Uber accounts for more than half of US ground transport spend among business travellers, a new report has found.
The ride-hailing app grabbed 52 per cent of the market for Q4 2016, up from 40 per cent a year earlier. This is ahead of car rental (33%), taxi (11%) and Lyft (4%).
The report from travel and expense management software firm Certify analysed corporate T&E spend for the past year. It tracks millions of expenses and receipts across categories such as food, airlines, lodging and car rental.
Elsewhere in the sharing economy, Airbnb gained traction with business travellers in recent years, doubling its share of transactions each year since 2014.
In 2016, Airbnb ended the year with 0.27% of expenses and receipts in the hotel category overall.
Certify reports on the top 15 hotels by expense percentage with Hampton Inn in the number one spot at 8.82 per cent.
“Business travel got a lot more personal in 2016,” said Robert Neveu, CEO, Certify.
“The growing preference for sharing economy services like Uber and, to a lesser degree, Airbnb really underscores the trend toward consumerisation of traditional corporate travel.
“Advances in personal technologies and travel-based smartphone apps have made it easier for business travellers to choose the experiences and vendors they prefer.
“And the companies they work for are following suit with expanded travel policy guidelines to accommodate new services and payment methods. More than a footnote in history, it’s the kind of transformational change that will continue to shape the industry for years to come,” he said.
See the full report.