Unpacking Scope 3: Category 7 – Emissions from employee commuting

GHG Scope 3 Upstream activites | Category 7 – Employee commuting

Employee commutes happen every day and collectively, they can add up to a major emissions source and only a few businesses are able to collect this information, let alone manage and reduce the associated impacts.

Scope 3 Category 7 focuses on the GHG emissions related to the employees’ journeys between their homes and their workplace.

What’s included?

Category 7 covers commuting by:

• Cars and motorbikes
• Public transport (bus, rail, metro)
• Cycling or walking (zero-emissions, but included in participation data)
• Hybrid or remote working patterns

Why it matters

For responsible businesses having an efficient green travel plan in place is a material topic. Tracking commuting emissions helps companies understand how work arrangements and sustainable transport choices may also be supporting:

• Better workplace mobility planning
• Employee wellbeing and engagement initiatives
• Future-proofing the business (e.g. EV charging infrastructure decisions)
• Hybrid working evaluations to ensure a better work/life balance that attracts and retains talent

How to reduce these emissions

• Promote public transport schemes
• Support bike-to-work programs
• Offer EV incentives
• Explore flexible or hybrid work models

Key takeaway

Commuting is one of the most relatable parts of sustainability — small changes across many people create significant collective impact.