GSA Awards E-Travel Contract: E-Gov Initiative Saves Millions

GSA #10056

November 10, 2003
Contact: GSA Public Affairs (202) 501-1231

Washington, D.C. - The U.S. General Services Administration today awarded its E-Travel contract to CW Government Travel Inc. (CWGT) of San Antonio, Electronic Data Systems Corp. (EDS) of Fairfax, Va and Northrop Grumman Mission Systems (NGMS) of Fairfax, Va.

All three companies were awarded the 10-year; $450 million contract to provide Web-based, travel management services for the federal government.

E-Travel will be available to civilian agencies in the first quarter of the 2004 calendar year. It will deliver an easy-to-use, integrated travel service tool to the desktops of government customers. The service, one of President Bush’s E-Government Initiatives, will simplify federal travel management, and at the same time save taxpayers up to 50 percent in federal travel management costs over 10 years.

GSA successfully resolved the EDS complaint to the General Accounting Office that its proposal needed a full hearing by inviting EDS, along with CWGS and NGMS--the three were finalists in the bid process--to re-demonstrate their E-Travel solutions. GSA conducted its review and determined that all three are consistent with the E-Travel solicitation requirements.

The Office of Management and Budget has helped implement President Bush’s E-Gov vision, harnessing the Internet to achieve new government efficiencies and, ultimately, saving taxpayer dollars. E-Travel contracts embrace best commercial practices to use the Internet effectively and also empower the federal traveler--all at a substantially lower cost to the taxpayer.

E-Travel will be hosted commercially to minimize federal technology costs and guarantee real-time information. From travel planning and authorization to reimbursement, E-Travel leverages best practices in areas such as administration, finance and information technology to realize significant cost savings and improved employee productivity.

Independent verification and validation testing of the vendors’ solutions will begin immediately. In addition, selected agencies soon will launch E-Travel to demonstrate initial operational capability. All civilian agencies are expected to complete migration to E-Travel by Sept. 30, 2006, the end of the fiscal year. The E-Travel contract accommodates existing travel agencies and FedTripÔ, the existing federal online booking service.

GSA is a centralized federal procurement, property management and policy agency created by Congress to improve government efficiency and help federal agencies better serve the public. It acquires, on behalf of federal agencies, office space, equipment, telecommunications, information technology, supplies and services. It also plays a key role in developing and implementing governmentwide policies. GSA, comprised of 13,000 associates, provides services and solutions for the office operations of over one million federal workers located in more than 8,000 government-owned and leased buildings in 2,000 U.S. communities.