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S U R F A C E T R A
N S P O R T A T I O N P
O L I C Y P R O J E C T
1001
Marquette Ave. NW
Albuquerque, NM 87102
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 18, 2002
CONTACT:
DeAnza Valencia with the Surface Transportation Policy Project
Albuquerque, NM (505) 243-8666 Office
Full
Report Available at: http://www.reconnectingamerica.org
NEW
REPORT DOCUMENTS DECLINE IN AIR SERVICE SINCE 9/11
SANTA
FE AND HOBBS AIRPORTS RANK AT THE TOP OF AIRPORTS WHERE AIR TRAVEL
SERVICE HAS BEEN CUT
ALBUQUERQUE
-- Air travel service
nationwide has declined since 9/11 with many airports experiencing
a decrease in the double digits, according to a new report. The
impact has been most severe on America’s small and medium
airports. In New
Mexico, the Santa Fe and Hobbs (Lea County) Airports have lost
more than half of their flights over the past year. Twenty-one
airports, including New Mexico’s Ruidoso Airport, have ended all
scheduled service.
The
report concludes that 9/11 exposed the fault lines in an already
faltering industry and that air travel will be unable to play its
traditional role in the national transportation portfolio.
The report calls
for integrating air, rail and bus to provide travelers with
more choices.
“The
reduction in flights means travelers are being forced to take
connecting flights instead of direct routes and have fewer flights
to choose from when booking their trips,” said Hank Dittmar, of
Las Vegas, NM and co-director of Reconnecting America, the
organization releasing the report. “These service cuts represent
a fundamental restructuring of the air travel network, not a
temporary adjustment.”
The
report analyzes the loss in scheduled flights at over 500 airports
across the United States. The
report is an analysis of nearly 400,000 flights described in
the Official Airline Guide in examining comparable weeks during
the fall of 2001 and 2002.
Some
of the most dramatic reductions in flight schedules have been seen
at non-hub commercial airports.
These airports are typically served by a few flights each
day to one or two destinations.
Santa Fe had the fourth highest reduction in the nation at
62% and the Hobbs (Lea County) Airport tied for the 6th highest
rate with a 61% reduction in flights.
The average cut in flight frequency for non-hub commercial
service was 7.7%.
Farmington,
Carlsbad, Roswell and Taos Airports all saw substantial flight
losses above the national average.
The Albuquerque Airport, New Mexico’s largest airport,
saw an 8.92% reduction in service.
The Ruidoso Airport has lost all of its scheduled air
service.
The
reduction in air service reflects the financial reality of the
nation’s big airlines. Pressure from low cost carriers has forced fares down even as
airport charges and security costs are rising, making short and
medium distance flights unprofitable.
The report identifies a way out of this dilemma, noting
that there are several markets where bus and rail provide an
alternative.
Even
the airline trade group, the Air Transport Association (ATA),
recognizes that this trend has reduced access to smaller and
medium communities. In November 2002 ATA’s President Carol
Hallet warned, “As
the industry continues to contract, smaller and mid-size
communities will be disconnected from the national air
transportation system – a system vital to their economic
health.”
Reconnecting
America is calling for
changes in government policy that would permit a closer
integration of air with rail and bus and thereby creating a more
financially stable transportation network, which will enable each
transportation mode to serve the markets it’s best suited for.
The campaign is calling for an overhaul of the nation’s
transportation system when Congress reauthorizes funding for air,
rail and highways next year.
"Investing
in a more diversified and integrated national transportation
system is far better than the next most likely action by Congress:
providing the major airlines and Amtrak with another bailout,
which merely allows them to continue with the failed business
models of the last century," added Dittmar.
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The
report, "Missed Connections: Finding Solutions to the
Crisis in Air Travel," and detailed appendices with
information on 500 airports can be accessed online at www.reconnectingamerica.org.
This is the first in a series of reports from the Reconnecting
America project, which examines the current crisis in intercity
travel in the U.S. and offers recommendations for a more
economically stable and integrated system of travel. Reconnecting
America seeks to redefine national policies for intercity travel
in order to integrate our separately functioning aviation,
passenger rail and intercity bus systems into a more convenient,
secure, financially viable and sustainable network.
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