Green Light for Greener Travel as EU Parliament Endorses Emissions Regulation: Global Business Travel Association

Friday, April 12, 2024

Global Business Travel Association: EU Parliament backs CountEmissionsEU, setting a unified framework for measuring transport emissions to guide eco-friendly business travel.

The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) has expressed approval following the European Parliament’s endorsement of a report on the proposed CountEmissionsEU regulation, which aims to introduce a unified and precise framework for measuring transport emissions. This regulation is vital for empowering business travelers to evaluate and choose travel options based on their carbon footprint, across various service providers and transport modes.

The importance of a standardized, global system for quantifying greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from travel is highlighted by GBTA’s research, “The State of Climate Action in Business Travel – Global Industry Barometer 2023.” According to this report, 64% of corporate travel managers monitored emissions from their travel programs in 2023, up from 55% in 2022, with an additional 15% planning to start. These managers face challenges in tracking and reporting emissions due to the diversity of existing calculation methods, often resorting to multiple methodologies, which complicates obtaining a comprehensive overview of travel emissions. The proposed regulation seeks to simplify this by offering a single, standardized method for the industry.

GBTA is pleased that the European Parliament has requested that the ISO standard for emissions calculation selected by the Commission be provided either free of charge or at a minimal cost, to facilitate adoption by operators.

Furthermore, GBTA supports the Parliament’s move to mandate data intermediaries, offering multimodal travel options, to furnish consumers with detailed GHG emissions data based on primary information shared by operators. This transparency will assist business travelers in choosing the most eco-friendly travel options, particularly those involving multiple modes of transport. However, to expand these multimodal options, quick action from the Commission is necessary to introduce regulations on Multimodal Digital Mobility Services (MDMS).

Suzanne Neufang, CEO of GBTA, expressed enthusiasm about working with EU policymakers to boost the effectiveness of this initiative, which she hopes will pave the way for a worldwide standard in transport emissions accounting.

Additionally, GBTA recently unveiled its report outlining key priorities for the business travel industry in the upcoming 2024-2029 EU legislative cycle, titled “Shaping the Future of Europe Via Business Travel.” As Europe enters this new legislative period, GBTA underscores these priorities as crucial for maintaining the sector’s role in boosting the region’s competitive edge and fostering a sustainable transition.

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