Hello,
UMD requires the traveler to submit a comparison of air vs vehicle vs rental. We will pay/reimburse the lower amount. It is surprising sometimes as to which method of travel is actually the lower cost.

Thank you,

Pamela, thanks for the reply! Does UMD require this for all travel, regardless of the distance?

At CSU, 200 miles is the mark to research cheaper forms of transportation. If this is not done, mileage is reimbursed at our lower tier 2 rate.

At University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, we need a comparison at 400 miles. If it's cheaper to fly but they choose to drive anyway, we reimburse up to what the flight would have cost. A comparison has to be attached to the travel reimbursement.

Our travelers must provide a comparison of flights, rental car, and mileage (or just flights). If it's cheaper to fly, same as Arkansas, we reimburse up to what the flight would have cost. The comparisons done before the trip, must be added to their expense reports.

Thanks, all! A couple follow up questions for you:

Amanda Adams: is that 200 miles one-way, or round-trip? And what is your tier 2 mileage rate?
Kimberly Gilbert: 400 miles one-way or round-trip?
Laney Armstrong: is there a certain distance you require this for or is it for all travel?

It is round-trip. Our tier 1 is $0.655 per mile, tier 2 is $0.22 per mile.

Below is an excerpt from the travel policy on personal car usage. We approve case by case that would be for overnight business travel or long distance meeting travel, there are so many variables. We require flight comparison and rental car, when they reach out for approval. I don't get too many of these requests at Tulane, otherwise, I would likely add all this (maybe a distance requirement) to the policy.

Personal Automobile
Use of personal vehicles for business travel must be pre-approved by the Tulane
Travel Manager. In the event the Travel Manager approves use of a personal
vehicle, Tulane will reimburse the Traveler up to the IRS authorized mileage rate
for miles incurred.
The mileage reimbursement covers all costs related to the operation of the vehicle,
including service, maintenance, insurance, depreciation, and fuel. Tulane will not be
responsible for any other costs associated with business use of a personal
automobile, including but not limited to deductibles or premium increases due to an
accident. Travelers should drive the most direct route, a copy of google maps
mileage calculation is acceptable documentation for mileage reimbursement. For
additional guidance or questions regarding mileage reimbursement visit the Tulane
Accounting Concur Resources website.
a. Personal Automobile Insurance
Travelers who use their own automobiles or other individually-owned nonrented vehicles to conduct Tulane business are responsible for the automobile
liability and physical damage associated with the operation of that automobile.
The Traveler’s personal insurance is primary in the event of an accident.
Tulane’s automobile liability policy may provide some excess liability coverage
for limits above those carried by the vehicle owner who is an employee,
depending on the circumstances and applicable laws. More information can be
found on the Office of Enterprise Risk Services website.
b. Employee Commuting Versus Local Transportation Cost
Tulane will not reimburse daily commuting costs to and from work. Tulane will
reimburse local travel for business purposes that are beyond the daily commute
to work with the approval of the employee’s supervisor. Travel between uptown
and downtown campuses and between home and local airports is normally not
reimbursed, though supervisors may make exceptions to eliminate hardship
conditions. Uber/Lyft may be allowed for local business travel if the service is
for a legitimate business purpose (pre-approval documented) and the premium
service is not used. Uber and taxi services should not be used when other
options such as public transportation, Tulane shuttle service, or carpooling are
available. Every effort should be made to minimize costs. Uber and taxi service
should be the exception and not the rule.

At Stanford, we max mileage at 350 miles round trip. Over that threshold, we require a flight comparison (a flight that meets policy, of course) and we will reimburse up to the cost of that flight. In some instances we may take expected ground transportation cost into account as well (generally considered when the final destination is remote and not near a major airport.

Amanda Adams, I like the idea of giving travelers the option of completing a cost comparison or getting reimbursed at a lower mileage rate. How did CSU determine the Tier 2 rate of $0.22 per mile?

Our rates are set by the University System of Georgia and the state.

To be fair, at the University of California Berkeley campus, although we do require a comparable for what a reasonable economy flight would have cost, if their destination was near a major airport, we also understand that comparables are extraordinarily easy to manipulate. So we review/approve them on a case by case basis. In the comparison for what is allowable, if they choose to drive instead of fly, would also be what it would have cost for their transportation to and from the airport at their origination point, and their destination, since that would have been incurred had they flown. And any additional transportation costs, had they flown, for example uber rides to meetings, if applicable. We try to be as fair as we can be in these instances, particularly since the carbon emissions from driving are a fraction of what they are for flying, but if it appears that the traveler is trying to game the system by providing a comparable that is out of line for what might be reasonable, we will reject that and/or provide an alternate comparable amount that we do feel is reasonable.

For mileage vs flying, do any colleges take travel time into consideration when reviewing cost comparisons?

Here in Arkansas, we have based this idea on the state's standard rate per mile.

We multiply the cost of a one-day rental (including the state discount) and possible refueling with the rate of mileage per mile (currently set at $0.52). That set amount or less is our understood amount of mileage that won't require a comparison.