NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document
As shown in Table 2.1, London, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Chicago are just a few of the cities that
already provide one-seat rides from central business districts to international airports. Such serv
ices are often paired with direct commuter rail. Both London and Hong Kong already have
facilities for baggage check-in at the central city.
In contrast to our global counterparts, current access to the airports from Lower Manhattan is
inconvenient, time-consuming, unreliable, and often expensive. Travel to the JFK terminals from
Lower Manhattan by public transportation currently requires 70 to 80 minutes and at least one
change in mode of transportation." When the AirTrain JFK begins service, travel time via mass
transit will still average 61 to 65 minutes. On the other hand, a trip to the airport by automobile,
taxi, or bus is unpredictable and can take well over an hour, being subject to some of the most
crowded traffic conditions in the New York metropolitan region.
Within the mass transit system, air traveler amenities are poor. Most downtown subway stations
contain no escalators or elevators, and turnstiles and stairs are difficult for passengers with lug
gage to negotiate. Subways and buses are crowded throughout the day and also do not provide
luggage storage. For these and a number of other reasons, only 5.5%’ of Lower Manhattan air
passengers travel to the airport by mass transit. By comparison, 41% of passengers traveling to
London's Heathrow Airport and 59% of passengers traveling to Hong Kong International
Airport make their trip via mass transit. A major goal for Lower Manhattan should be to signif
icantly increase the number of air travelers traveling to the airports by mass transit. The most
logical way to accomplish this goal is to adopt a system that provides convenience while at the
same time allows the most number of people to access the airports.
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Lower Manhattan has the potentiai to become the airport access hub for the New York metropciitan region.
Chapter 2: Airport and Long Island Commuter Access 55
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