Mobilizing the Region
Issue 141September 5, 1997


Why Fly?

The Wall Street Journal recently profiled short distance air travelers and the available train trips that could have saved them time. The article reported that many fly out of habit, largely unaware of the availability of competing rail service that is generally one-half to one-third the cost of flying. Short-haul inter-city train services suffered for years at the hands of air travel, but many now realize the time lost in the often clogged trip to the airport, coupled with substantial pre-flight check-in time, means time saved flying is often negligible.

Amtrak is now going after short distance business travelers in corridors such as Charlotte-Raleigh; Chicago-Milwaukee and San Diego-Los Angeles. Longer trips, says the article, such as Chicago to St. Louis by train, can end up taking less time than flying if weather delays the flight. The New Haven-Boston electrification and track upgrade project, which will shave travel times, has also clearly been aimed at the NY-Boston air shuttle market since its inception.

FYI: Conservative estimates suggest that without Amtrak, air passengers on the NYC/Washington, D.C. route would increase 36%.


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