Aussies are planning trips – but business travel faces woe

Nearly half of the Australian population is planning at least one domestic trip to visit family and friends in the next year, according to a new survey by the University of Sydney Business School – but the founding director of the school, Professor David Hensher, fears that domestic business air travel may never recover.
The survey looked at reasons for domestic (or interstate) and international travel and found almost 54% of the sample were planning at least one domestic trip, “to treat themselves” – discretionary leisure holiday travel, in other words.
Nearly 28% of Australians are planning international trips to visit family and friends, and about 30% are planning to take international trips to treat themselves.
On the domestic front, over the coming 12 months, each Australian resident plans to take, on average, 1.03 domestic trips to visit family and friends and 0.84 trips to travel within Australia to treat themselves. On average, each Australian also plans to take 0.72 international trips to visit family or friends or treat themselves.
These are among the findings of the latest Transport Opinion Survey of over 1000 Australians, conducted in September 2021 by the University of Sydney Business School’s internationally respected Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies (ITLS).
Founding Director of ITLS, Professor David Hensher said: “It seems clear that there will be a surge in domestic and international travel once the domestic and international borders are opened again and when hotel quarantine is no longer mandated.”
Professor Hensher spoke of “an encouraging sign of a slow but positive recovery in tourism travel out of lockdown in the states most affected” but he also warned of “worrying signs for the recovery of domestic business travel”.
Speaking to ABC NewsRadio’s Mandy Presland, Hensher said it looked like domestic business travel on routes such as Sydney-Melbourne and Sydney-Brisbane, would “take a big hit and it will last for a long time”.
Hensher attributed this mainly to “the success people have had during the pandemic with digital connectivity and the realisation by both employers and employees that the need to undertake so much travel on business is not there anymore, with some exceptions”.

Hensher added: “This is a big concern for the airline industry because it means that a substantial part of their market may never recover.”
“Do you have a sense of how long it’s going to take for the tourism industry in general to recover from the pandemic?” Presland asked.
On the international front, Hensher doubted there would be much change until borders opened totally.
Travel differences between states and territories
The September 2021 survey found differences in travel intentions among Australians living in different states and territories. Residents in NSW and QLD have the highest levels of interest to undertake domestic trips for leisure and catching up with family and friends mainly by car and air.
NSW residents also had the highest interest in international travel to visit family and friends, with 30% planning a trip in the next year. Victorian residents are less interested in conducting international and domestic trips for personal purposes such as visiting family and friends, but they are identical in their intention to travel for business purposes.
About the Transport Opinion Survey
The Transport Opinion Survey is currently the only regular national survey to measure public opinion on transport-related issues.
The September 2021 survey was conducted between the 14 and 24 September 2021, with completed responses from 1105 Australians aged over 18 years. The sample is representative of Australia’s population distribution and demographic characteristics.
The Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies has been conducting the survey biannually since 2010.
Written by Peter Needham