Company cars account for about 40-50 per cent of new car registrations in Australia. The percentage of company cars in the national fleet is also quite high at about 15-20 per cent. Company car drivers may have no incentive to minimise car travel because most direct costs are usually met by the company. The extent to which travel demand management (TDM) measures can impact upon company cars remains uncertain. This report provides a better understanding of the travel characteristics of company cars from the 1994 Victorian Activity and Travel Survey (VATS) data for Melbourne, and to explore policy implications for TDM. Company cars were found to be newer, with bigger engines and worth more. Trip duration and distance of home-based company cars were slightly longer than home-based private car trips, and they started earlier in the morning and later in the afternoon. The VATS results suggested that company cars were mostly used for commuting and work-related travel. Company car trips were predominantly made by men and middle-aged people. They constituted about 18 per cent of total car trips at a particular time of day. Most TDM measures would have little impact on reducing this amount of travel. Lump sum tax may be useful in discouraging employers to provide the second company cars to employees in their salary packages. (A)
Abstract