International toll road owner-operator Transurban has released its fourth Sustainability Report.

The 2009 report outlines the company's major initiatives, performance and commitments in four areas - Employees, Environment, Community and Marketplace. It is available in a comprehensive online format on www.transurban.com

Transurban has interests in eight toll roads in North America and Australia. In the US, it holds the concession to operate Pocahontas 895 in Richmond Virginia and is more than 18 months into construction on the Capital Beltway High Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes in Virginia.

The HOT lanes project will see Transurban and partner Fluor expanding a 14-mile section of the interstate from eight to 12 lanes under an 80-year concession agreement with the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Report highlights

• Introduced a Sustainable Purchasing Policy and Supplier Code of Practice for suppliers, contractors and partners.
• Undertook an extensive community outreach program to inform stakeholders about the Capital Beltway HOT lanes project. In April a survey of 1,000 Beltway travellers found that two-thirds have a positive impression of HOT lanes.
• Improved safety on Pocahontas 895 by enhancing signage to keep drivers informed of changing conditions and installing new weather monitoring equipment to measure wind velocity, pavement temperatures and surface moisture content.
• Started work to sign the United Nations Global Compact as part of Transurban's commitment to promote responsible business practices in human rights, labour practices, environmental performance and anti-corruption.
• Worked with key industry stakeholders to communicate the value of private public partnerships (PPPs) and advocate for expanded opportunities for innovative financing, tolling and partnerships to help meet growing transportation needs.
• From the time construction started in early 2008 until July 2009, recorded 1.3 million safe work hours on the Capital Beltway project without a Lost Work Day incident. This rate is significantly below the US national average.
• Supported local communities along the Beltway corridor by offering annual grants for community groups, schools and not-for-profit organizations.

In the report's introduction, Chairman David Ryan said he was pleased to observe that sustainability had become a critical part of doing business for an increasing number of companies.

"Being a good corporate citizen has changed from being the 'right thing to do' for investors and communities to a strategic imperative," he said.

"While formal reporting helps us to continuously improve our approach and performance by benchmarking against leaders in the field, our commitment to sustainability has been at the core of our operations."

Mr Ryan said that in 2009, the focus was on formalizing Transurban's approach to sustainability by introducing new structures and processes.

Awards

• Listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) World List of high-performing companies for the fourth consecutive year.


• Included in the Carbon Disclosure Project's Climate Disclosure Leadership Index for Australia and New Zealand, also for the fourth consecutive year.


• Member of FTSE4Good Index, the responsible index calculated by global index provider FTSEGroup.


• Named Euromoney Project Finance magazine's "Bond Deal of the Year" for the Capital Beltway HOT lanes.


• Won 2008 "Deal of the Year" (non traditional financing) from The Bond Buyer, also for the Capital Beltway HOT lanes.


• Awarded Infrastructure Journal's "Transport Deal of the Year" for Capital Beltway.


• Recognized for leadership in advancing PPPs in US transportation by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association.

Transurban Group

Transurban Group

LOCATIONS 505 Little Collins Street Melbourne, VIC Australia 3000 ph: +61 3 8656 8900 fax: +61 3 8656 8585 565 5th Avenue, 18th Floor New York, NY 10017 ph: +1 646 278 0870 fax: +1 646 278 0839 Transurban Group is an international toll road investor and manager with more than 10 years experience developing and operating complex toll road infrastructure. Transurban is a US$6.4 billion company with interests in seven key toll roads in Australia and the US, including Pocahontas 895 in Richmond, Virginia. Transurban began construction on the Capital Beltway HOT Lanes project in Northern Virginia in July 2008. Transurban is proud to be included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index as one of the world's most sustainable companies. For more information on Transurban visit www.transurban.com.

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