CW Government Travel Inc. of San Antonio has been awarded a contract from the Education Department to provide electronic travel services and an expense management system.

The contract, with a one-year base period through November 2006 and options to extend the agreement up to five more years, is valued at $8.2 million. CWGT is the current provider for Education’s traditional Travel Management Center services.

Traveling department employees will use CWGT’s E2 Solutions product for planning and authorization, approvals, reservations, vouchers and reporting, the contractor said last week. The vendor plans to launch its GetThere online booking engine component immediately. Education plans to increase the use of online bookings to 70 percent by January.

Among its federal customers, CWGT provides e-travel services to the Interior, Labor and State departments, and General Services Administration headquarters.

Education, NASA and the Social Security Administration missed a December 2004 deadline, required by the Federal Travel Regulation, to award their e-travel contracts. Since then, NASA awarded its contract to EDS Corp. in April. Social Security has yet to award its e-travel contract. E-travel systems were to be implemented by Sept. 30.

CWGT is one of only three travel providers GSA chose for e-travel services, one of the President's Management Agenda e-government initiatives. Federal agencies are expected to have implemented e-travel by September 2006.

Mary Mosquera is a staff writer for Washington Technology’s sister publication, Government Computer News.