UK business travel continued to grow steadily in July, but not at the same rate as in June, as lockdown measures continued to be eased, according to fuel card firm Allstar.
Taking data mostly from commercial vehicle journeys, it found that 1.56 billion extra miles were driven in July, a 14.4% month-on-month increase.
This was down from the 30.2% increase seen in June, which Allstar suggests could be down to the impact of school summer holidays on some sectors.
Education was obviously an example, falling from a peak 216% growth from its lockdown low point to 159% by the end of July.
There were also single figure declines for real estate, agriculture and construction, while arts, recreation and entertainment all saw increases, as did wholesale and retail.
Paul Holland, MD of UK fuel at Allstar’s parent company Fleetcor, said: “The Bank of England predicted that the economic shock triggered by the pandemic was less than initially feared but the bounce-back may take longer and this fuel consumption data appears to illustrate this.
“The sectors impacted hardest by lockdown are showing signs of reactivation, albeit with growth continuing at a steadier rate than when restrictions first began lifting.
“It’s not surprising that the upward trajectory has been affected by the start of the school summer holidays; this is a trend we see from our business customers each year.
“And whilst it is possible that further slowing of the recovery will continue throughout August as workers take holidays delayed from earlier in the year, we are in unchartered territory and the traditional seasonal downturn may be offset by the return of furloughed employees.”
