The short-term future of business travel has never been so difficult to predict, Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) UK boss Andrew Waller told travel buyers at the company’s annual Client Exchange in London. He said the ongoing economic and political uncertainty is “strangling growth” and “eroding confidence”.
“Business is good,” he surmised, “but uncertain” and “very fragile”, and the future is “incredibly difficult to predict”.
Some areas of business travel show strong signs of continued growth, he said, with CWT winning £70 million of new client business in the previous 12 months, and seeing its meetings and events business double.
The impact of the Olympics was a hot topic, with Olympic 400m silver medallist Roger Black on hand to remind delegates why London is putting itself through the logistical challenge. “At that level, talent is only a ticket to the party,” he said. “The rest is about perseverance, teamwork and attitude. You need a high sense of achievement and a low fear of failure.”
Transport for London’s (TfL) Olympic programme and risk manager, Antonino Letteriello, urged buyers to discourage their travellers from attempting to travel in certain areas during peak periods. Instead, he encouraged businesses to consider asking staff to work from home, or to use a different mode of transport to travel to work, such as Barclays Cycle Hire or even walking.
But Letteriello said TfL would be well prepared for the games, having invested £6.5 billion in transport capacity enhancements, including extra tube capacity and 200 extra buses.