How to make business travel more sustainable

We all know how important sustainability is in current times and businesses are taking steps to consider climate change and the environment in everything they do. After all, they want to help combat climate change and they are looking through their policies to ensure their company is going in the right direction. While there are plenty of changes you could make to your company such as using more environmentally friendly methods when it comes to documents, dealing with waste properly and encouraging car shares and cycling to work, you also need to look at your current business travel policy.

A lot have companies have now restarted trips since COVID restrictions have been reduced over the past year. And there are many new ways you can now ensure your business conducts the necessary travel that is required yet stay sustainable and environmentally friendly. Therefore, with this in mind, here is how to make business travel more sustainable with tips your business can use for a sustainable future.

Consider cutting down excessive flights

You should have a look at the volume of flights your employees are currently doing and consider whether it’s possible to reduce that large amount. After all, the more flights you are doing, the larger your carbon footprint. Of course, it’s easy for the number of flights your company is conducting to pile up. A lot of companies do business travel so that they can go to other offices or visit clients in different countries. But if you can reduce excessive flights, the better it will be for your business travel to be sustainable. 

For instance, you might want to look at sending your employees only on direct flights. Of course, there are some cons to this such as the price which is often higher and will soon add up. But the benefits for environmental reasons are a pro. You will only have to send your employees on one direct flight so fewer resources are used for this. Employees are likely to prefer direct flights too as they are shorter and mean less time away from home. You could always consider looking at other routes in between flights to cut down excessive flights too.

For instance, going on a train or boat for part of the journey can help to cut your carbon footprint. 

Show your documents on your phone

A lot of people like to have their documents in front of them during business travel. After all, the employees will want to know exactly what they are doing and where they are going. But while they need access to documents such as their tickets and any booking confirmations they need for the trip, there is no need to have them in paper form. A lot of places will actually prefer if the employee does show on their phone. After all, it’s much easier for them to scan and they also understand the importance of cutting down on paper use. 

Therefore, for the future of business travel, you should ensure everything is digitally sent across to your staff member. That way, they have easy access to it when they need to show their confirmation. Also, this stops them from having to touch surfaces when they use their phones which is ideal in current times.

Hire electric vehicles

It’s possible that when your employee arrives on a business trip, they might have to hire a car for the duration of the trip. And as it’s your responsibility to arrange the transport, you need to think about being sustainable when doing so. If you can avoid hiring a car, then this is the best option for your employee. But in some cases, it will be necessary for them to have a car while away on their trip. After all, they will be able to reach the business quarters and get there at a timely rate.

But while it might be necessary to hire a vehicle for business travel, you should consider hiring an electric car instead of a petrol or diesel model. With an electric car, they can ensure they don’t use fuel and are thinking of the carbon footprint. A lot of rental car providers have a good range of vehicles that are hybrid or electric, so it’s worth checking this out when you look at hiring a car. And you can always make a plan of where they can charge up the car so they know exactly where to go to do so. This will also cost the company less as they will not have a large petrol bill to fill. 

Choose a walking distance accommodation

You can also ensure the business travel is sustainable by ensuring you pick a convenient location for the accommodation. Of course, this is highly important as it makes life much easier for the employee. If they can easily access the place of business from their accommodation, they are likely to have a stress-free business trip. After all, no long hunt for business quarters which is timely and confusing, especially in a foreign country. And they will not have to use public transport. But moreover, it’s a lot more sustainable if you pick an accommodation which will allow them to walk to the necessary business points.

They can then reduce their carbon footprint as they can just walk around to get to their necessary meeting points. You should also make sure shops and restaurants are within easy reach so they are also close by. If they can’t be within walking distance, make sure it’s a short route as possible to get to the essential locations. For example, within a 5-minute bus journey or a quick train route. You can look at hotels that are convenient while allowing you to be environmentally friendly.

Use cycling routes on the business trip

A lot of the cities around the world have a great cycling route which goes around all the major areas. Therefore, if your employee is comfortable, you could consider hiring them a bike for when they arrive at their location. A lot of hotels will arrange this and then the employee can use this during their trip. They will then be able to get around and conduct business while being sustainable. A lot of companies are encouraging the use of cycles instead of cars when it comes to getting around the workplace.

You could also hire them an electric bike or scooter which is also a sustainable way to travel around on the ground during a business trip. They are also less tiring and will ensure the employee gets around a lot quicker than a traditional bicycle.

Reduce the use of plastic 

You should also ensure that the employee uses as least plastic as possible during their business travel. You could give them a reusable water bottle and hot drink cup which has the company branding. That way, you get additional advertising while giving them a cup they can use while on the business trip. 

You should ensure the employee uses the minimum amount of plastic while on the trip. Encourage them to use reusable products even when it comes to toiletries and any food items. It’s important to ensure they avoid using disposable items which they have to throw out after a single use. Adding this to your travel policy will ensure your employee sticks to these rules and thinks about their carbon footprint on the trip.

Book hotels which are green friendly

A lot of hotels are taking steps to think about their carbon footprint and are going sustainable. For instance, they are adding eco-friendly automatic lighting and using local food sources. So when you are looking to book the accommodation for the trip, you should consider which hotel chain you go with. Check out their policies and go with an environmentally conscious provider. That way, you know you are working together with the hotel to be more sustainable.

Your employee can also be conscious during their trip to be more sustainable. For instance, they might want to keep the same towels and sheets for the duration of the stay rather than having them washed which uses vital energy. After all, if it’s only a couple of nights, it’s not a necessity.

Use the trip for multi-purposes 

If you are heading on a business trip, it’s worth planning out the trip so that you can see multiple clients in one go. After all, if you keep heading out on trips that could easily be completed in one trip, you are not being sustainable. Therefore, you need to plan your trip well so that it has several purposes with goals completed for multiple clients. That way, you can conduct less business travel while on the trip. 

Also, you could use the trip to take several staff who are going to see different clients. That way, they don’t have to make separate journeys and could potentially car share and accommodation share to be more sustainable during the trip. Therefore, plan it well so that less travel is taken as possible.