Corporate travel platform has designed-in green tools to help firms report on their carbon footprint when using the railway across the UK
Subscribe to our free Wharf Whispers newsletter here
SPONSORED CONTENT
For the first in a series of articles produced in collaboration with South Western Railway’s Business Direct service, we’re focusing on Woking.
The town – a rapid 23 minutes by direct train from London Waterloo – is hot on sustainability.
That makes it an ideal setting to talk about the increasing importance companies and their suppliers will be putting on assessing, logging and publicising their emissions, given new reporting standards that are coming into force across the UK.
Travel on SWR’s network to the destination and you’ll have generated an estimated 1.47kg of CO2 per traveller.
This is a marked reduction on riding a motorbike there (4.72kg) or taking a car powered by petrol (6.76kg) or diesel (7.18kg).
One of the benefits of the operator’s Business Direct service is that such data is instantly available for all journeys at the point of booking, enabling easy comparison and reporting.
why Woking?
So why travel to Woking?
The area has long been a hive of human activity, with archaeological remains dating back at least 4,000 years.
Listed in the Domesday book as Wochinges, the town was home to King Henry VII’s mother, Lady Margaret Beaufort, author HG Wells, while he was writing The War Of The Worlds and welcomed its first train in 1838.
Today, Woking is a base for a wealth of businesses including the UK headquarters of Japanese brewing giant Asahi, the main location for high end car manufacturer McLaren Automotive and a key site for power firm ABB.
It’s serious about green issues too, with both the local borough council and nearby horticultural powerhouse of RHS Wisley aiming to be carbon neutral or better by 2030.
Such forward thinking is why it’s also home to The Living Planet Centre – headquarters of the World Wildlife Fund’s UK operation and an ecologically sound structure that provides extensive events space within easy reach of the station.
green space and attractions
Woking is both close to London and in touch with nature, thanks to the likes of Wisley and the historic Horsell Common, making it well placed to welcome guests with numerous hotels for longer stays.
There’s also a vibrant hospitality and cultural scene with regeneration attracting names such as Gordon Ramsey as well as a succession of independent operators to serve the needs of locals and visitors alike.
The centre also features theatres and cinemas, plenty of shops and a spacious library.
The Lightbox Gallery, opened in 2007, acts a museum and creative space at the heart of the town for those who prefer to take things at a slower pace, presenting regular exhibitions and core collections.
All-in-all, this is a destination that’s well worth exploring beyond the confines of pure business travel.
At a mere 30 minutes from Canary Wharf (via the Jubilee line to Waterloo), it’s an intriguing prospect for a half-day outing, a place to stage an event away from the smoke or a venue for a working lunch that rolls over into the afternoon and then the evening.
The Gosling Restaurant And Bar
>> Set a short taxi or bus ride from Woking station, this cosy, modern restaurant delivers on flavour and value.
Perfect for a business lunch, it offers a three-course set menu for £30, including a choice of dishes from the the likes of gently curried cauliflower soup, pan-fried sea bream, corn-fed chicken breast and Madagascan vanilla pannacotta with spiced winter berries.
Set on the edge of Horsell Common, this is a must-visit locally and diners should give serious thought to indulging in the rock oysters for £3.80, neatly shucked and dressed on a bed of ice.
Cellar Magnifique Wine Bar And Café
>> Tucked away on Church Path a few steps from Woking Station, this quirky venue includes a table supported by a bicycle, a chair suspended from its roof and an improbably large collection of wine bottles behind its sprawling bar.
Ideally placed for those catching trains back into London or travelling further afield, the menu extends to vintages by the glass, carafe and bottle, craft beers, ciders, spirits, liqueurs, cigars and cocktails as well as coffees and teas.
There’s even a selection of snacks, savoury platters and sweet treats to enjoy while the clock ticks onwards.
on track with SWR’s Joe Thurgood
Q
With mandatory UK Sustainability Reporting Standards coming into force for 2026/27, how can SWR Business Direct help large companies, and those supplying services to them, keep track of their carbon footprint when booking travel?
A
Now businesses will need to report on their carbon footprint, South Western Railway Business Direct can take the headache out of the paperwork and get your carbon house in order.
Carbon tracking might sound a bit daunting, so we’ve built the tools directly into the booking process to make it feel like second nature.
When your team logs on to book a train, they aren’t just seeing times and prices, they’re seeing the real-time CO2 impact of those journeys.
It turns a mandatory requirement into an easy, everyday choice.
Because we use industry-standard benchmarks (aligned with the Rail Delivery Group), organisations can trust that the data is “decision-ready” for official reports.
No more messy spreadsheets or best-guess estimates at the end of the financial year, the data is available with just a couple of clicks and you have a full report at your fingertips, plus comparisons to other modes of transport.
For suppliers, it’s a total win, too.
When your clients ask what the carbon footprint of the team you’re sending to us is, users can give them an exact, professional answer.
SWR Business Direct essentially acts as your sustainability sidekick, capturing all those miles and converting them into the clean, audited data the new UK standards demand.
It doesn’t matter where in the country you are travelling to, from Manchester to Margate or from Southampton to Swansea, our portal is about making rail the greenest way to travel and the easiest way to report.
We’ll handle the maths, you just enjoy the journey.
And best of all, it’s free for businesses to use.
There are no hidden costs or subscriptions – companies just sign up and book their train travel.
Joe Thurgood is business sales manager at South Western Railway and works to assist companies with their transport booking needs
key details: SWR Business Direct
SWR Business Direct is free to use and allows companies to book, plan and manage business travel across the whole of Britain.
There are no hidden fees or charges and no booking fees on tickets purchased via the service.
Find out more about the platform here
Read more: Discover Georgian food and wine at Sad Meli in Royal Docks
Read Wharf Life’s e-edition here
Subscribe to our free Wharf Whispers newsletter here
