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E L L I O T T' S TRAVEL NOTES
Travel news, opinion and analysis

March 31, 2004

Travel Agents: Down, Not Out
With nearly one-third of the U.S. adult population now using the Internet for trip planning, travel agencies may have to go the extra mile to attract bookings. As traditional agencies have grappled with competition by Internet giants such as Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz, there has been industry consolidation, while some agencies have cut locations and employee head counts. "Our business is not what it used to be," said Judy Bader, owner of B & J Travel, Inc. in Lodi, which had gross sales of $2 million in 2003, down 26 percent from sales of $2.7 million just two years before. In 2003, more than 64 million travelers used the Internet to get information on destinations or to check prices or schedules, according to a study by the Travel Industry Association of America, which represents all sectors of the U.S. travel industry. Of those, 42.2 million booked reservations online -- up 8 percent from 2002 -- spending an average of $2,600, compared to $2,300 in 2002. Stockton Record | Posted 6 a.m.
<-- Daily Star: Emphasize service in order to survive

• I remember the days before commission caps. Travel agents worked for the industry, not the traveler, and people generally got what they paid for. Change is good. Send us your comments.

Man Sues US Airways After Fall
A West Virginia man is suing an airline company, alleging it didn't notify him that drinking alcohol at night might adversely affect passengers before he fell down an escalator at Southwest Florida International Airport. Floyd W. Shuler, 61, filed the lawsuit against Virginia-based US Airways Inc. in circuit court in Fort Myers. Shuler, who has lived part-time on Marco Island, said in the suit that US Airways was negligent by failing to warn him the effects of alcohol are greater at night on airline passengers, and that the company did not properly maintain the escalator at the airport when he fell down while using it on Aug. 28, 1999. "US Airways failed to warn (Shuler) and its other passengers of the increased effect that consumption of alcoholic beverages has on airline passengers who consume alcoholic beverages while in flight and while flying at night," according to the lawsuit, which was obtained Tuesday. Naples Daily News | Posted 6:20 a.m.
<-- IC: 'Drunk' golf party may sue airline

EU Will Collect Passenger Data
European Union ministers agreed to give police access to some airline passenger data to fight terrorism, overcoming concerns about privacy that have plagued a similar agreement with the United States, officials said in Brussels. Ministers also rejected moves by France, Sweden and some other EU governments to require the information be wiped from computer records after just 24 hours, a proposal also intended to protect civil liberties. Britain’s Home Office Minister Caroline Flint had threatened a veto at today’s lengthy session, calling the proposed restrictions incompatible with British law. “We must intelligently use our intelligence,” she said in a statement. “It is right we make the most of information collected at our borders by making it available to immigration authorities and law enforcement agencies across the EU.” Scotsman | Posted 6:30 a.m.

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• And finally ... if you spend any amount of time lurking on rec.travel.air, you've probably seen the odd postings that have nothing to do with travel. Why do we see subject lines about vibrators, sexual preferences and religion? If you figure out what that has to do with travel, please let me know. Posted 6:40 a.m. | Send us your comments.

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