PRESSURES MOUNT TO KEEP BUSINESS TRAVELERS GROUNDED:
"ROAD WARRIORS" FIND ALTERNATIVES

New Survey Reveals Economy and Safety Concerns
Are Affecting Business Communication

CHICAGO, March 6, 2002 - According to Meetings in America IV: The New Road Warrior, a national survey released today by MCI, the leading global business data and Internet provider, one in four business travelers has reduced air travel since the events of last September. Instead, 55 percent of these meeting goers have adopted audio, video or web conferencing as a means to conduct business; 62 percent expect to conference more in the future.

Today's business travelers are under more pressure than ever, causing them to re-evaluate the necessity of air travel. According to Verizon Business new survey, safety has become a major concern for these travelers. Thirty percent said personal safety or concerns expressed by a family member influenced their travel plans in recent months. In fact, travelers with children living at home were the most likely to have reduced trips (one in three respondents). Reduced company travel budgets brought about by the slowing economy, clearly a factor before September 11, remain the primary reason for reduced business travel, cited by 40 percent of the survey respondents. Airport security delays (as noted by 21 percent of respondents) and reduced flight schedules (21 percent) were also factors influencing travelers to fly less.

"During challenging economic times, travel budgets are the first to get trimmed," noted Tim Reedy, Verizon Business vice president of conferencing marketing and finance. "What we found significant in our study is that since last fall a large number of frequent business flyers have elected to travel less for personal safety reasons as well. We've never seen these factors co-exist before.

"Companies are turning to a variety of remote solutions to stay connected. Whether it's dialing into the Internet, connecting to a corporation's virtual private network (VPN) or using conferencing services, individuals today can use a combination of remote solutions to stay connected to their business."

"Major corporations are substituting air travel with conferencing because of a confluence of factors," said Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition, an advocacy organization that represents the interests of customers of the business travel industry. "Skyrocketing business airfares, a slowing economy and heightened security concerns have converged, encouraging businesses to rethink how they best use the variety of business communications tools currently available to them."

Travel Budgets Not Expected to Rebound with Economy
Although business travelers are optimistic about the economic resurgence, they are not as bullish on the prospects for their companies' travel budgets.

• Some 73 percent cautiously believe the economy will turn around by the end of the year.
• However, 35 percent of respondents affected by corporate travel budget cuts do not anticipate their companies' travel budgets will bounce back this year, if ever.

• Travelers with children living at home were the most likely to have reduced trips.
• About 70 percent of business travelers expect their own concerns will lessen in the next year and they will feel safe flying again.
• In contrast, 42 percent of travelers say their families expressed lingering fear, with one in five (21 percent) stating that they will never feel comfortable again about their loved ones flying.

• One-third (33 percent) of travelers who have reduced their travel in recent months have used audio, video or web conferencing as a substitute for flying.
• Two in five (42 percent) have used these tools to maintain productivity since the September events.
• Of those who are traveling less as a result of recent events, 62 percent say they will use conferencing more in the next year.