STS Defence in Gosport has seen an uptake in the number of people cycling into work after installing bike shelters using a £1,000 Sustainable Routes grant.

Alan Mackinnon of STS Defence said: “Until we received the grant, bikes were just untidily propped up around the car park, which leads onto a main road.

“Now that they have a safe place to store their bikes, there has been an uptake in staff members cycling into work. Now around 15% of our 150 staff do just that.”

With the desire to implement changes, STS Defence needed the outlet to enable them to do so, which is when they found Sustainable Routes.

“The process was so straightforward,” said Phil Currie, who liaised with the Sustainable Routes team on the application process. “We had no trouble getting the grant.”

With one-fifth of the workforce using bikes rather than cars to travel into work, the reduction in CO2 emissions is marked, and as healthier, more active workers can often lead to a happier, more productive workforce, STS Defence and the environment are getting benefits they otherwise wouldn’t have received.

Sustainable Routes grants of up to £1,000 are available to businesses with a turnover of at least £75,000 that have been trading for over a year and employ less than 250 people.