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You are listening to "The Podcast 
Factory Org".

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Welcome to a new episode of "6 
Minutes to Understand",

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a Midoricast feature with Pierre 
Léonard.

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Hello Michel, hello everyone!

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Today, I wanted to talk to you 
about decarbonized mobility in

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business. Why? Because from 
September 16 to 22,

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2026, it was Mobility Week in 
Belgium.

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You probably know by now that this 
podcast is recorded in Brussels.

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And so this Mobility Week is really 
a great opportunity to talk about a

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topic where, for once, 
ecology, the employee's wallet,

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and the company's bottom line 
clearly point in the same positive

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direction: decarbonized mobility.

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So, a figure to start with.

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In a service SME, 
commuting and business travel often

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account for between 20 and 40% of 
the company's total carbon

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footprint, making them its primary 
source of emissions.

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And yet, it is almost always the 
last thing discussed in a CSR plan,

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which prefers to tackle LED light 
bulbs rather than the vehicle

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fleet. Yet, and this is rather good 
news,

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the legislative framework is 
evolving rapidly.

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The mobility budget—we're still 
talking about Belgium here—which

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allows an employee to exchange 
their company car for a budget

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distributed across multiple modes 
of transport,

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is becoming mandatory in phases.

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Starting in 2027 for companies with 
50 or more employees

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with a fleet. And 2028 for those 
employing at least 15 people.

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In other words, what is a voluntary 
option is becoming a short-term

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requirement, and it is better to 
anticipate it than to endure it as

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an emergency. A second strong 
signal:

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internal combustion engine company 
cars,

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petrol or diesel, 
purchased from 2026 onwards,

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are no longer tax-deductible for 
the company at all.

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Only electric vehicles remain 100% 
deductible,

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hybrids partially; 
the legislator's message is very

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clear. Third development, 
more discreet but very concrete for

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workers. The bicycle allowance 
rises to €0.37 per

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kilometer, exempt from taxes and 
social security

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contributions, up to €3,690 per 
year and per employee.

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That's great! Plus, 
it fits into cafeteria plans.

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Oh yes, and a well-used bicycle is 
therefore structurally less

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expensive than a company car, 
both for the company providing it

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and for the person using it.

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But what about the benefits for 
company finances and for the

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environment? So we are going to 
summarize the three calculation

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columns: finances, 
taxation, and the environment.

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On the financial and tax side, 
a well-structured mobility budget

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often costs less than a traditional 
company car fleet,

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once all hidden costs are factored 
in:

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insurance, fuel, 
maintenance, taxable benefits in

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kind, and soon the loss of 
deductibility for internal

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combustion vehicles.

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Add to that a largely exempt 
bicycle allowance and the

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calculation quickly favors soft 
mobility,

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even when calculating strictly in 
euros and without any environmental

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considerations. On the 
environmental side,

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reducing individual motorized 
travel means directly tackling the

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primary source of emissions for 
many service organizations.

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This is not a symbolic gesture 
beside the essentials,

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to be ranked right after waste 
sorting or turning off lights at

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the end of the day; 
it is often the core issue itself.

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An ambitious mobility plan can do 
more for your carbon footprint than

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a complete overhaul of your 
procurement.

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There is a third benefit that is 
all too often forgotten:

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employer attractiveness.

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Because a flexible and coherent 
mobility policy is now a deciding

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factor for a growing share of 
candidates,

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especially among younger 
generations,

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who rely more and more on this 
criterion to differentiate and

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choose between multiple job offers.

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That's all very well, 
but what are the structural

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solutions that really tip the 
scales in the right direction?

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I am going to give you four 
structural levers, from the most

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strategic to the most operational. 
The first is a mobility budget that

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offers real choices across these 
three pillars:

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a more environmentally friendly 
vehicle,

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soft mobility solutions, 
and a cash portion.

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The goal is not to tick a 
regulatory box,

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but rather to offer options that 
teams will actually use.

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Second lever: structural remote 
work for compatible roles.

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Ah, I remember COVID, 
you know? We saw observations that

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the air had never been so clean in 
certain cities, right?

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That's true, that's true, 
that's true. It's the only lever

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that reduces travel needs at the 
source rather than simply making

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travel cleaner. As an anecdote, 
I once had a jokester ask me if he

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could use an exercise bike to work 
remotely.

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That touch of humor is nice.

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Third lever: basic infrastructure: 
parking,

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secure bike storage, 
showers, charging stations.

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These investments are not very 
costly,

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but they are often the limiting 
factor that prevents good

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intentions from turning into 
behavioral changes.

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And finally, the fourth lever: 
carpooling and corporate shuttles.

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Particularly useful for business 
parks poorly served by public

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transit. If you're starting from 
scratch,

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three initial steps are enough.

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First, map your teams' commutes; 
a simple internal survey

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already provides a usable snapshot.

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Next, compare the real cost of a 
conventional car fleet with an

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equivalent mobility budget.

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And when I say conventional, 
we are obviously already talking

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about electric, since combustion 
engines are no longer exempt and

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are therefore disqualified.

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So compare these costs to make the 
discussion objective with your CFO.

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And finally, test a time-limited 
action rather than trying to

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overhaul the entire mobility policy 
all at once.

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Without forgetting, 
of course, to consult your staff in

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the process. To get your teams on 
board with this initiative without

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sounding moralizing, 
there's a tool I particularly

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appreciate called the Mobility 
Fresk.

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It's a collaborative workshop 
designed by the Shifters,

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available in several versions: 
for the general public,

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for companies, but also for regions 
and local authorities.

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It allows people to understand, 
backed by figures,

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where travel-related emissions 
really come from,

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and above all, what levers everyone 
can pull depending on their

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situation, individually or 
collectively.

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And unlike a top-down memo, 
it is discussed around a table and

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leaves a lasting impression.

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Another interesting tool to build 
momentum is mobility challenges.

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In an intra-company version, 
several teams challenge each other

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on the number of low-carbon 
kilometers traveled.

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In an inter-company version, 
organizations within the same

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business park compete against one 
another.

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There is nothing like a bit of 
friendly competition to shake up

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habits ingrained for 20 years.

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Mobility Week is not just a civic 
symbol with a car-free Sunday;

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it's an ideal window to launch a 
real,

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full-scale test in your 
organization before embedding all

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of this into your HR policy for 
2027,

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when the new obligations will begin 
to take effect.

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And I look forward to seeing you 
perhaps in a year to see where you

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stand regarding your progress on 
low-carbon mobility.

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In the meantime, 
I'll see you in two weeks on a

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shorter-term basis, 
with an episode discussing how a

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circular business leader can handle 
their board of directors.

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Great! Thank you, 
Pierre.

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You are listening to "The Podcast 
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