TELEWORKING and video conferencing have to play a greater role in UK business life if the Government is to meet its goals of beating congestion. The white paper promoted teleworking as a substitute for high-mileage driving patterns, saving companies both the time and cost involved in staff driving to see clients or remote sites.

The RAC report 'Motors or Modems' forecast last year that teleworking will cut commuter traffic by a fifth by 2007, that video conferencing would replace a fifth of business journeys.

This would bring massive productivity improvements to British business, since RAC research suggested that the average manager driving to and from work and on business spends nearly 11 hours behind the wheel each week, two of them stuck in jams.

RM Consulting, the management consultancy arm of the Post Office, is already reaping such benefits after introducing location independent working (LIW) for its London staff in 1995. This has equipped employees with mobile office technology to enable them to work from home, and has enjoyed a rapid take-up by RM Consulting staff. Currently 170 of its 1,000 London employees are on the scheme, and the goal is to increase that figure to 500.