Trip management service TripIt reckons it can make the process easier for finding alternative and cheaper ground transportation for business travellers - by partnering with door-to-door specialist Rome2Rio.
The Concur-owned mobile app and web service is currently testing an integration with Rome2Rio so that users can discover different options when trying to travel to and from an airport.
When users now fire up their TripIt mobile app (Android or iOS) to check their itinerary, they will now see other ground transportation services listed alongside their existing options such as private cars.
After users go through to the Rome2Rio site they are shown full details and prices for the journey in question, including public transportation and taxi.
Jen Moyse, head of product at TripIt, says:
"One of the things we realized while doing this was that tracking down your options for getting from the airport to your next destination was a difficult and cumbersome process, especially if you’re visiting a new city.
"We decided to see if we could make that process easier for travelers by making their ground transportation options available right from the TripIt app."
One of the benefits of showing alternative options, such as public transport, is that inevitably the cost of a service will be a significantly cheaper - something many a cost-conscious travel manager will be keen to monitor.
For example, in Tokyo, Japan, the cost of a taxi from Narita Airport to the Marriott Hotel is somewhere in the region of £170-£200, but a bus or train is around £20.
TripIt claims the initial testing as worked well, with Moyse adding:
"This makes us extremely excited that we’re on the right path and that we’re building something our users will not only use, but enjoy."
The integration will soon be extended to the desktop version of TripIt.