Technical and institutional priorities for enhancing rail/aviation cooperation for the future intercity passenger transportation

Abstract

There are currently about 120 airport rail links existing or proposed to be constructed around the world. The growth in the number of airport rail links reflects the almost relentless growth in air travel and the associated worsening congestion and delays on both landside and airside of airports. Rail-Air Passenger Intermodal Development (RAPID) in the United States has lagged behind the world trend, especially in comparison with Europe and Japan. This paper consists of two tasks: to examine technical priorities for the competitiveness of rail a s a feeder to a irports, a nd to i dentify key b arriers a nd recommend changes for RAPID development in this nation. Having an effective intermodal connection has proved to be the prerequisite for the successfulness of RAPID. When such a connection is available, enhancing intermodal cooperation is likely to be more effective than operating high speed rail in terms of the competitiveness of railfor airport trips. The speed of trains only needs to be high enough to ensure door-to-door trip time advantages over highways and flights in short- to mid- distance corridors. All the necessary technical options for RAPID have been widely applied in the world for decades. Even without technical challenges, RAPID development might be expensive and complicated with with many stakeholders and interest groups directly and indirectly impacted. Lack of effective intermodal infrastructure has been the primary hurdle impeding RAPID development in this nation. Unbalanced development in this nation's intercity passenger transportation system has resulted in the inability of intercity railroads to promote RAPID and the unwillingness of air carriers to connect and cooperate with the rail system.

(cont.) These problems make RAPID unlikely to be developed by relying solely on the private sector. Mode separation in the administrative framework and modal bias in policy generate further hurdles for RAPID from the public sector in terms of public funding, information, planning and cooperation. To succesfully achieve RAPID, the federal government must play a major role in terms of provding a) sufficient federal funding specifically for RAPID infrastructures and b) incentives to enhance the willingness of state and localities to support RAPID. The federal leadership and institutional support will also be necessary to increase modal integration to facilitate RAPID research, planning and decision making.