"NOW BOARDING TO L.A./Ontario INT. AIRPORT"

[rs913]

Well, L.A. (and Ontario) certainly shouldn't feel insufficient, but I wouldn't say direct airport-to-city rail links are dogs. They let travelers avoid unpredictable rush-hour traffic and are still usually more economical for solo travelers than long-haul taxi rides or driving and parking at airports. You definitely don't want something like Oakland's AirBART bus. Half an hour on average, including wait time, to go three miles (from the terminal to the BART platform). It's the worst.

It's interesting that so many European and Asian cities have direct airport-to-shuttle rail links, but from something I read recently, there are only 5 US airports (JFK, Newark, DC-National, Atlanta, SFO) with direct terminal access by rail, i.e. you can get there without setting foot in a wheeled vehicle. I think the article said most of these rail links have had more than enough ridership to justify their existences.

Edited to add - the list is actually at least 12 airports, including O'Hare, Midway, Minneapolis, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Portland. Who knew?

[Buckeye Native 001]

I took the CTA Blue Line from O'Hare to Downtown Chicago last summer. It was about a 45 minute trip, and for whatever reason, we crawled along the rails at the same pace as rush-hour traffic on the Kennedy (or whatever freeway that was)

[cookiejarvis]

solongfullerton, newark has the monorail. JFK has the airtrain light rail connection, which didn't open until 2002.

[Wright Concept]

http://www.sgvtribune.com/portlet/articl...article.jsp?articleId=4816333&siteId=205

SGV Tribune (Sister Newspaper to LA Daily News)

To Ontario and beyond

THERE's something missing from the light rail lines and the Metrolink commuter trains criss-crossing Southern California. With one exception, none go to an airport.

It's a glaring oversight most associate with the Green Line and Los Angeles International. The light-rail trolley line runs the length of the Century (105) Freeway from Norwalk to Aviation Station, stopping well short of LAX. Was it bad planning or the taxi unions that killed the airport leg? The answer doesn't matter.

What does matter is that now there is an opportunity to do right by regional riders wishing to leave their cars behind to catch a plane for another destination. A proposal has surfaced to build the Gold Line Foothill Extension clear out to L.A./Ontario International Airport, beyond the planned terminus at the Montclair Transit Center.

Already, the 23.6-mile Gold Line extension planned from east Pasadena through the foothill cities to Montclair should be a No. 1 funding priority for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Connecting commuters to job centers and students to colleges (Claremont Colleges, Azusa Pacific University, Citrus College, Pasadena City College, Mt. Sierra College) will relieve congestion on local freeways and reduce air pollution. Adding a trolley stop at an airport elevates the project to a new level by adding a destination - providing air travelers a convenient and inexpensive way to reach Ontario Airport and fly to points beyond.

"It makes a lot of sense for transportation corridors to have a main place they're going to," Ontario Mayor Paul Leon told our staff writer, Mason Stockstill. "Isn't it much better to say `I'm going to Ontario Airport' ... rather than just saying we're going to head east until the rail line ends."

Hold on to your train strap: Common sense has entered the mass transit conversation in Southern California.

Other California cities have solved this no-brainer long before Los Angeles began thinking about it. In the Bay Area, BART connects to Oakland Airport and now, after a recently completed extension, goes right into San Francisco Airport (SFO). Bay Area residents can take the train to either airport and leave their car at home without worrying about long-term parking or scheduling a return shuttle. Air travelers to SFO can ride the BART directly to their destination.

About the closest we get to car-less air travel in the San Gabriel Valley is a 20-minute Gold Line ride to Union Station followed by a FlyAway bus directly to LAX. Going to Long Beach Airport requires a car and long-term parking or an airport shuttle. And Metrolink connects with Burbank Airport but costs a lot more than riding light-rail, and trains are not as frequent.

The Ontario City Council signed onto the idea Tuesday by joining a coalition of cities working for the extension of the L.A.-to-Pasadena trolley. Going to Ontario Airport originated, as far as we can tell, with Rep. David Dreier, R-San Dimas, who began talking about an ONT stop back in September.

Might the added stop build momentum for federal funding for the $1 billion foothill extension? We don't have the answer to that one. It may make way too much sense for regional transit regulators to sign off on.

[LosAngelesBeauty]

Originally Posted by ChrisLA

Its was really no different than Islip, NY. Now tell me how many people know this airport is in the metro NYC area?

Both are far away from the city, but I think Islip maybe slightly further out from NYC and Ontario from LA. You're better off using Long Beach (which is really close) or even John Wayne for that matter. Unless you're specifically are heading to the Inland Empire, Victorville, or the San Gabriel Valley I can see using it as an alternate.

I flew into Islip, NY with Southwest and it was definitely a long, yet "fun" trip. You have to take a shuttle/taxi to the LIRR, then another hour-long ride on a really old train into Penn Station. It was interesting that while I was on the train, I heard a group of businessmen discussing real estate about LA! One of them said he worked out of the Library Tower and the other two, from Tennessee, listened attentively! haha

[solongfullerton]

Originally Posted by cookiejarvis

solongfullerton, newark has the monorail. JFK has the airtrain light rail connection, which didn't open until 2002.

I know, ive been on both. My point wasn't that these airports lacked this connection, it had more to do the fact that just because these connections are there, doesnt mean its an efficient form of transportation between the city and the airport. The coolest airport to city connection ive ever seen is the helicopter from JFK to midtown or downtown manhattan. i think that this is a little too expensive for most of us.

[SSLL]

It makes sense, similar to Manchester/Boston and Gary/Chicago