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Business travel restrictions are here to stay, says ACTE survey
Many restrictions on business travel imposed due to the recession are here to stay, according to a survey compiled by ACTE.
The survey, released to mark the first Business Travel Market which starts today at London’s ExCeL, found that6 86.2% of travel buyers said the recession had forced cost cutting measures and many will be retained after full economic recovery.
“It would appear that some of the travel restrictions that were forced on many business travellers have proved workable and will be here to stay,†said Paul Robin founder of Business Travel Market.
“The recession hit us fast and travel buyers responded quickly to fine tune their travel management policies and budgets.
“The survey that we conducted in conjunction with ACTE implies that the changes have worked to reduce costs, business has continued and when we return to financial stability those changes that have worked well will remain in place.
“It would appear for the moment that cost saving comes before convenience and there is more focus on compliance to policy and reason to travel.â€
The survey foundâ€
79.2% of buyers are making greater use of conference call, webex and tele presence
67.9% have cut back on the number of approved trips
66% reported that they now book further in advance for lower cost options
49.1% said class of travel had been downgraded
7.5% reported a total travel ban
26.4% reported a travel ban for non-revenue generating trips.
31% reported an increased use of rail service to and within Europe, for environmental rather than cost cutting reasons
Of the buyers that use a travel management company, only 13.8% thought they didn’t add value
65.5% said TMCs did add value because they provide best fares and rates and data crucial for efficient management and provide vital 24/7 support.
By Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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