Suncor Energy Ltd.

LAUREN ROONEY

Lauren Rooney, with Suncor’s Corporate Sustainability Department, finds it easy to use transit, carpooling and teleworking for her work commute, and therefore sees no need to own a car. Given that her parents work in the same area, carpooling as a family makes sense and is a seamless way to get downtown. Combining this mode with transit, she maintains her work and education, by taking transit directly to university from her office. Lauren is also fortunate to have the opportunity to take advantage of the home telework office, designed three years ago to facilities her mother’s telework needs.

For Lauren, a major motivator for not driving is the financial benefit. On the occasion that she does borrow the family car, it is easy for her to see how the cost of running the car adds up. According to the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA), the average cost of owning a car is close to $10,000 a year. Transit, teleworking and carpooling mean a substantial amount in savings for Lauren and other young workers.

Suncor has been a strong participant in the Commuter Challenge, encouraging employees to commute sustainably with incentives such as indoor and outdoor bike storage, showers and lockers, telecommuting policy, and transit ticket availability. Suncor continues to see the viability in these benefits, building on incentives that are in place.

 

Company Highlights

Name: Suncor Energy Inc
Industry: Energy (Oil & Gas)
Size: 6500 employees

Incentives:
- Outside racks
- Parkade storage for bicycles
- Lockers and showers
(adding more!)
- Transit tickets to go between different work locations

Work Structures:
- Teleworking when feasible
- Flex hours
- Compressed work week

Programs:
- Commuter Challenge

Promotions:
- Commuter Challenge week

Employee Highlights

Name: Lauren Rooney
Age: 21
Department: Corporate
Sustainability Department

 

Mode of Transportation:
Transit, walk, carpool or telework
Distance from work: 20 km

Like best about commute:
“If I take the bus, I can do other things, like read a book. If I am walking or doing something
along those lines, it’s good physical activity.”
Motivation: It is cheaper then driving and paying to park.
Message to others:
“When using more sustainable ways to commute, you can get exercise, fresh air, learn new things and meet new people. You would also save a lot of money – the money saved could be use for some-thing to reward yourself.
Obviously, it is also much better for the environment.”

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