Business travel

Sustainable business travel: a cost too far?

With last week’s figures revealing that the UK economy remains in recession, are tight business travel budgets the death knell for green travel? Well, yes – and no…

Gone are the days when corporate social responsibility (CSR) was seen as a philanthropic activity adopted by organisations in order to look good.

Nowadays, companies recognise that they have a responsibility not only to their shareholders, but to stakeholders including their employees, consumers, suppliers, communities, legislators and, last but not least, to the environment.

But following the recent shock news that the UK is still in recession, has commitment to sustainable business travel been conveniently demoted, as budgets loom far more sharply on the business horizon?

A recent opinion poll by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) and expense management company KDS would seem to suggest so.

Polling 329 travel managers and business travellers worldwide, the survey found that 79 per cent of companies rated cost-cutting as a high business-travel priority this year.

In fact, only 17 per cent of those polled said environmentally sustainable travel was a high priority.

The forecast is not entirely bleak. Overall, sustainability is rated only as a mid-level priority for business travel, ranked as such by 48 per cent of companies.

The forecast is not entirely bleak. Overall, sustainability is rated only as a mid-level priority for business travel, ranked as such by 48 per cent of companies.

Certainly, the current nub of this particular problem is the financial premium that sustainable travel options invariably attract. Put simply, keeping the financial director happy has been more important than environmental considerations.

As KDS CEO Yves Weissellberger commented: “In the current economy, paying a premium is hard to justify, so green business travel will lose out.”

But he added: “Longer term, the picture is brighter: companies clearly want to do the right thing through CSR. Once the financial premium is erased, or the economy permits, we should expect to see green business travel become far more popular.”

As always, however, this is a tale of two halves, and the recessional cloud has brought with it not so much a silver lining as a green one.

Another survey, by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and KPMG, suggests that the recession is actually encouraging more employers to adopt greener work practices, if only accidentally.

Almost forty-three per cent of the survey’s 892 respondents have increased their use of public transport. Other reductions have been seen in the use of private transport, with 64 per cent of respondents cutting the use of taxis.

If this seems like a win-win situation then you’d be right, though it will be interesting to see how this position evolves as and when financial conditions ease.

For the time being, though, bear in mind that a CSR objective that actually lowers costs will certainly put a smile on the financial director’s face – and that’s something that’s definitely worth sustaining.

Expotel is a CarbonNeutral company. To find out more about how to make your travel greener, call Expotel on 0844 793 7300. 

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