- Details
- Category: Industry News
The American Bus Association (ABA) recently released a statement after seeing that the motorcoach industry was once again left out of the latest Congressional COVID relief package draft, despite the vital role the industry plays in a diverse multi-modal society. Negotiations are ongoing in both houses of Congress, although a final bill isn’t expected to pass until March, and may be passed along partisan lines.
“Once again Congress has left out transportation sectors integral to multimodal America—and a sector clearly in need of help for survival,” said ABA President & CEO Peter Pantuso. “This draft goes against what President Biden has said about ensuring all American have access to affordable transportation. The motorcoach industry, and our passengers, span all socio-economic and demographic groups that define America. From rural America to the intercity, buses go everywhere and serve everyone, safely, affordably, and efficiently, while remaining one of the greenest forms of transportation. Considering the importance of social equity and addressing climate change in this day and age, it’s incredible for Congress to once again overlook the motorcoach industry.”
ABA President & CEO Peter Pantuso
The association, along with the industry, did score a win with the $2 billion CERTS Act being included in the stimulus bill that was passed in late December 2020, which saw an impressive and unprecedented push by members of the industry and other associations including the United Motorcoach Association. However, the program is weeks away from accepting applications, and the industry has endured almost a year without direct assistance beyond the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan through the SBA.
Since the COVID pandemic hit a year ago, the private motorcoach industry has been decimated. The industry went from generating $15 billion in 2019 to $2.6 billion in 2020. Nearly 80 percent of the industry’s workforce has been and continues to be furloughed.
Visit buses.org for more information.
[02.09.21]
- Details
- Category: Industry News
With PPP2 up and running, CERTS coming soon for the motorcoach industry, a national mask mandate, and a worldwide vaccination program underway, the question now turns to “when will travel come back?” Two travel-centric associations have crunched the numbers and pondered that very question.
“Travel’s Next Great Chapter” is how U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow described the coming era for the American travel and tourism industry following the challenges of the pandemic that saw the industry lose 4.5 million jobs by the end of last year—the most of any U.S. industry.
U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow
Dow delivered his remarks during the annual State of the Travel Industry address to the National Press Club in late January, where he acknowledged the hardships the pandemic has inflicted on travel—both as an industry and as a fundamental part of American life—but struck an optimistic tone about the prospects for travel’s return. Inspired by the Biden administration’s goal of “Build Back Better,” Dow laid over several key areas where travel could lead the recovery—albeit in a post-pandemic form.
“Our goal is not simply to recover what we’ve lost, but to rebuild an industry that’s even better positioned than before the crisis—one that’s more globally competitive, more innovative, and more unified,” Dow said. “Travel has spurred economic recovery before. We saw it after 9/11, following the 2008 financial crisis, after the BP oil spill, after devastating multiple natural disasters. But this is our toughest challenge yet. Some predict it will take five years to recover from the pandemic. That’s far too long.”
The Biden administration is also tackling climate change, of which could have a monumental impact on travel overall in many different sectors. As such, Dow laid out goals that include investing in infrastructure and the future of mobility, reimaging air travel, and streamlining travel and security facilitation.
The full speech can be accessed here.
On the business travel side, Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) released its annual BTI™ Outlook, a detailed analysis of business travel in 2020, with projections for 2021 and beyond. The BTI Outlook, now in its 12th year, is an exhaustive study of business travel spending and growth covering 75 countries across 48 industries.
GBTA Interim Executive Director Dave Hilfman
In a word: Patience, although travel should see some gains in the second half of 2021. According to the Outlook, the magnitude of these losses and their impact on travel suppliers is unprecedented: the 2020 business travel spending losses are expected to be 10 times larger than the impact of either 9/11 or the Great Recession of 2008. But you probably already knew that, so let’s focus on recovery.
Here’s what the BTI Outlook Found Regarding Recovery:
- A 21 percent increase in business travel spending is projected in 2021. Most of this gain is expected to come at the end of 2021 as vaccinations increase globally and consumer confidence returns.
- In 2022, the BTI Outlook forecasts further acceleration in business travel, including a significant pick-up in group meeting activity and international business travel.
- While annual business travel spending growth is expected to slow somewhat in 2023, it is projected to remain well above historical average rates of growth of 4.6 percent. By the end of 2024, annual business travel spending is projected to reach approximately $1.4 trillion, nearly equaling the 2019 pre-pandemic revenue peak of $1.43 trillion.
- A full recovery to pre-pandemic levels is expected by 2025.
“The pandemic has been devastating for business travel and it’s clear our industry will take some time to recover given the challenges we’re facing on multiple fronts,” said Dave Hilfman, interim executive director of GBTA. “Economic recovery is already underway, although very uneven across countries and sectors. The continued rollout of the vaccine will be central to recovery globally, as will decisions the new Biden administration makes regarding global trade and border and quarantine.”
Visit ustravel.org and gbta.org for more information.
[02.02.21]
- Details
- Category: Industry News
Helping to secure a victory for the Coronavirus Economic Relief for Transportation Services (CERTS) Act was a monumental milestone for the United Motorcoach Association (UMA), which it achieved this past December. The bill, which provides $2 billion in relief for the motorcoach industry, will help an industry that has been devastated by COVID shutdowns and tight travel restrictions.
UMA COO Ken Presley
But the work is far from done, according to UMA COO Ken Presley and Legislative and Regulatory Committee Chair Alan Thrasher of Thrasher Brothers Trailways, who detailed a robust plan for 2021 as the nation welcomes a new President and Democratically control House and Senate. High on the list of priorities for the Biden administration is addressing climate change, but equally important are a bevy of regulatory issues that could have a significant impact on the struggling industry in the years to come. Among the issues that the association is watching are changes in the Charter Service Rule, potential increase in insurance limits (possibly to $10 million, which could limit the number of insurers writing policies), change in “satisfactory” rating that could lead to more third-party inspections, retroactive seat belt policy, overturning of overtime exemption (a “personal mission” of New York Senator Chuck Schumer), and a step up in mandatory regulations and driver testing, to name a few.
UMA Legislative and Regulatory Committee Chair Alan Thrasher
As a result, Presley strongly encouraged operators to register (or re-register, if longer than two years) for the hard-fought Charter Service Registry, which helps to protect private companies from competing against local transit and offers opportunities for area work. It’s very important to check that the email on file is current (make sure it goes to an email that is checked regularly). The list currently stands at around 300 operators, although Presley hopes that it will increase to 2,000. You can register here.
Although CERTS money isn’t even available to operators yet (expected later this month or next month), CERTS 2.0 is also on the legislative list for UMA. Another round of economic relief is currently slogging its way through Congress, although it’s an uphill battle between the parties. The association is optimistic that a recovery will begin in earnest later this year, but additional assistance will surely be welcome in the coming months. Stay tuned.
UMA holds Town Hall meetings via Zoom every Thursday at 2 p.m. ET. You can register for the meeting here.
Visit uma.org for more information.
[02.02.21]