Airport rail link
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An airport rail link is a passenger rail connection between an airport and the centre of the city it serves. Usually airport rail stations provide also connections to the other cities, thus increaseing the region served by the airport. The purpose of building an airport rail link may be to reduce congestion on roads leading to the airport, to relieve long-term car parks at the airport, to encourage greater use of public transport, or to improve the (perceived) accessibility of the city centre, making it more attractive for tourists and businesses.
Having a quick, easy train connection with the airport has been common in Europe and Japan for a long time, but it is becoming more popular in North America, with New York City, San Francisco, Portland, Oregon, and others having added rail links to their airports since 2000.
In some cases, such as Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, it is even possible to check your baggage and check in for your flight at the train station prior to arrival at the airport.
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[edit] Connection types
[edit] One-seat ride via main-line train
Regional rail-type service directly from a city centre to the airport, without needing to change trains and sometimes without intermediate stops:
[edit] Asia
- Tokyo Narita International Airport via JR East's Narita Express or Keisei Electric Railway's Skyliner
- Osaka Kansai International Airport via JR West's Haruka or Nankai Railway's Rapi:t
- Nagoya Chubu Centrair International Airport via Nagoya Railroad
- Sapporo Chitose International Airport via JR Hokkaido
- Sendai Airport via Sendai Airport Line
- Seoul Incheon and Gimpo airports via A'REX (operational between Seoul-Gimpo only, link to Seoul scheduled to open by 2010)
- Hong Kong International Airport via Airport Express
- Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion International Airport
- Kuala Lumpur International Airport via KLIA Ekspres
- Bangkok Don Muang International Airport via State Railway of Thailand
- Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport via Suvarnabhumi Airport Link (under construction)
[edit] Europe
- Amsterdam Schiphol airport
- Athens Eleftherios Venizelos Airport via the Proastiakos suburban railway service
- Berlin-Schönefeld International Airport via regional and InterCity rail.
- Birmingham International Airport via Virgin Trains.
- Cologne Bonn Airport via ICE high-speed, regional and local trains.
- Copenhagen Airport via Kystbanen and InterCity services; direct trains to many cities in Denmark and Sweden.
- Douglas, Isle of Man via Isle of Man Steam Railway
- Düsseldorf International Airport via regional and InterCity rail services.
- Frankfurt International Airport via ICE high-speed, InterCity and local trains.
- Geneva-Cointrin Airport via Swiss Federal Railways
- Glasgow, Prestwick International Airport via the Ayrshire Coast Line
- Leipzig/Halle Airport via local and InterCity trains.
- London
- Heathrow Airport via Heathrow Express
- Gatwick Airport via Gatwick Express although the one-stop service has been axed. The service will begin to serve intermediate stations due to overcrowding on the Brighton Main Line
- Stansted Airport via Stansted Express
- Manchester Airport (TransPennine Express, Northern Rail operated as per a normal train service)
- Málaga Airport via Cercanías Málaga service.
- Milan Malpensa International Airport via Malpensa Express [1]
- Moscow
- Munich International Airport via Transrapid maglev line (in construction)
- Oslo Airport, Gardermoen via the Airport Express Train
- Paris
- Paris Charles de Gaulle International Airport via TGV to many French cities.
- Pisa Galileo Galilei Airport via L.A.M. Rossa and a train connects to the central station.
- Rome Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport via Leonardo Express [2]
- Southampton Airport by South West Trains and Virgin Trains
- Stockholm Arlanda via Arlanda Express and InterCity trains
- Vienna International Airport via City Airport Train (CAT) [3]
- Trondheim Airport, Norway, via Nordlandsbanen.
- Zürich-Kloten International Airport via Swiss Federal Railways
[edit] North America
- Anchorage International Airport via Alaska Railroad
- Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California via Metrolink or Amtrak
- Manassas Regional Airport via Virginia Railway Express from Broad Run/Airport station
- Philadelphia International Airport via SEPTA Regional Rail
[edit] Oceania
- Brisbane Airport via Airtrain
- Kingsford Smith International Airport, Sydney via Airport and East Hills railway line, Sydney
[edit] One-seat ride via local public transport
Many cities also provide a link to their airports through their metro/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 Hartfield-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.
[edit] Asia
- Kuala Lumpur International Airport via the KLIA Transit
- Tokyo International Airport (Haneda) via Tokyo Monorail or Keihin Electric Express Railway
- Osaka International Airport (Itami) via Osaka Monorail
- Kobe Airport via Port Liner
- Fukuoka Airport via Fukuoka Subway
- Naha Airport via Okinawa Monorail
- Singapore Changi Airport via SMRT Corporation's East West MRT Line (cross-platform interchange at Tanah Merah MRT Station since 2004, shuttle service only)
- Seoul's Gimpo International Airport via Seoul Subway Line 5
- Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (Taipei) via TRTS (under construction, to be completed by 2012)
- Shanghai Pudong International Airport via Shanghai Maglev Train and Shanghai Metro
[edit] Europe
- Athens Eleftherios Venizelos Airport via the Athens Metro
- Barcelona International Airport via RENFE commuter train
- Berlin-Schönefeld International Airport via Berlin S-Bahn
- Copenhagen Airport via Copenhagen Metro (under construction, to open in 2007)
- Dresden Airport via Dresden S-Bahn
- Frankfurt International Airport via Rhein-Main S-Bahn.
- Istanbul Atatürk International Airport via Istanbul's Light metro
- London:
- Heathrow Airport via the London Underground's Piccadilly Line or National Rail's Heathrow Connect trains
- London City Airport via the Docklands Light Railway
- Madrid Barajas International Airport via Madrid Metro Line 8 (Madrid Metro). It used to have check-in facilities in the city center terminus of the line, but right now they are not functional due to works on the line.
- Munich International Airport via Munich S-Bahn
- Newcastle Airport via the Tyne and Wear Metro
- Paris Charles de Gaulle International Airport via RER B.
- Stuttgart via Stuttgart S-Bahn
- Turin International airport via local train.
- Vienna International Airport via Vienna S-Bahn
[edit] North America
- Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport via MARTA
- Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport via the Baltimore Light Rail
- Cleveland's Hopkins International Airport via Cleveland Rapid Transit (the first direct rail connection in the United States)
- Chicago
- Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport via the Hiawatha Line
- Portland International Airport via MAX
- San Francisco International Airport via BART Dublin/Pleasanton - SFO/Millbrae Line
- St. Louis's Lambert-St. Louis International Airport via the St. Louis Metrolink
- Vancouver International Airport in Richmond (near Vancouver) via the Canada Line (under construction; scheduled to open in late 2009)
- Washington, DC's Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia via the Washington Metro
[edit] 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 travelling between the terminals and car rental lots or parking areas.
[edit] Europe
- Paris Orly Airport via Orlyval, a peoplemover that connects to the RER network at Antony
- Birmingham International Airport via a pair of light-rail vehicles, connects the airport terminal to Birmingham International Railway Station, where the West Coast Main Line runs to Birmingham, Coventry and London.
[edit] North America
- John F. Kennedy International Airport (New York) via AirTrain JFK and either the Long Island Rail Road at Jamaica Station or the New York City Subway at Howard Beach (A) or Sutphin Boulevard/Archer Avenue (E J Z).
- Newark Liberty International Airport via AirTrain Newark and its train station, a stop for Amtrak and NJ Transit (Used by Continental Airlines as if it were a connecting airline.)
- San Francisco International Airport via AirTrain SFO. While the BART station is immediately adjacent to the International terminal and all terminals are physically connected, many people transfer to AirTrain to get to other terminals because of the airport's size.
[edit] Rail to bus to airport
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.
[edit] North America
- Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport via a shuttle bus and the BWI Rail Station, a stop for Amtrak and MARC Amtrak service.
- Boston's Logan International Airport via either:
- A free shuttle bus and the MBTA Blue Line.
- The Silver Line Bus Rapid Transit service connecting with the MBTA Red Line (a free transfer) and commuter rail at South Station.
- Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport via two shuttle buses and the Trinity Railway Express [4]
- Los Angeles International Airport via a shuttle bus and the Metro Green Line [5] or Amtrak California
- Miami International Airport via shuttle bus and Tri-Rail or Metrorail
- Milwaukee's General Mitchell International Airport via a shuttle bus and Amtrak. [6] [7]
- Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport via AirConnect shuttle bus and VIA Rail or the STM bus #204 and the Dorion-Rigaud Line of the AMT commuter rail system
- Oakland International Airport via AirBART and BART
- San Jose International Airport via a shuttle bus from the Santa Clara Caltrain station or VTA's Metro/Airport Light Rail Station.
- Toronto Pearson International Airport [8]
- Vancouver International Airport via Translink's Airport Station, which is served by buses from Richmond, Vancouver and New Westminster
- Washington Dulles International Airport via Washington Flyer and the Washington Metro
In the 1980s, New York City Transit had a service called the JFK Express (advertised as the Train To The Plane) that was quite unpopular and eventually cancelled. It was essentially a premium-fare subway ride to a bus that went to JFK Airport. Afterwards the bus continued to run, serving Howard Beach station until the opening of AirTrain JFK in 2003.
[edit] Europe
- Cardiff International Airport, Wales via Arriva Trains Wales services and a frequent shuttle bus from Cardiff International Airport Station.
- London Luton Airport via shuttle bus from Luton Airport Parkway railway station
- Moscow Sheremetyevo, minibuses from the metro station Rechnoi Vokzal
- Liverpool John Lennon Airport via regular shuttle bus services from Liverpool South Parkway
- Glasgow International Airport via shuttle bus from Paisley Gilmour Street railway station (N.B. A Glasgow Airport Rail Link is currently under construction and will open in late 2008/early 2009.)
[edit] Asia
- Kuala Lumpur International Airport via the KTM Komuter to Nilai station and transfer onto local bus to the airport. Two bus companies - Sepang Omnibus and Airport Coach - provide this link. The Low Cost Carrier terminal can be accessed by Skybus from downtown Kuala Lumpur Sentral rail interchange station.
- Hong Kong International Airport via the Tung Chung Line. Take a bus to the airport from the Tung Chung MTR station
[edit] Oceania
- Melbourne Airport via Skybus service from Southern Cross Station.
[edit] Future
More and more cities are considering "train to the plane" services.
Dublin Airport in Dublin, Ireland is one of the main destinations of the (in planning) Dublin Metro.
In Johannesburg, South Africa, the Gautrain system (under construction) will link Johannesburg International Airport to the cities of Johannesburg and to Pretoria and well as Sandton.
Denver has included such service in a massive regional rail plan that was unveiled in 2004. Plans are also in the works to connect the Washington Metro to Dulles. From time to time, New York City has proposed extending the subway N/W (Astoria) line to create a connection to LaGuardia Airport. Las Vegas has an ongoing discussion about extending the monorail into McCarran International Airport. Also in the Vegas area, the planned Ivanpah Airport is sited on the right of way for the proposed maglev demonstration project.
None of Canada's major airports currently have railway links today, however there is one currently under construction. Vancouver's TransLink is building the Canada Line, an automated rapid transit line connecting the southern suburb of Richmond with downtown Vancouver. A branch line of the new metro will terminate at Vancouver International Airport; it is scheduled to be in service prior to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
In Toronto, there are plans for a mainline train called Blue22, running from its downtown Union Station to Toronto Pearson International Airport, though this has plan is controversial. Also, in Ottawa, there have been plans to extend the O-Train to the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport, and in Montreal, there are discussions of a direct rail link between Gare Centrale and Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport.
