on the gains in digital collaboration that have resulted from the Covid-19 pandemic. A key element of this process will be enabling our students and staff to understand the climate impacts of their travel decisions and to support them in taking steps to reduce their own individual carbon footprints.
Commuting
What considerations should be made when considering the environmental impact of travel away from campus?
Do options other than single-occupant, private car exist for you to use to travel to and from campus? Do you need information or support in accessing these options?
Our work to better understand travel patterns and the travel needs of our community also relates to regular commuting to our campuses. New travel surveys will allow us to understand post-pandemic travel patterns, and introduce further targeted measures to support the most sustainable means of travel. The page links below show existing travel options for our Scottish campuses and our pilot interactive map which is in development for the Edinburgh Campus.
Travel considerations
Can travel be avoided through the use of online tools for virtual collaboration?
This can be through the use of online meeting platforms and our purpose-built hybrid meeting facilities on our campuses.
If travel does take place, have you considered different travel options that may be slower but less impactful upon the environment?
Our campuses
Edinburgh campus active travel
Travel Information
Lothian Busses operate regular services to Heriot-Watt's Edinburgh campus. Look out for Services 25, 34, 35, 45, X27/28 and the new hourly 32 service that runs from Balerno – Currie – HWU – Hermiston P&R – Gyle Centre – Cammo – Cramond.
Trains and trams call at Edinburgh Park, a short bus or taxi ride from the Edinburgh campus. Trains also serve Curriehill Station, 1.5 kilometres away from the campus.
Cycling to the Edinburgh Campus
The Edinburgh Campus is located between two major active travel routes out of Edinburgh city centre: the Union Canal path/ national Cycle Route 754, and the Water of Leith path. These shared-use pedestrian and cycle paths are well-connected to other cycle routes in Edinburgh, and provide pleasant routes for sustainable and healthy commutes.
Mechanical assistance and rental bike information can be found on a Friday at The Bike Bothy, a repair shop and cycling hub just off the Main University Avenue.
Cycle parking is provided throughout campus, as well as showering and changing facilities. See our interactive active travel page for further details of facilities and a map of cycle routes, further details and locations of on-campus facilities for cyclists, including the locations of bike parking and showers.
Heriot-Watt operates a Cycle to Work scheme for eligible staff, aimed to encourage more people to cycle to work.
Liftshare Scheme
If you work or study at the Edinburgh or Scottish Borders campus, you can take part in the Liftshare Scheme. Simply create an account log on, find and connect with a partner or group to Liftshare with, and save money on your commute.
You will be helping to reduce carbon emissions with every lift shared and helping make everyone’s commute quicker by being one less car on the road. You can share just one trip or a regular journey.
Liftshare is now available on the convenient Mobilityways app. Search “Mobilityways” in the App or Play store to download, .and claim rewards when you verify your Liftshare journey.
Electric Vehicle Chargers
There are 17 EV chargers on the Edinburgh Campus. They have all recently undergone an upgrade, and are connected to the Fuuse back office. A staff or student pass is required to access them.
You can contact ev@hw.ac.uk to be set up to use the chargers.
Our Sustainable Campus Travel Plan
Find out more about what we are doing at our Edinburgh campus to embedding sustainability into the core of our operations.
Travel plans are now in preparation for our other campuses starting with our Borders Campus.