oxford uni travel policy

While most students walk or cycle while in Oxford, you can take advantage of a range of discounted bus services providing quick travel around the city as well as regular connections to London and major airports. 

Cycling is a very popular way of getting around Oxford. Be aware that bike theft occurs regularly. You can register your bike for free with the University Cycle Registration Scheme. Doing so will help the police to get your bike back to you if it is stolen. 

Bicycles, electric bikes and e-scooters can be hired in Oxford. For more information visit  Bainton Bikes , Brompton Bike Hire  and Voi Scooters .

The two main bus companies in Oxford are Stagecoach and the Oxford Bus Company. You can find the times of your next bus by using Mobile Oxford. Mobile Oxford provides travel information from across the University and city to your mobile phone.

The University offers an up to 10% (off the standard price) Discounted Bus Pass Scheme covering 13 or 52 week season tickets from the Oxford Bus Company (including Thames Travel) and Stagecoach Oxford Tube. Bus passes can be ordered online from the Estates Services Travel website, by clicking on the price links in the table and completing the online form. Orders will be acknowledged with an email containing a link to the Oxford University payment store to submit your payment in full. Your bus pass will be sent to the Oxford University Students Union, 2 Worcester Street, OX1 2BX, for collection. You will need to present your University card to the receptionist at point of collection.

Oxford Tube : A student discount is available on fares with a valid student card.

A student discount is available on National Express coaches.

Science Transit Shuttle: a frequent express minibus service connecting the Science Area with Old Road Campus in Headington and Harwell Campus near Didcot. For more information visit the Science Transit Shuttle website .

Railcards which give one third off ticket prices are available to 16-25 year olds, and full-time students over the age of 25.

Students can also use the 16-25 Railcard (even if you're over 25, provided that you're still a full-time student) for discounts on London travel, including using the London Underground.

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International travel

The university is committed to reduce aviation emissions from business travel and international student travel and offset the balance of emissions.

Global air travel has almost doubled in ten years, from 2.2 billion passengers per year in 2008 to 4.2 billion in 2018. Aviation is one of the fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions. The UK has particularly high aviation carbon dioxide emissions per capita, accounting for 4% of global emissions from flights. Flying is particularly damaging to the environment because emissions at high altitudes from burning jet fuel and from soot and water vapour have a greater environmental impact than emissions at ground level. 

As a global university, we attract students and staff from around the world and our academics travel for international conferences and meetings, as well as to conduct research, all of which generates demand for more flights. International flights are currently core to our business model. We need to reduce flights and address emissions from aviation. 

The climate impact of air travel is very significant. Flying is the mode of travel with the highest environmental impact, and annual emissions from flying on University business are estimated at around half the carbon produced by all buildings on our estate - 30,000 per tonne of carbon equivalent (tCO2e is a standard unit for counting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on the basis of their global warming potential).    

The University approved a Travel Policy on 24 May 2022, which has been implemented from 1 August 2022. While the University recognises that some travel is necessary for learning, teaching, and research, this policy aims to reduce the environmental impact of travel.  

Measures we are taking to address the impact of travel include:  

• annually reporting flight emissions from University business travel, so that these can be tracked and monitored 
• charging a flight levy on University business travel 
• encouraging a shift from flights to rail where possible 
• encouraging virtual alternatives to travel 
• supporting investment in digital technology to help reduce the need for travel
• eliminating 20% of flights by 2024/25
• engaging with staff and students on travel  

Money raised through the flight levy is allocated to the Oxford Sustainability Fund to finance the implementation of the Environmental Sustainability Strategy . We will use offsetting from 2034 onwards to offset the University’s residual carbon emissions and biodiversity impact and achieve the strategy’s 2035 targets. This approach of prioritising reducing emissions to minimise offsetting is in line with the Oxford Offsetting Principles .   

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TIRS is an online portal for submitting and processing travel insurance applications and registering travel details

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Travel Policy

This policy has been developed as part of the wider environmental sustainability strategy and applies to all business travel from 1 august 2022..

While the University recognises that some travel is necessary for learning, teaching, and research, this policy aims to reduce the environmental impact of travel. The policy was developed after extensive consultation and a pilot rollout in five departments.  

It includes  

• encouraging virtual alternatives to travel 
• encouraging a shift from flights to rail 
• eliminating 20% of flights by 2024/25 
• charging a flight levy on University business travel 

Money raised through the flight levy is allocated to the Oxford Sustainability Fund to finance the implementation of the Environmental Sustainability Strategy. We will use offsetting from 2034 onwards to offset the University’s residual carbon emissions and biodiversity impact and achieve the strategy’s 2035 targets. This approach of prioritising reducing emissions to minimise offsetting is in line with the  Oxford Offsetting Principles . 

Below you will find a summary of the policy. The full policy can be downloaded from this page.

Review our policy

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Sustainable Travel team

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Travel Insurance

Updated April 2024

How to apply for cover

The University has a block travel insurance policy which will provide cover to students and University staff travelling on University business.  All travel insurance applications are made through an online applicati on  process: once submitted, applications are automatically routed for departmental authorisation.  If you do not wish to apply for University travel insurance, the system can also be used to register travel details so that in the event of any crisis the University can provide support. The University will not reimburse the cost incurred by individuals if they chose to take out their own, alternative insurance.

Supervisors

The on-line system asks for the name of a supervisor.  For graduate students this must be the main supervisor named on GSS; for research staff this should be either the PI, supervisor or centre director, as applicable; and for undergraduates on their year abroad this will be the IECL Administrator.  The supervisor will be sent a system-generated e-mail asking them to approve the travel, before the application then comes back to the Faculty Office to be processed as normal. 

Application and Approval Process

Insurance cover will only be effective if the application has been approved by the Faculty Office prior to the date of outward travel . If insurance applications are not received prior to travel, staff will not be insured and will be personally liable for the costs of any loss, injury or delay which occurs while they are abroad.  If booking flights, it is recommended that you apply for insurance at the time you make the booking and in all cases at least two weeks before the proposed date of travel to allow time for the application to be processed and approved. For high risk travel requiring Saftery Office approval please apply at least four weeks before the proposed date of travel .

The application process can be accessed through the University travel insurance website . You will be required to enter your personal traveller details the first time you use the system: these will be stored and need only be reviewed /amended as necessary for future applications. You will then need to add trip information and attach supporting documentation by file upload where applicable: this will include risk assessments.

The University’s policy will cover reasonable personal time (e.g. weekends off at the end of a full working week), but if you have considerable personal time booked then you are advised to arrange your own cover for that period.  To be eligible for insurance, staff and students must be travelling on business for the University of Oxford, and must be members of staff or students in the Faculty of Law.  Any queries about this should be forwarded to  Tarquin Holmes  in the first instance.

Risk Assessments

In accordance with University policies on  fieldwork  and  overseas travel   a suitable and sufficient risk assessment is required for all international travel on University business, as well as all fieldwork.  Click below to download the template.

Academic postholders : must complete the whole risk assessment if they are undertaking fieldwork, but need not complete it for low risk travel, because low level risk is managed through the online insurance system. 

Students and researchers : must always complete the first stage of the risk assessment for all travel, and must complete the whole risk assessment for fieldwork and/or medium or high risk travel, and in all cases this must be signed by their PI or Supervisor. 

Fieldwork and Travel Risk Assessment Template

See also: assessing risk for fieldwork and travel

A completed risk assessment must be uploaded to the insurance application prior to submission: your application cannot be progressed without it. Where travel includes any destination which is the subject of a Foreign and Commonwealth Office warning then referral will be needed to the insurers and the template must be submitted at least six weeks prior to planned departure in order for the Faculty to ensure that insurance cover can be obtained.  In all cases the Dean or her authorised deputy must authorise travel requests.

High Risk Travel

High risk travel is travel to countries / regions where the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office ( FCDO ) have advised against all travel or all but essential travel, including any ‘red list’ countries.

The University Safety Office must review and advise on the suitability of risk assessments for high risk travel. The Faculty will review your risk asessment in the first instance and it will then go to the Safety Office for review and sign-off. This may involve requests for additional information and corrections so your timetable must allow at least two weeks from submission for the Safety Office to review and respond.

In addition to Safety Office sign-off, the Dean of the Law Faculty must approve high risk travel, which must be academically essential. Full details, including information on what constitutes academically essential travel, are provided in the  International travel approval framework for HIGH RISK travel .

Ethics approval

If your research involves human participants, for example interviewing, participant observation, or archival research where the researcher can trace information back to an individual, you may need ethics approval before you undertake your fieldwork. Please refer to the further information about research ethics .

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Planning a trip

There are some actions that you must take when planning to travel to help ensure that you have a safe and productive trip.

Check the table for steps you need to take when planning your trip, and refer to the details given below. 

• 1. Department Approval
• 2. Complete risk assessments and fieldwork safety
• 3. Health advice
• 4. Visas and country guidance
• 5. Travel Insurance
• 6. Expenses

Obtain department approval

All flights must be authorised as necessary travel by the appropriate authority in your department. Premium economy class and business class flights are only permitted for flight durations of 7 hours or more, and require pre-approval by the Head of Department or their delegate.  Evidence of pre-approval must be retained. First class flights are not permitted.  

You should discuss any pre-existing medical conditions or disabilities that may affect your ability to travel with your department. This will allow your department enough time to give you the relevant advice and support.

Risk assessments and fieldwork safety

A suitable risk assessment should be undertaken for activities away from the University. The level of detail required depends on the risk involved and personal circumstances. For overseas travel and fieldwork, please refer to the Safety Office advice, complete a risk assessment and obtain appropriate departmental approval. 

Any relevant fieldwork safety training courses should also be attended. The Safety Office runs several courses.

Check government advice on travel to your destination .  

Travelling against FCDO (UK Government) advice  

If a staff member or student plans to travel to a country (or parts of a country) to which the government advises against all travel, or against unnecessary travel, their department must submit a detailed written risk assessment to the University’s Safety Office for review. The Head of Department must approve the proposed travel, in accordance with the University’s Health and Safety Policy on Overseas Travel.

Check health advice

The University’s Occupational Health Service (OHS) offers a travel health clinic for individuals and groups. Advice is tailored to individual needs and can include assessment of any underlying health conditions and specific health needs, destination, circumstances of travel, and whether additional measures such as travel vaccinations and/or other medications are needed.

Requests for services should be submitted 6-8 weeks before departure using the travel health assessment form.

 Access our forms and find out more about the OHS travel service .

Check visas and foreign travel advice

Check the government’s latest  foreign travel advice  for entry visa requirements to countries to which you are travelling. Obtain the necessary visas before travel. The preferred travel provider can provide visa services.

If you are a sponsored migrant worker, contact the Staff Immigration team for advice about travelling outside the UK for University business.

The University provides travel insurance for employees, students and volunteers travelling worldwide on University business. The cover is not automatic and must be applied for through the Travel Insurance Application and Travel Registration System (TIRS). Insurance cover includes emergency assistance. Full details of cover, eligibility and how to apply can be found on the Insurance website .

Check your expenses allowances in the following sections of the Expenses guide on the Finance Division website:

• Travel costs and car mileage rates
• Accommodation and subsistence

Expense advances

Travel expenses are usually paid in arrears. However, under certain circumstances you may qualify for advance payment of your expenses .

To request an advance payment you will need to complete a form explaining why you are eligible.

Before submitting this form you will need to

• complete a risk assessment for overseas work
• arrange appropriate travel insurance cover

You must give at least 5 working days’ notice if you require cash in foreign currencies or a pre-paid travel card.

Travel Policy

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New policy for University business travel coming soon

The new travel policy, launching on 1 august 2022, looks at carbon emission reductions.

The University has approved a new Travel Policy that will come into effect on 1 August 2022. This policy will replace the travel guidance – whether for conferences, fieldwork, placements or interviews – that was previously in place and introduce measures that will help the University achieve its 2021 Environmental Sustainability Strategy targets.   

As a global University, international flights are core to Oxford’s business model. In 2018–19, staff flying on University business emitted an estimated 30,000 tonnes of carbon, and international students travelling to Oxford to study produced an estimated 21,000 tonnes more. The new travel policy will work to address this issue. 

After consultation and a pilot rollout in five departments, the policy has been approved by the Planning and Resource Allocation Committee . The policy introduces: 

• a flight reduction target of 20% by 2024–25
• a requirement to travel by rail to most destinations within the UK, Paris and Brussels, rather than flying, with reasonable adjustments or exceptions when applicable
• no first class flights and additional authorisation for premium economy and business class flights
• a flight levy, charged at a rate of £30 per tonne of carbon, which will be paid to the Oxford Sustainability Fund and used to implement its strategy  

The new policy also introduces a travel hierarchy for all business travel as follows: 

• avoid travel
• reduce your travel
• travel without flying
• fly when there are no alternatives 

More information about the policy and what it means for staff and students can be found on the Staff Gateway Travelling for work pages . 

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Article contents

Indian dance in diaspora: us and australian contexts.

• Priya Srinivasan Priya Srinivasan Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalization, Deakin University
• https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190201098.013.898
• Published online: 28 February 2020

This article takes a critical and historical look at how South Asian performers and performances circulated in the late 19th and 20th centuries in the United States and Australia. It compares how dance practices, both in the United States and in Australia, are interwoven with 19th- and early 20th-century Orientalism and anti-Asian immigration law in both countries, as primarily white dancers engaged with Indian dance practices to develop intercultural styles of Western contemporary dance. While the comparisons of Indian dance in the United States and Australia highlight the similarities of national policies that curtailed Asian immigration, they also suggest that the patterns of migration and travel, particularly where dance is concerned, are much more complex. Dancers and dance forms moved from India to Australia to the United States in an intricate triangle of exchange and influence.

• immigration law
• anti-Asian policies
• White Australia policy
• racialized performance
• Bharata Natyam
• Orientalism
• Indian diaspora
• appropriation
• migrant formation

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date: 05 July 2024

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Bus travel discounts

You can get up to 10% off the cost of travel on particular routes run by oxfordshire bus companies through the university’s bus pass scheme, bus fare cap extended across england.

The government will provide up to £60 million to help bus operators cap single adult fares to £2 per journey. As a result, staff and students commuting by bus can save on travel costs until 31 December 2024. Some routes covered by the cap may change on 1 July 2023.

Check this page  www.gov.uk | £2 bus fare cap for updates.

From 17 March – if you are applying for a new bus card with Oxford Bus Company there will be a charge of £5.00 for the card, plus the usual price of the bus ticket.

The bus pass scheme provides you with an interest-free loan, which you can pay back monthly via deductions from your salary. 

To qualify for the scheme, you must be a permanent or fixed-term staff member with at least a 12-month contract and be on the University payroll.  Please note that we cannot extend the benefit to family or friends or transfer an existing season ticket into the scheme.  

If you are a student or staff member and not on the University payroll, you will have to pay for your season ticket in full but you can still benefit from the discount. 

Discounts available from the Oxford Bus Company and Thames Travel:

• 10% for 52-week and 13-week season tickets except for Smartzone products 
• 5% for 52-week Smartzone products and Smartzone combined with other zones and products  
• 10% for 36-single trips - sold in batches, valid for 6 months from date of purchase.

Discounts available from Stagecoach: 

• 10% for all 52 and 13-week tickets except for Smartzone only products. 
• 5% for 52-week Smartzone product

Please note that if you have a personal key card not supplied under the travel scheme, these cannot be topped up. New and replacement keylink cards for the scheme carry a £5 charge.

• How to apply
• Renew your bus pass
• Report a lost, stolen or faulty pass
• What to do if your pass doesn't work
• Cancelling your bus pass

Once you’ve chosen your route and ticket type, find out which services and zones are covered by the scheme and what the total and monthly costs are. 

Please apply at least 10 working days before you need your pass.

To apply for your pass, select the ticket you want and click on the 'apply' button to complete the form. You will need your payroll number.  

If you need help to complete the form or would like to order your ticket over the phone, contact the Estates Helpdesk. They will also help if you find that you’ve ordered the wrong ticket, but unfortunately there may be a charge to cancel and reissue it.

If you are a new member of staff and don’t yet have your payroll number, or have a query about salary deductions, email the Payroll team or phone them on +44(0)1865 616301.

Below you can find the costs for 13 and 52-week bus passes from the Oxford Bus Company, Thames Travel and Stagecoach. This shows both the total price and the monthly cost that will be deducted through payroll.

Please note that you can use Smartzone tickets across all services, regardless of the company you buy them from.

You can also find the network and zone maps below:

• Oxford Bus Company
• Thames Travel

Oxford Bus Company & Thames Travel

Smartzone ticket types and prices, cityzone ticket types and prices, park & ride ticket types and prices, changes to park&ride tickets:.

Find out more about park&ride ticket options .

CountryZone ticket types and prices

Application form

Please use the following form to apply for one of the above Oxford Bus Company bus passes.

Megarider ticket types and prices

Oxford tube ticket and price.

Please use the following form to apply for one of the above Stagecoach bus passes.

We will not renew your bus pass automatically and you need to apply in the same way as for a new one. For more details visit the 'how to apply' section of this page.

Top Up of Bus Card

You will need to provide your existing pass number and allow at least 10 working days before your pass is due to expire so that you get your top-up or new pass in time.

If you already have a bus card not provided through the University Bus Pass scheme, you will be sent a new bus card by the bus company.  

To replace an Oxford Bus Company or Stagecoach pass, please fill out the form below and the Helpdesk will arrange for a replacement and send it to you. This could take a few days. There is also a charge of £5.

Apply for a replacement pass

Oxford Bus Company 

If you require an urgent replacement bus pass, the Helpdesk will give you a form to take to one of the company’s travel shops where you can get a replacement straight away for a £5 charge.

These charges are applied by the bus companies, not by the University. You will also have to pay for your bus fares until you get your new pass. You will not have to pay to replace a faulty newly-issued smartcard, and we can refund you for any bus fares you have to buy. 

Check that:

• it is valid for the bus you wanted to use
• you are not trying to use it before the activation date you provided
• it has not expired
• you have used your new Smartzone pass on a bus operated by the issuing company (it will not work if you use it first on another company’s bus)

If none of these apply, contact the Helpdesk for advice.

If you want to cancel your bus pass – if you are leaving the University or changing your travel arrangements – email the Helpdesk. Tell them your bus pass number, why you are cancelling and the last date you expect to use it.

You may have to pay an additional charge through your last salary payment, including an admin fee – the Helpdesk will contact you to explain the cost – and you will need to return your pass.

Estates Helpdesk

• +44 01865 270087
• [email protected]

Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 17:00

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