Regional Plan Association, the Better Airport Alliance and the NYU Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management held a morning breakfast forum on Thursday, July 22nd, 2010 on how airports in the United Kingdom have dealt with congestion issues. Chris Cain, Chair of the Forum of Regional European Airports and head of the Airport Development Team at Newquay Airport in the United Kingdom, described the challenges and strategies for addressing delays and economic losses caused by growing air congestion. Mr. Cain, also co-author of "The Future of Air Transport," a seminal white paper on planning for airport growth in the United Kingdom, discussed the London experience, drew comparisons to New York and touched on how other European airports - Frankfurt, Paris, Brussels - adapted as well. As the New York-New Jersey region continues to think about how to address the most severe congestion in the nation, lessons from other airports can help shape our own solutions.

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Starting today, runway 13R-31L at JFK International, otherwise known as the "Bay Runway" will close for four months as the 14,572-foot long stretch of pavement undergoes repairs.  The runway will be widened from 150 to 200 feet and taxiways will be added in an effort to ease traffic congestion at the airport.  Regional Plan Association is currently partnering with government, business and civic groups in studying long term solutions for reducing delays and managing passenger growth at the region's airports.  Results are expected this fall.

Congestion and delays have been mounting at New York's three major airports - Newark, LaGuardia, and JFK. According to a recent Newsday article, passengers are responding by using nearby airports, such as Long Island's MacArthur, instead. 

A recent Wall Street Journal article, "An Airline Report Card: Fewer Delays, Hassles Last Year, but Bumpy Times May Be Ahead", confirms Regional Plan Association's findings that flight delays declined in 2009 largely due to the recession, but will probably return worse than ever once the economy recovers. The article notes that Newark Airport beat LaGuardia Airport in 2009 for the spot as the "worst" airport in terms of delays.

RPA is working closely with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to develop a series of recommendations for ameliorating these delays in the New York region's airports. Join the Better Airports Alliance today to make sure your airports improve!

A recently released Brookings Institution report, "Expect Delays: An Analysis of Air Travel Trends in the United States", highlights the growing problem of air traffic delays in the U.S. Researchers indicate that the domestic hubs with the worst delays are New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Miami, Atlanta, and San Francisco. 

Regional Plan Association today released the results of a public opinion poll on airports in the New York - New Jersey - Connecticut metropolitan area.  The poll shows that, except for the cost of air travel, the public believes flight delays are the biggest problem plaguing travel, and that many solutions are heavily supported including better rail alternatives, use of Stewart Airport in Orange County for more flights, investment in modern air traffic control systems known as NEXTGEN and redesign of air traffic flight patterns.