Substituting Electronic Communications for Physical Travel? The Case of “Teleworking”

The paper examines critically the contention that electronic communications will contribute to reducing travel through trip-substitution. Using examples drawn from a variety of forms of work organisation being affected by new technologies, collectively referred to as “teleworking”, it attempts to demonstrate the complexity of the relationship between travel and electronic communication. The forms of teleworking consideied here are: electronic homeworking; mobile working; spatially-dispersed teamworking; and telephone call-centres. The paper concludes that the trip-substitution assumption is unrealistic, with a range of markedly different travel outcomes identified. Further, it contends that the empirical basis for formulating policies in this field is currently inadequate.