Shell UK Chairman David Bunch has been appointed to the board of Active Travel England as a non-executive member.
Active Travel England is a government body that was established in 2022 to put the Gear Change strategy in place for overhauling the culture of travel in England. The goal of the strategy has been to make it easier and safer to make journeys by walking or cycling rather than driving a vehicle. David Bunch, meanwhile, has corporate responsibility for managing Shell’s transition to a net-zero company in the UK and overseeing the company’s development of its UK charging network for electric vehicles, as well as other business aspects in the UK, such as the production and sale of lubricants like the Shell Gadus grease.
It may seem odd for a senior executive of a traditional oil major to join an organisation that promotes active travel. Indeed, there was some controversy when the energy major sponsored British Cycling. Nevertheless, the boss at Active Travel England, Chris Boardman, said to road.cc that the organisation needed to look beyond a narrow group of experts:
“If we want to give an entire country access to active travel as part of a genuinely sustainable transport system, we need to think bigger than we ever have before which is why Active Travel England’s board is purposefully made up of more than just experts in this one area.”
As part of his duties, Bunch will consult with the organisation’s management and attend board meetings. He will be joined on the board by Declan Collier, a former airport chief.
