A RECENT study has revealed that a large percentage of business travelers and travel managers were concerned about traveling to a region where they might not feel safe.

According to the study by Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) and Business Traveller Magazine in association with American Express Global Business Travel, 67 percent of travelers state that there is a psychological effect on either them or their families when traveling to an unsafe region.

Meanwhile, 65 percent of travelers had varied fears, including being stranded in a security lockdown, in-flight terror accidents, and the threat of medical health risks.

A small ten percent were “utterly fearless” about terrorism, while 25 percent of respondents had “very little fear”.

Despite safety concerns, 31 percent of business travelers were worried that a reluctance to travel could hurt their career, and six percent were not comfortable revealing their concerns to upper management.

One of the study’s key findings also indicated that corporate travel managers may be missing key traveller concerns.

“These are people who balance their families and the challenges of life against meeting their corporate objectives,” said ACTE executive director Greeley Koch. “Their candid perspectives of the terror issue add a whole new dimension to this discussion.”

However, a majority of travelers feared mugging and traffic accidents while on the road more than the possibility of a terrorist attack.

The study polled 605 business travelers and 270 corporate travel executives over a two-month period.

Source: travelwireasia.com