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"Airport Express Train" redirects here. For other uses, see Airport Express Train (disambiguation).
A Narita Express Train to Tokyo's Narita International Airport

An airport rail link is a service providing passenger rail transport from an airport to a nearby city; by mainline- or commuter trains, rapid transit, people mover or light rail. Direct links operate straight to the airport terminal, while other systems require an intermediate use of people mover or shuttle bus.

Although airport rail links have been popular solutions in Europe and Japan for decades, only recently have links been constructed in North America and Oceania, and the rest of Asia. Advantages for the rider include faster travel time and easy interconnection with other public transport, while authorities have benefited from less highway and parking congestion, less pollution, and additional business opportunities. Additionally, the links benefit airports by drawing in more passengers via easy access.

Contents

Mass transit

For airports built within or close to the city limits, extending mass transit systems like rapid transit or light rail to airport terminals allows full integration with other public transport in the city, and seamless transport to all parts of town. Service frequency will be high, although travel time is a drawback as the services make many intermediate stops before reaching the city center. A common solution involves building a separate people mover from a mass transit station to the airport terminal, often using automated systems, allowing faster travel time and fare discrimination, for instance Orlyval.

Mainline rail

Frankfurt (Main) Flughafen Fernbahnhof

Dedicated railway lines to airports have become popular since the 1980s, with airport terminals for airport express, intercity and commuter trains, allowing direct travel to the check-in halls. This solution requires the building of new track; a cheaper option is to open a new station on an existing line, connected to the airport by people mover or shuttle bus.

Integration with intercity services has produced alliances where airlines sell the connecting rail service. Central Europe has seen integration of high-speed rail into airports, with domestic and international TGV and ICE services from Charles de Gaulle International Airport and Frankfurt Airport. Because of this, many airport stations have received IATA codes.

Other airports instead use a high-speed airport express train to the city centre, especially if the airport is outside the urban area and some way from the mass transit system, but a direct downtown service is required, such as Flytoget serving Oslo Airport, Gardermoen. Other airports, such as London Heathrow Airport, are served by both express trains and mass transit.

These solutions often have the drawback of lower frequencies (e.g. twice per hour).

Shuttle

Where there is no train station at the airport, a shuttle system is required for the last part of the journey; using either a people mover (often automated, such as AirTrain JFK in New York City) or a bus. The former allows low operating costs[citation needed] and higher perceived quality; the latter does not require specialized infrastructure to be built, and is often the preferred choice at smaller or low-cost airports. Shuttles do not provide a direct connection, and often involve a wait for a transfer to the next stage of the journey. Thus their market shares are often lower.

In some airports, the rail link only serves one terminal or concourse directly; passengers using other terminals must use an airport circulator. Circulators typically also serve parking lots, and sometimes airport hotels and off-site car rental locations.

Connection types

One-seat ride via main-line train

Commuter rail-type service directly from a city centre to the airport, without needing to change trains and sometimes without intermediate stops;

Africa

Asia

Airport Express train, Hong Kong

Taiwan Taoyuan International airport express from Taipei Main Station under construction from 2006–2013. Part of Taoyuan Mass Rapid Transit System.

Europe

London's Heathrow Express runs non-stop from Paddington Station to Heathrow Airport.
A BM71 Airport Express train of Flytoget at Oslo Central Station.

North America

Oceania

One-seat ride via local public transport

Many cities also provide a link to their airports through their rapid transit or light rail systems, which, unlike express trains, often make numerous stops on the way to the airport. At some airports, such as O'Hare in Chicago or Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, the rapid transit train only visits one terminal or concourse; passengers must transfer to an airport circulator to reach other terminals or concourses.

Asia

KMRT's Kaohsiung International Airport Station

Europe

Copenhagen Metro has unmanned trains.

North America

A Baltimore Light Rail vehicle at BWI's international terminal.

Rail to airport people mover

A hybrid solution adopted in some cities is a direct rail connection to an airport train station instead of to the airport itself. At the airport train station, the passenger switches to a people mover or other train that goes to the airport terminals. The same system can also serve passengers moving between different terminals and traveling between the terminals and car rental lots or parking areas. Several very large airports have rail stations near some terminals, but people movers are used by many to get to some other terminals. Examples: Paris-de Gaulle and San Francisco.

Europe

North America

Rail to bus to airport

See also: Airport bus

Another common arrangement requires the passenger to take a train (or metro) to a railway station (usually) near the airport and then switch to a bus that goes to the airport terminals. Most medium and large size airports have bus connections from the inner city. This list only contains connections by bus from a railway station strongly associated, by branding or by name, with the airport.

Asia

Europe

North America

Passengers board an AirBART bus at Oakland Airport.

John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City formerly had a shuttle bus to the Howard Beach – JFK Airport station (A and JFK Express trains). The JFK Express trains were canceled in April 1990. The shuttle bus was replaced by AirTrain JFK in 2003.

South America

Oceania

Future

Other cities are considering airport rail link services.

See also

External links

References

  1. ^ http://www.ferrovienord.it/webmxp/
  2. ^ [1][dead link]
  3. ^ "connecting airline". Continental.com. http://www.continental.com/company/alliance/amtrak.asp. Retrieved 11 November 2011. 
  4. ^ "(TRE) Travel to DFW Airport". Trinity Railway Express. http://www.trinityrailwayexpress.org/dfw.html. Retrieved 11 November 2011. 
  5. ^ "LA Metro Home". Mta.net. 22 April 2010. http://www.mta.net/riding_metro/riders_guide/airport.htm. Retrieved 11 November 2011. 
  6. ^ Amtrak California[dead link]
  7. ^ http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Amtrak/am2Route/Vertical_Route_Page&c=am2Route&cid=1081256321481&ssid=133
  8. ^ "Mitchell Airport Railroad Station – Wisconsin Department of Transportation". Dot.wisconsin.gov. 30 September 2010. http://www.dot.wisconsin.gov/travel/rail/mars.htm. Retrieved 11 November 2011. 
  9. ^ "Coalition Government to start planning Avalon rail link". Minister for Public Transport, Victoria. http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/media-centre/media-releases/836-coalition-government-to-start-planning-avalon-rail-link.html. Retrieved 26 November 2011. 
  10. ^ "Transportation Industry: Egyptian National Railways – Egypt". International Railway Journal (Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation). October 2001. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQQ/is_10_41/ai_80898150. Retrieved 13 August 2009. 
  11. ^ Railway Gazette International July 2008 403.
  12. ^ Serbian: http://www.aviokarta.net/vesti/603-poboljsanje-prevoza-do-aerodroma-od-juna/
  13. ^ Serbian: http://www.gsp.rs/linija.asp?id=72
  14. ^ http://www.beoland.com/zemljiste/karte/03_plan_saobracaj.jpg

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