There are different ways of looking at the Travel Smart Ranking 2025 unveiled at the beginning of April by Transport & Environment. And in these turbulent times, it's probably best first to take a look at the good news emanating from the data compiled in this fourth edition. Especially as the previous T&E reports have not always given cause for optimism... Europe's leading clean transport campaign group has focused on the 2019-2023 periodThe main finding is that emissions caused by business travel by the world's largest companies have fallen significantly. In 2023, emissions linked to business travel by 239 multinationals were 34% lower than in 2019. This trend is based in particular on a reduction in the use of air travel compared with pre-covid levels. Denise Auclair, Head of Travel Smart, can attest to this: " The shift to meaningful travel and fewer flights is clear. Many companies are doing this successfully, while remaining competitive. ".
Publicis, Crédit Agricole and Europe among the top performers
To continue in this positive vein, we would like to highlight the efforts made by the good performers in this Travel Smart Ranking 2025. Starting with the French players studied by Transport & Environment. Two companies stand out by obtaining the highest grade of A - the grading systems range from A to D - namely Publicis and Crédit Agricole. The two groups have respectively reduced their emissions by 23% and 44% between 2019 and 2023. Contacted by the editorial team, Crédit Agricole said it had launched a carbon monitoring with the introduction in certain entities of carbon budgets allocated by department. The Group has also roll out a booking tool in mid-2023 to raise employees' awareness of the emissions generated by their journeys as soon as they make a booking. This should help Crédit Agricole to achieve its objectives: the Group has undertaken to reduce part of its scope 3, i.e. emissions linked to business travel, by 50 % by 2030 compared with 2019.
Other top performers in this year's graduating class include France in the Travel Smart Ranking include Capgemini (-45%), AXA (-34%) and Dassault Systemes (-60%), all with a B grade.hegemony of top-rated European players. Of the 21 groups rated A by Transport & Environment, only 5 are not from the Old Continent, including three American and two Indian companies. The Switzerland once again stands out among the top performers, with Swiss Re and Zurich Insurance Group taking the top two places in the ranking. The two groups have reduced their emissions by 67% and 66% between 2019 and 2023.
The results achieved by these top performers in the 2025 ranking could be cause for optimism, if they were not spoiled by other major players in the global economy. Jérôme du Boucher, Head of Aviation for T&E France, comments: " Many companies are managing to reconcile competitiveness with a reduction in air travel. However, some companies are jeopardising all the progress they have made. It is time for the major polluters who do not have specific targets for reducing their emissions to follow the example of others. Reducing emissions from business travel is one of the quickest and simplest ways for large companies to achieve part of their sustainable development objectives. ".
Transport & Environnement singled out two French companies in particular: LVMH, whose business travel-related emissions rose by 63% between 2019 and 2023, and equipment manufacturer Valeo (+71%). Overall, the "Top Fliers" club identified by this ranking includes 25 companies that stand out for their exceptional volumes of air travel. They include big names in travel (Boeing), tech (Apple, Meta, Alphabet, IBM, Microsoft), consulting (KPMG, Accenture) and entertainment (Netflix, Walt Disney). However, as T&E previously pointed out, " A small group of well-known companies have a larger share of emissions than the rest of the companies in the ranking. If the 25 largest companies in our ranking set targets of -50 % for their business travel emissions by 2025, this would result in a reduction of 31 % for all companies." .
However, not all of them are showing rising emissions. Many of them have even reduced their emissions significantly since 2019, such as Accenture (-72%), SAP (-78%) and Microsoft (-66%). But above all, Transport & Environnement's aim in this report is to highlight the need to set reduction targets, as Denise Auclair points out: " Specific targets are essential for corporate climate responsibility in order to effectively reduce their business travel emissions. Leading companies have shown that combining specific targets with a toolbox of flight reduction strategies works and makes good business sense. It is high time that the laggards joined this transformation towards a future where air travel no longer compromises the health of our planet and its inhabitants. "warns the head of Travel Smart.
