GOING THE DISTANCE

I’ve been in the industry for a long time but I’m still very much bewildered by ground transportation,” admits Carol Fergus, Director Global Travel Meetings and Ground Transportation at Fidelity International.

“Ground Transport has always been a bit of a black hole,” says Jessica Banish, North America Leader, Strategic Sourcing, GE.

From modal choice between car rental, e-bikes, scooters, taxis and black car service to supplier and booking fragmentation, most buyers find ground transportation a bit of a headache.

The issue, says Fergus, is that nothing is gelling and everyone is going off and doing their own thing. “It is really stressful. So many things have changed. I think if ground transportation, TMCs and OBTs got together they could help with that,” she adds.

Issues haven’t gone unnoticed by ITM and the GBTA, who have joined forces to create a Ground Transportation Working Group. It is producing a guide for ITM and GBTA buyer members when reviewing or building a ground strategy for their programme.

“The scope of ground transport has shifted to include multi-modal options not just the traditional rail, car hire and chauffeur drive, but ride-hailing and shared mobility such as e-scooters,” says Kerry Douglas, Head of Programme at ITM.

“Many travel buyers are looking for guidance as to the best way to incorporate all these ground transport modes into their travel programme.”

The guide will look at the ‘modal shift’ impacting ground transport today.

Ben Park, Senior Director Procurement & Travel Parexel, says: "I think we are asking too much from the travellers on a modal shift in the current set up and it will result in them trying to do the right thing and getting frustrated. It is, and has always been, very fragmented, complex and difficult to centrally manage."

GE’s Banish adds: “Some of the global solutions like Uber are easy to control at