CWT Adds Point-of-Booking Carbon Indicators

CWT has partnered with Thrust Carbon to add carbon footprint indicators at the point of sale in its myCWT web and mobile booking tools.

With the data integrated, travelers can see estimates of carbon emissions for flight and hotel choices and compare them with the typical carbon footprint for air routes, according to screenshots provided by CWT. Car and rail carbon footprint data will be available in the tool at a later date, according to a CWT spokesperson. The data is free to all CWT customers globally.

A CWT customer survey late last year showed that 87 percent wanted point-of-booking carbon footprint information to help travelers in booking decisions, CWT VP of product management Erik Magnuson said.

“If the traveler cannot see their emissions at point of sale, then it simply will not be a factor in their decision making,” according to Thrust Carbon founder and director Mark Corbett. “We are rapidly moving to a world where emissions data will be valued side by side with financial data.”

The indicators are part of the $100 million investment CWT has announced for its platform following its recapitalization last year. The TMC highlighted sustainability as one of the key priorities for that investment, and CWT also is working on new dashboards and reporting tools as part of it, according to CWT.

CWT is the first major TMC to provide Thrust Carbon emissions data at the point of sale, according to the TMC. Thrust Carbon has several partnerships across the industry, including with Rocketrip, Troop and U.K.-based travel management network Advantage Travel Partnership, and earlier this month it announced an integration with Concur Travel & Expense in which customers can generate reports on emissions for travel managers and senior leaders.

Michael B. Baker  www.businesstravelnews.com