Regional Airports

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Regional Airports

WITPRESS WIT Press publishes leading books in Science and Technology. Visit our website for the current list of titles. www.witpress.com

WITeLibrary Home of the Transactions of the Wessex Institute, the WIT electronic-library provides the international scientific community with immediate and permanent access to individual papers presented at WIT conferences. Visit the WIT eLibrary at http://library.witpress.com

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Regional Airports Editors: M. Nadia Postorino University of Reggio Clabria, Italy

M. Nadia Postorino University of Reggio Clabria, Italy

Published by WIT Press Ashurst Lodge, Ashurst, Southampton, SO40 7AA, UK Tel: 44 (0) 238 029 3223; Fax: 44 (0) 238 029 2853 E-Mail: [email protected] http://www.witpress.com For USA, Canada and Mexico WIT Press 25 Bridge Street, Billerica, MA 01821, USA Tel: 978 667 5841; Fax: 978 667 7582 E-Mail: [email protected] http://www.witpress.com British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A Catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 978-1-84564-570-0 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2011922776 The texts of the papers in this volume were set individually by the authors or under their supervision. No responsibility is assumed by the Publisher, the Editors and Authors for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions or ideas contained in the material herein. The Publisher does not necessarily endorse the ideas held, or views expressed by the Editors or Authors of the material contained in its publications. © WIT Press 2011. Printed in Great Britain by Quay Digital, Bristol The material contained herein is reprinted from a special editions of Sustainable Development and Planning, Vol.5, No.2, published by WIT Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the Publisher.

CONTENTS Preface ............................................................................................................................................. vii Editorial ............................................................................................................................................. 1 Exploring multi-criteria decision analysis method as a tool to choose regional airport hubs within Africa B. SSAMULA ................................................................................................................................... 3 Airport–airline relationships: opportunities for Italian regional airports S. CEPOLINA & G. PROFUMO .................................................................................................... 19 Potential demand for new high speed rail services in high dense air transport corridors C. ROMÁN & J.C. MARTÍN .......................................................................................................... 35 Regional airports and the accessibility of mountain areas: networks, importance and contribution to development X. BERNIER ................................................................................................................................... 51 Analysis of the regional air passenger transport system in Brazil: some aspects of its evolution and diagnosis S.C. RIBEIRO, C.C.L. FRAGA & M.P.S. SANTOS ...................................................................... 63 Regional airports’ environmental management key messages from the evaluation of ten European airports D.J. DIMITRIOU & A.J. VOSKAKI .............................................................................................. 73 Sustainable logistics platform in a regional Brazilian airport O.F. LIMA Jr, E.W. RUTKOWSKI, C.C. de CARVALHO & J.C.F. LIMA .................................. 87 Regional airport: study on economic and social profitability S. AMOROSO & L. CARUSO ....................................................................................................... 99 Assessment of air pollution from Tehran-Mehrabad airport, Iran G. BADALIANS GHOLIKANDI, M. LASHKARI, H.R. ORUMIEH, H.R. TASHAOUIE & S. HADDADI ............................................................................................................................ 109 Environmental effects of airport nodes: a methodological approach M.N. POSTORINO ....................................................................................................................... 117 Architectural design standards for Muslims prayer facilities in airports A. MOKHTAR .............................................................................................................................. 131

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PREFACE Regional Airports have become increasingly important elements of the air network system, both as feeders of hub-and-spoke services and as origins or destination of point-to-point services. Congestion at the main hubs and increasing demand for air transportation - both for passengers and freight services – necessitates revaluation of the overall air systems, with regional airports taking an ever expanding role. Optimisation of air transportation systems within the framework of other forms of transport plays an important part in the present quest for sustainability. Congestion nowadays is not only associated with countries such as the USA and those in the EU, but also a variety of other countries with fast developing economies where there is a strong increase in air transportation demand. The revolution of the existing airport system, including regional airports requires the developing of new optimisation tools which can simulate the whole process and produce optimal solutions. These models are also essential to predict future demands and, in particular the role that regional airports will play. The siting of new airports involves taking into consideration a variety of environmental, ecological, social and economic factors which transcend the problem of transportation resources optimisation itself. Regional Airports can be a powerful driving force behind the development of an area and conversely can result in major problems if they are wrongly sited.

Carlos A. Brebbia Director Wessex Institute of Technology The New Forest, 2011

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1

EDITORIAL The papers selected for this book are extended versions of those presented at an International Seminar on Regional Airports organized by the Wessex Institute of Technology (UK) and the University of Reggio Calabria (Italy). The idea of convening a meeting on Regional Airports was prompted by the need to review the specific policies set up to promote their development in different countries. What is the role of regional airports in the current air transport framework? The answer is not simple and requires looking at the extraordinary growth of air transport all over the world during the past few decades. Air t ransport is faster than other transport modes, capable of transporting passengers and goods to the most remote countries. It can also be an engine to promote the economic development of a region. Airline deregulation started first in the USA, followed by the EU and afterwards in other countries, has further facilitated the growth of air traffic. Air transport has become accessible to more people thanks to increased frequencies and lower fares partly resulting from competition among airlines. The next step, ie airport deregulation, is expected to produce still more benefits to all the main stakeholders, ie airlines, passengers and airports themselves. This remarkable growth has also had some negative effects over the years such as high congestion levels both at attractive airports and along routes that, in turn, mean poor air service performances; increased environmental impacts (noise and atmospheric pollution), mainly due to the larger numberof flights rather than to the technological characteristics of aircraft which have become much more efficient in terms of fuel consumption and pollutant emissions. Those environmental impacts contribute at world level to the overall greenhouse effect while at the local level they can reduce the quality of life for communities located in the airport neighborhood. Regional airports have an important role to play in the air network and can contribute to finding sustainable transport systems. They help, for instance, to spread air traffic thus avoiding high congestion levels along a small number of routes or at hub nodes. Past experiences can help the development of better regional airports by taking into account apriori the effects of air traffic on the environment and on the surrounding communities. Recent EU rules, for instance, place important constraints in terms of acoustic pollution at an airport. The EU also encourages studies to estimate the airport carbon footprint at local scale. This publication collects papers dealing with regional airport topics such as environmental impacts and their evaluation, airport economics and location, airport network configuration, travelerair choices and regulatory tendencies, but also social and cultural aspects not always discussed in the literature. Regional airports can improve the air transport system and if properly sited can be a powerful engine for the development of an area. M Nadia PostorinoUniversity of Reggio Calabria, Italy

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Regional Airports

EXPLORING MULTI-CRITERIA DECISION ANALYSIS METHOD AS A TOOL TO CHOOSE REGIONAL AIRPORT HUBS WITHIN AFRICA B. SSAMULA Built Environment, CSIR, South Africa.

ABSTRACT The aviation industry in the African region, in order to compete with the global market, is exploring and actively pursing expansion either through strategic alliances or by adopting the hub and spoke (H&S) network development. Hubbing has the major beneﬁts of consolidating passengers, thus increasing frequency of travel while increasing accessibility and improving the economies of scale to operate the service. The African region is vast and is characterised by sparse passenger demand; therefore, the decisions made in locating airports as hubs pose a challenge. This paper aims to explore the use of the multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) tools as a method of choosing hub airports. The reason why the MCDA tools are most appropriate is because choosing a hub airport is a complex decision which has to take into account various issues like: network costs, infrastructure costs, security, economic viability, safety, passenger travel time expenditure, etc. The various tools, processes and methodologies used in decision making theory are explored and applied in order to choose hub airports with the lowest transport costs in an efﬁcient H&S network. The major ﬁndings in this study show that because Africa has a sparse network, with a few role players, the choice in hub location options relies greatly on the cost of routing passengers through the hub airport. MCDA is shown to be a useful tool whose only limitation is maintaining the uniformity of weighting the criteria for the whole region. Keywords: Africa aviation, airports, decision analysis, hub location, network design.

1 AFRICA AS A SPARSE REGION Africa is a large continent of 30 million km2, with dimensions three times the size of Europe and distances from the south to the north of about 8,000 km. Although the population of the continent is over 860 million, the average population density of Africa is 28 inhabitants per km2, which falls below the world’s average population density of 44 persons per km2, thus deﬁning the continent as a sparsely populated region. In 2002, Africa’s population comprised 13% of the world’s total, with Africa’s air passenger trafﬁc contributing only 4.1% to the world’s total air passenger trafﬁc, making it the smallest region for air services worldwide [1]. The passenger data used in this study show that the annual number of air trips per inhabitant in Africa is equal to only 0.14. The low demand for air travel within the region is due to the fact that it is an expensive unaffordable means of travel. Furthermore, the load factor, which is the ratio of the revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) to the available seat kilometres (ASK), is one of the critical determinants of proﬁtability in relation to the breakeven load factor. Fig. 1 shows that the African region has the lowest load factor at 62.56%, compared with other regions of the world. The Far East and Paciﬁc regions have relatively high load factors, averaging 76.32%. The low load factors are a reﬂection of the scanty routes in the African region. The routes are scanty because of the much higher air fares compared with those in other regions of the world and because of a relatively poor population, hence the sparse travel demand on the continent. Even though Africa shows great potential with initiatives like the open skies initiative adopted in the Yamoussoukro Decision, under the auspices of the African Union and New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the challenge will be to make air travel affordable and accessible, so as to improve trade and tourism through the economic impact of air transport on countries.

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1.1 Hub and spoke network design Button et al. [2] state that in order to minimise costs and keep airfares down, airlines need to keep aircraft in the air for the longest possible time to achieve the highest possible load factor, and to coordinate their aircraft, crew and maintenance schedules. To achieve this, many airlines operate hub and spoke (H&S) networks which entail consolidating trafﬁc from a diverse range of origins, destined for a diverse range of ﬁnal destinations at hub airports. H&S networks involve the collection of passengers from their origin (i), transferring them through hubs nodes (k and l) and then distribution of passengers to their destination node j as illustrated in Fig. 2. The advantages of hubbing for routes with low passenger demand are very apparent. A traditional airline would not serve these routes because the operating costs needed to meet the low demand make them unproﬁtable. Accessibility within the continent would actually increase with hubbing 90% 80%

73%

75.60%

76.32%

70%

65.23%

63.43%

62.56%

Asia & Middle East

Latin America

Africa

60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% USA

Europe

Far East & Pacific

Figure 1: Load factors for world regions. Source: Chingosho [1].

Figure 2: Schematic representation of the hub and spoke network design. Source: CMISRO [3].

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5

due to the fact that the ﬂight frequency of the airlines would increase, which is an advantage to users of the service because they have more options. The hub network allows ﬂexibility of planning and operations for the service provider, with adequate utilisation of aircraft on routes with reasonably high load factors, yielding proﬁtability in a market of scarce passenger demand [4]. The methodology involved in the design of H&S network involves, ﬁrst, locating the hub airports through which all the ﬂow will pass. Once the hubs have been located, the nodes are allocated to the hubs using single assignment to the closest hub. Thereafter, the pattern of ﬂow for the network is established and the passenger numbers along each link are calculated. The network is then costed by calculating the cost of transferring all the passengers from their origins to their destinations through the hub links. The crucial step in H&S network design is the hub location problem. Boland et al. [5] deﬁne the hub location problem as one concerned with creating H&S networks, which involves locating hubs and assigning non-hub nodes to hubs with the objective of minimising transportation costs across the network. This determines the cost effectiveness of the H&S network as compared to point-to-point travel. Operational researchers have carried out various studies to try and solve the hub location problem in the most practical, meaningful and realistic way for airlines. For the purpose of this study, the location of the hub airports is the decision that needs to be made using the multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) process. With Africa’s air network characteristic of low passenger demand and the vastness of the continent, designing a hub network will be a challenge. This paper focuses on simplifying one of the steps entailed in designing an H&S network using the MCDA method for the African region as a way to foster the development of air transport. This paper will deﬁne the H&S network design elements that are crucial for sparse networks. Thereafter, the MCDA process and methodology will be introduced and applied to the hub location procedure. An evaluation of the criteria will be carried out to highlight how the MCDA method can simplify a complex decision making process in the H&S network design methodology. 1.1.1 Importance of hub location Hubs are deﬁned as collection points that serve the purpose of consolidating trafﬁc ﬂow. The concentration or consolidation of ﬂow can reduce movement costs (i.e. transportation or transmission) through economies of scale, even though the distance travelled may increase as stated by Campbell [6]. Hubs are usually found within air networks, mail delivery systems and in telecommunications. Schnell and Huschelrath [7] suggest that hubs can be deﬁned in two general ways: (1) denoting whether an airport represents a hub within a carrier-independent system of air transport (i.e. airport level) and (2) denoting its role within a carrier-speciﬁc network (i.e. airline level). In the analysis of hubbing, the deﬁnition of what constitutes a hub becomes crucial. For the purposes of this study, a hub airport will be deﬁned at airport level, based on route structure, i.e. its function as a distribution point for air travel to and from its surrounding catchment area, with connecting services, irrespective of the number of originating passengers and airlines serving it. 1.1.2 Limitations of the study 1.

2.

Technicalities that exist in the airline industry as a business, which include regulatory components of service agreements, operational constraints such as degrees of freedom permitted, competition, available time slots, security and pollution, will not be included. The network cost results of this study are neither deemed to be an accurate representation of the transportation costs nor realistic for airlines in the region. This is purely an academic exercise and therefore the real potential of this exercise is to use the results to develop a methodology to identify

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cost-effective criterion to determine the various MCDA alternatives. This study can be applied to real airline operations data in assessing hub network optimisation strategies using MCDA. 3. The environmental costs of hub networks as explained by Morrell and Lu [8] will not be taken into consideration when calculating the environmental costs resulting from an H&S network design. 4. The airline service being considered is a traditional passenger airline which transports its passengers to their destinations at the minimum frequency needed to meet existing demand. 2 MULTI-CRITERIA DECISION ANALYSIS Tecle and Duckstein [9] deﬁne MCDA as a vast ﬁeld of study which includes decision making in the presence of two or more conﬂicting objectives and/or decision analysis processes involving two or more attributes. The general objective of MCDA is to assist a decision maker or a group of decision makers to choose the best alternative from a range of alternatives in an environment of conﬂicting and competing criteria. The methodology of decision analysis provides a framework to combine traditional techniques of operations research, management science and systems analysis with professional judgments and values in a uniﬁed analysis to support decision making as stated by Pieterson [10]. Decision analysis focuses on aspects fundamental to all decision problems namely: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

A perceived need to accomplish some objectives. Several alternatives, one of which must be selected. The consequences associated with alternatives are different. Uncertainty usually about the consequences of each alternative. The possible consequences are not all equally valued.

In recent years, several methods have been proposed to deal with MCDA problems. Belton and Stewart [11] highlighted the value function method as one of the several methods most suited for complex problems. Furthermore, Belton and Stewart [11] state that value function methods are some of the more widely applied MCDA methods and have beneﬁted from the long-standing interests of psychologists, engineers and management scientists who have been nurtured through a continuing awareness of behavioural and social issues as well as the underlying theory. The methods are able to deal with complex issues, can accommodate the involvement of multiple stakeholders and allow processes to be facilitative and transparent. Value function methods can assist in the problem formulation phase and in informing stakeholders about the decision processes [12]. The value function method synthesises assessment of the performance of alternatives against individual criteria, together with inter-criteria information reﬂecting the relative importance of the different criteria, to give an overall evaluation of each alternative indicative of the decision-makers’ preference. The reason why this method is the most appropriate is because choosing a hub airport is a complex decision which has to take into account various issues like: network costs, infrastructure costs, security, economic viability, safety, passenger travel time expenditure, etc., all of which have different and varied impacts and implications. 2.1 Methodology The MCDA process is used because this approach uses several criteria, in which the analyst aims at establishing comparisons on the basis of the evaluation of the alternatives according to several criteria. In an approach using a single criterion, the analyst seeks to build a unique criterion taking into account all the relevant aspects of the problem. The methodology used in this paper is classiﬁed into four steps. These steps are outlined below.

Regional Airports

1. 2.

3. 4.

7

Structuring the decision problem: This involves the generation of alternatives and the speciﬁcation of objectives. Assessing possible impacts of each alternative: In this step, the analyst determines the impact of each alternative. If it were possible to precisely forecast impact, we could associate one consequence with each alternative. Then the evaluation of alternatives would boil down to a choice of the best consequence, preferably based on research. Determine preferences (values) of decision makers: This step, unique to decision analysis, involves the creation of a model of values/preferences to evaluate each of the alternatives. Evaluate and compare alternatives: Once a decision problem is structured, the magnitude and the associated likelihoods of consequences determined, and the preference structure established, the information must be synthesised in a logical manner to evaluate the alternatives. 3 APPLYING MCDA TO THE HUB AIRPORT LOCATION

3.1 Decision problem: hub location analysis Locational analysis is a procedure in operational research used to locate the hubs and route ﬂow via the hubs in an H&S network system. The two systems deﬁned by O’Kelly and Bryan [13] are:

• •

A delivery system, in which the decision-maker positions the facilities and determines the rules of allocation to the centres. A user-attracting system, where the facility is located by one agent but the allocation decisions are decentralised and the planner has to make some reasonable guesses as to how the public will make use of the facilities.

There are various factors, pointed out by Schnell and Huschelrath [7] that inﬂuence the likelihood of an airport becoming a hub. Some of these factors are:

• • • • • • • • •

climatological characteristics of the location, geographical location and topographical surroundings, market size of the airport, inhabitants’ income, level of development of business and leisure centres to increase the attractiveness of the airport, potential of the airport to increase its capacity when there is congestion, number of ﬂights operated, number of destinations served, number of gates available at the airport.

Africa faces the dilemma of not having many international airports with the capacity, demand, market size and infrastructure for hubbing. This is due to the low levels of income in most countries and the expense associated with air travel and its infrastructure. As discussed in Section 1, the decision to be made is the evaluation of various criteria to determine and solve the hub airport location problem, with the aim of minimising network costs. 4 ASSESSING RESEARCH-BASED IMPACT OF DIFFERENT CRITERIA The criteria that are used to assess the various hub airport location have been summarised and categorised in Table 1.

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Table 1: Criteria for MCDA. Functional criteria

Operational criteria

Locational criteria

Airport infrastructural capacity Flow thresholds

Passenger demand N–H costs Network costs

Shortest paths Centrality of the hub

4.1 Functional criteria This criterion analyses the elements that inﬂuence the functioning of an airport as a hub. Most of the challenges of airports that act as hubs include the ability of the airport to serve the additional demand. 4.1.1 Airport infrastructural capacity CMISRO [3] deﬁnes airport capacity as the limit on the amount of ﬂow being collected by non-hub nodes from hub nodes. Capacity is important at hub airports because of the congestion that can arise at such airports due to the limitations in facilities (in terms of gates, runways and hangars) that are realised when an airport becomes a hub. Schnell and Huschelrath [7] state that for airlines there is a restriction on expansion at congested hub airports due to lack of slots in which planes can land. As a result, there is reduced ﬂexibility on scheduling, which increases susceptibility to delays in emergency situations. 4.1.2 Flow thresholds The CMISRO [3] deﬁnes ﬂow thresholds as the minimum ﬂow that is needed on some or all of the links. The ﬂow thresholds for each of these hubs could be taken into consideration, so that the ﬂow carried would correspond to the capacity of the airport to serve as a hub. Some of these elements could be deﬁned by:

• •

Number of airlines operating: This reﬂects the airport’s operational capacity in terms of gates, slots, baggage-handling processes and aircraft turnaround time. Airport passenger capacity: This assesses the ability of an airport to accommodate and serve high passenger numbers currently, based on current hubbing functionality and role, either geographically or operationally, to ease the transition into becoming a hub. Airport capacity is also of concern when there is need to consider an alternative route or a direct ﬂight between i and j if this will cause the capacity of the hub airport to be exceeded when ﬂow is consolidated.

4.2 Locational criteria Locational criteria deﬁne the elements of the airport in terms of its location within the region and the H&S network, with speciﬁc focus to the impact on sector distances. 4.2.1 Shortest paths Generally, as distances increase, the costs per passenger increase as well, due to the increasing operating costs incurred with higher aircraft utilisation costs in terms of depreciation, fuel and labour. This means that in order to ensure low operating costs, the sector distances ﬂown should be kept as short as possible. In this method, the allocation problem of collecting and distributing ﬂow can be solved by ﬁnding the shortest path between each pair of nodes in the directed graph, allowing collection from any node

9

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to any hub, transfer between hubs and distribution from any hub to any node. Ssamula [14] proved that in route networks, the shortest path usually implies that the costs on the route are minimised, because of the ability to ﬂy smaller aircraft which are cheap to operate on these routes. Fig. 3 deﬁnes the relationship between weekly costs per passenger and increasing sector distances for various aircraft types, with an annual passenger demand of 30,000. The relationship between distance and cost for a given aircraft is linear because depreciation, fuel and labour increase with ﬂight time or distance, which is similar to the ﬁndings of Swan and Adler’s study [15]. The general advantage of ﬂying short routes is that a small ﬂeet size is needed to operate the O–D pairs with both high and low passenger demand. Even when the frequency of ﬂights increases with increasing passenger demand in the hub network, the ﬂeet size will remain small because the ﬂights are shorter [4]. 4.2.2 Centrality of the hub A procedure was performed by Topcuoglu et al. [16] to test for the cost beneﬁts of locating a hub as centrally as possible within a cluster. It involved ﬁnding the geographical location of the mid-point using the latitude and longitude of all nodes in the cluster and then choosing the node that was nearest to the mid-point to act as a hub. Klincewicz [17] used the clustering heuristics methodology as one of the methods for choosing hubs in the facility-location problem by dividing the area into clusters and the different airports were given indexes in terms of probabilities. It uses the principle that the airport in a cluster that is most suitable as a hub would be the airport with the shortest node–hub distances and the highest passenger demand cluster, making it a more effective way of optimising the movement of ﬂow. Based on this methodology, Ssamula [4] applied the method and found that this method in which the emphasis is placed on the strategic location of the hub, leads to a reduction in both node–hub and hub–hub costs. 4.3 Operational criteria The operational criterion includes the factors that inﬂuence airports’ attractiveness as a hub based on elements that lower or optimise operational costs. These elements include passenger demand, node–hub cost analysis and network costs. 30 000 Annual Passengers F-50 737-200 737-400 A320-200 A340-200 737-800 767-200 747-200 767-300ER 747-400 Erj135-jet

3,000 2,500 2,000 1,500 1,000 500

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Weekly costs per pass (US$)

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Increasing Distance

Figure 3: The linear increase of weekly operating costs with sector distance.

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4.3.1 Passenger demand The general trend is that as passenger numbers increase, the beneﬁts of economies of scale increase. This is because the costs per unit ﬂow decrease exponentially as demand increases until they become constant. Doganis [18] states that, economies from route trafﬁc density arise because the higher seat load factors lower the costs per passenger mile. Fig. 4 derived from an airline route costing study by Ssamula [4] conﬁrms the exponential decrease of costs per passenger as the weekly passenger numbers increase on a 3,000-km route for the 11 different aircraft. The study also found that high passenger demand reﬂects the infrastructure capacity of the airport and economies-of-scale beneﬁts on the node–hub links. Hubs chosen coincidentally have the highest passenger demand within the region. The high passenger demand lowers the node– hub costs because the aircraft ﬂy at high load factors. 4.3.2 Node–hub cost analysis The node–hub links in any hub network contribute more to network costs than the hub–hub links as determined by O’Kelly and Bryan [13] and conﬁrmed by Ssamula [4] that node–hub costs contributed an average of about 56% to network costs. This is because the hub–hub links beneﬁt more from the economies of scale gained from consolidated ﬂow. This implies that since the node–hub portion of the journey is more costly, a strategy aimed at minimising the costs on the node–hub link needs to be explored. If the distances on the node–hub link can be minimised, the operating costs will be lower and this will encourage the use of smaller, cheaper short-range aircraft, which will minimise costs. In the study done by Ssamula [4] the node–hub cost analysis was used as a hub location methodology in trying to design an H&S network. The method and the ﬁndings of that methodology are outlined below. Fig. 5 represents the cost of transporting ﬂow (Ci−n) ‘from’ each node (Oi). The total cost from node i to each of the n nodes in the network is summed in eqn (1). The nodes that have the cheapest costs of transporting ﬂow from them are used as hub location options.

Costs per Passenger (US$/Pass)

10000

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Passengers Erj 135 JET Cost/pass

737-200 Cost/pass

A320-200 Cost/pass

A340 200 Cost/pass

767-200 Cost/pass

767-300ER Cost/pass

Figure 4: Exponential decrease of costs with increasing number of passengers.

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11

Oi = ∑ Ci − n = Ci −1 + Ci − 2 + L + Ci − n + Ci − 50 .

(1)

50

1

The cheapest nodes from which to ﬂy the passengers as hub options, in this method the cheapest hub nodes chosen coincidentally, had the highest passenger demand within the region. Fig. 6 illustrates the calculation of the cost of transporting ﬂow (Cn−i) ‘to’ each node (Di). The total costs for all the nodes in the network were summed. The nodes that have the lowest costs to ﬂy as destinations are used as hub location options. 50

Di = ∑ Cn − i = C1− i + C2 − i + L + Cn − i + C50 − i .

(2)

1

In this method, centrality of the hub nodes with the shortest total distances was found to be a commonality with the cheapest hub network design. The strategic location of the hubs was found to outweigh the economies of scale achieved through high trafﬁc volumes. 4.3.3 Network costs By deﬁnition, network costs mean the total costs of transporting passengers from their origin to their destination through the hubs. The costs are calculated as a product of the costs per unit ﬂow and the 1 2

3 Node i 4

5

Figure 5: The cheapest hub to ﬂy ‘from’. 1 2 3

4 Node 5

Figure 6: The cheapest hub to ﬂy ‘to’.

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ﬂow along all the routes. An analysis of total network costs is crucial to ﬁnd out which hub locations achieve lower costs on a larger scale. Ssamula [4] summarised some of the important design elements for optimum sparse H&S network designing sparse networks as 1. 2. 3. 4.

The transmission ﬂow costs which were found to be cheapest for hub location options which have high passenger demand. The sector distance was also found to be crucial in lowering operating costs, in sparse markets, as smaller more efﬁcient short-range aircraft can be operated. Since sector distances are crucial in lowering costs the optimum number of hubs/clusters in sparse markets is determined by the distance threshold for the efﬁcient aircraft. Nodes are assigned more efﬁciently to the closest hub in order to lower node–hub costs by minimising N–H links.

Even though many network cost equations exist in literature, for the purposes of this study, the equation that is used is developed from the uncapacitated single allocation r hub median problem, using the quadratic optimisation problem with linear constraints of the hub location problem developed by O’Kelly and Bryan [13] and rewritten by Klincewicz [17]. This eqn (3) is used to calculate network costs for networks in which the hub capacity has no threshold and each node is allocated to a single hub to limit complexity. The equation used to calculate the network costs, is given as f(x) = ∑i∑k XikCik(Oi + Di) + ∑i∑k Xik ∑k ∑m XkmCkmWkm.

(3)

The ﬁrst term in eqn (3) involves the calculation of the collection and distribution costs (node–hub movement); this part of the equation includes:

• • • • • • •

Oi and Di represent the total amount of ﬂow originating and terminating at node i, since all those passengers have to undergo that leg of the journey regardless of their ﬁnal origin or destination node. The factor Xik is the constraint that addresses the fact that all nodes go through at least one hub. It is represented as 1 if that node–hub movement occurs and as 0 otherwise. Cik represents the cost per passenger from node i to the nearest hub, k. The second term in eqn (3) calculates the cost of moving the people who are travelling through the hubs k and m. The factor Xik is represented as 1 if that node–hub movement occurs and as 0 otherwise. The factor Xkm is represented as 1 if the hub–hub movement occurs for a given O–D path and as 0 otherwise. This means that only the passenger ﬂow Wkm that is determined by the N–H–H–N, H–H–N or H–H movement is included in this part. Ckm represents the cost per passenger on the H–H links from hub k to hub m.

4.4 Applying criteria to the evaluate the various alternatives For purposes of this study, each of 50 countries is represented by one major international airport that is used as a node within the African network. All the international airports used in the database of the cost model were analysed. Special consideration was given to airports that are currently being used as hubs in these regions. The continent was divided into four geographical regional clusters as shown in Fig. 7, based on the optimum number of hubs derived by Ssamula [4]. This process entailed generically assessing the optimal number of clusters to produce an efﬁcient network. In order to ﬁnd the optimum number of hubs for the network, virtual hubs are found at the centre of each cluster for a two-, three-, four- and ﬁve-cluster network. This systematic method is then used to analyse the effect of increasing the number of hubs on network costs illustrated in Fig. 8. Based on the total network costs, it appears that the optimum network for the continent would be either a four-hub network because it had the lowest costs.

13

Regional Airports

North

West

East

South

Figure 7: Four-cluster network. 3,500,000,000

Costs (US$)

3,000,000,000 2,500,000,000 2,000,000,000 1,500,000,000 1,000,000,000 500,000,000 0 Clusters 2

Clusters 3

Clusters 4

Clusters 5

Network types N-H Costs

H-H Costs

Total network costs

Figure 8: Cost variations as clusters increase in a network. The region was then divided into four clusters which are also aligned with the existing Regional Economic Communities (RECs). The RECs listed in their speciﬁc regions illustrated in Fig. 7 are: 1. 2. 3. 4.

United Maghreb Union (UMA) in the north, East African Community (EAC) or Common Market for Eastern Southern Africa (COMESA) in the east, Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS) in the west, Southern African Development Community (SADC) in the south.

The various cost elements (cost per passenger) and the various alternatives used in MCDA process will be derived from the cost model developed by Ssamula [19]. This cost model calculates the operating costs incurred by ﬂying along a speciﬁed route, and the database for this model contains Africa-speciﬁc data. The costs used are calculated by selecting the aircraft (chosen from 11 different aircraft types of varying capacity) most commonly used in Africa that produces the lowest operating costs for the route.

14

Regional Airports

4.5 Determining preference values for criteria The parameters used to justify potential hub airport options for each criterion will be based on the hub airport locations that provide the criteria that have potential for lowering total network costs and reducing passenger travel time. The preference value, which determines how the criteria achieves its aim for each of the criteria, and the data source for the information are outlined in Table 2. 4.6 Evaluation criteria The process of determining which nodes are chosen as the most suitable hubs is elaborated below. 1. 2. 3. 4.

An index of 1 is awarded to the airports within that cluster that meets the criteria, i.e. for highest passenger number = 1. The indexes for the rest of the airports within the row are calculated in proportion ratios of 1 to the index of the airport that met the criteria. Indexes are calculated for each criterion and for each airport. The airport with the highest index within the cluster becomes the most probable hub airport.

Table 2: Preference values and data sources for the criteria. Criteria

Preference value

Data source

Airport infrastructural The presence of adequate infrastructure in terms World Bank Data Query, capacity of runways, gates and aprons to accommodate aircraft departures per a high frequency of ﬂights is vital. This would year, for the year 2001 mean that minimum additional investment would be needed when converting airports to hubs Flow thresholds

Highest number of airlines operating currently, this capacity can handle the extra ﬂow

Passenger demand

The presence of high passenger demand at an airport implies that the airport is already a popular destination. The economies of scale enjoyed on routes to and from these busy airports would mean lower transportation costs on the node–hub links Lowest total sector distance for the cluster 50-by-50 distance matrix from an on-line airport mileage calculator Shortest distance from the geographical 50-by-50 distance matrix centre of the hub. The hub airport should be from an on-line airport conveniently located geographically, so that mileage calculator it is well connected as a hub and does not inconvenience passengers Cheapest node–hub costs Eqns (1) and (2) Lowest total network costs Eqn (3) [4]

Shortest paths

Centrality of the hub

N–H costs Network costs

Individual airport information: world airport data Furness’ method of a double-constrained gravity model based on world bank data

15

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The MCDA method allows for decision makers to weigh each of these alternatives based on the overall desired effect. In this study, each of the alternatives is weighted equally, based on the lack of factual evidence that one criterion has a higher effect on the suitability of a hub location option over another hub. Therefore, the methodology that will be adapted in the four steps is summarised below. 1. 2.

3.

4.

Decision problem: To locate the four cheapest hub location option within the African continent. Assessing possible impacts of each alternative: The possible impact of each of these alternatives is in gauging the suitability and cost effectiveness of the hub location option for the H&S network. These are differentiated into the functional, locational and operational criteria. Determine preferences (values) of decision makers: Based on the various ﬁndings in literature the preference values are also linked to designing a cost effective H&S network, summarised in Table 2. Evaluate and compare alternatives: The alternative hub airports will be assigned individually for each criterion. The airport with the highest total index criterion value will be chosen as the hub airport.

5 EVALUATE AND COMPARE ALTERNATIVES All the international airports used in the database of the cost model were analysed using the criterion set out in Table 3. The indexes are calculated and summarised for the airports within each of the clusters that have the highest indexes. Table 3: Hub location evaluation. Region Airport code Country Infrastructural capacity Airport capacity Airlines served Passenger numbers Centrality/ shortest path Node–hub (costs per pass US$) Network costs (US$) Total index

Northern cluster FEZ

ALG

CAI

Morocco Algeria Egypt

Southern cluster

Eastern cluster

Western cluster

JNB

NBO

LOS

HRE

ADD

DKR

South Africa Zimbabwe Kenya Ethiopia Nigeria Senegal

0.250

0.500

1.000

1.000

0.333

1.000

0.500

1.000

1.000

0.023 0.327 1.000

0.273 0.286 1.000

1.000 1.000 0.935

1.000 1.000 1.000

0.294 0.214 0.072

1.000 1.000 0.879

0.778 0.422 1.000

0.500 1.000 1.000

1.000 0.778 0.077

0.942

1.000

0.616

0.975

1.000

1.000

0.924

1.000

0.728

0.509

1.000

0.759

1.000

0.266

0.953

1.000

1.000

0.712

0.509

1.000

0.267

1.000

0.857

0.838

0.850

1.000

0.750

3.559 5.058 5.576 6.975 3.036 6.671 5.474 6.500 5.045 Cairo International O R Tambo Airport Jomo Kenyatta Lagos Airport (CAI) (JNB) Airport (NBO) International Airport (LOS)

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Based on the evaluation criteria, for each cluster the airport with the highest total index is the most suitable hub option in the cluster. In the north, south, east and west, all the airports with highest airport capacity and passenger numbers are chosen as the suitable hubs. The usefulness of this study is that it is able to prove that MCDA is a simple useful tool that can be used to further explore the ways in which an optimally efﬁcient hub network design, speciﬁc to sparse markets. MCDA provides a solution to the hub-location problem that can incorporate elements that range from operational to functional while preserving the methodology of each individual criterion, and furthermore this criterion can be ranked in order of importance, so as to come to an appropriate decision. The major ﬁndings in this study shows that because Africa has a sparse network, with a few role players, the choice in hub location options relies greatly on the cost of routing passengers through the hub airport. The hub airport should be near the economic heart of the region so that it is able to nurture economic growth through employment, infrastructure and development. MCDA is shown to be a useful tool whose only limitation is the assumed uniform weighting of the different criteria for the region based on lack of suitable data. REFERENCES [1] Chingosho, E., African Airlines in the Era of Liberalization; Surviving the Competitive Jungle. E-Book, ISBN 9966-05-011-6, 2005. [2] Button, K., Lall, S., Stough, R. & Trice, M., Debunking some common myths about airport hubs. Journal of Air Transport Management, 8, pp. 177–188, 2002. [3] CMISRO (Center for Mathematical and Information Sciences), Operations Research – Hub Location Report. Australia, 2003. http://www.cmis.csiro.au/or/hubLocation/ accessed 3/02/04. [4] Ssamula, B., Strategies to Design a Cost-effective Hub Network for Sparse Air Travel Demand in Africa. PhD Thesis, University of Pretoria, South Africa, 2008. [5] Boland, N., Krishnamoorthy, M., Ernst, A.T. & Ebery, J., Preprocessing and cutting for multiple allocation hub location problems. European Journal of Operational Research, 155(3), pp. 638–653, 2004. [6] Campbell, J.F., Hub location and the ρ-hub median problem. Operations Research, 44, pp. 923–935, 1996. [7] Schnell, M.C.A. & Huschelrath, K., Existing and new evidence on the effects of airline hubs. International Journal of Transport Economics, XXXI(1), pp. 99–121, 2004. [8] Morrell, P. & Lu, C., The environmental cost implication of hub–hub versus hub by-pass ﬂight networks. Transportation Research Part D, 12, pp. 143–157, 2007. [9] Tecle, A. & Duckstein, L., Concepts of multicriterion decision making. Multicriteria Analysis in Water Resources Management, eds J.J. Bogardi & H.P. Nachtnebel, UNESCO: Paris, pp. 33–62, 1994. [10] Pieterson, K., Multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA); a tool to support sustainable management of groundwater resources in South Africa. Water SA, 32(2), pp. 119–128, 2006. ISSN 0378-4738. [11] Belton, V. & Stewart, T.J., Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis – An Integrated Approach, Kluwer Academic Publishers: Boston/Dordrecht/London, 2002. [12] Keeney, R.L., Decision analysis: an overview. Operations Research, 30(5), pp. 803–838, 1982. [13] O’Kelly, M.E. & Bryan, D., Hub location with ﬂow economies of scale. Transportation Research Part B, 32(8), pp. 605–616, 1998.

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[14] Ssamula, B., Analysing aircraft selection for route operating cost for short-haul routes. Journal of the South African Institute for Civil Engineers (SAICE), 48(2), pp. 2–9, 2006. [15] Swan, W.M. & Adler, N., Aircraft trip cost parameters: a function of stage length and seat capacity. Transportation Research Part E, 42, pp. 105–115, 2006. [16] Topcuoglu, H., Corut, F., Ermis, M. & Yilmaz, G., Solving the uncapacitated hub location problem using genetic algorithms. Computers & Operations Research, 32(4), pp. 967–984, 2005. [17] Klincewicz, J.G., A dual algorithm for the uncapacitated hub location problem. Location Science, 4, pp. 173–184, 1996. [18] Doganis, R., The Airline Industry in the 21st Century, 1st edn, Routledge: London, 2001. [19] Ssamula, B., Developing a Cost Model for Running an Airline Service. MEng Dissertation, University of Pretoria, South Africa, 2004.

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AIRPORT–AIRLINE RELATIONSHIPS: OPPORTUNITIES FOR ITALIAN REGIONAL AIRPORTS S. CEPOLINA1 & G. PROFUMO2 Centre of Excellence on Integrated Logistics (CIELI), University of Genoa, Italy. 2Department of Business Studies, University of Naples “Parthenope”, Italy.

1Italian

ABSTRACT In recent years, the aviation industry is facing fast evolution patterns and strong competition in its main sectors. On the one hand, the increasing competition between airlines is lowering industry proﬁtability. On the other hand, airports are facing new managerial challenges due to privatisation processes. Not only international airports but regional airports also are affected by these phenomena. This turbulent environment is pushing companies in the aviation industry to follow new strategic paths in order to face the new competitive arena; one of the paths that is gaining increasing attention is cooperative strategy, created in order to reduce uncertainty, sharing risks and costs. The literature has primarily focused its attention on horizontal alliances, while less attention has been given to vertical integration strategies between airports and airlines. The aim of the present work is, therefore, to cover this literature gap, analysing the airport–airline relationships from a strategic management perspective. After a brief classiﬁcation of all the possible forms of relationship, the potential beneﬁts for the two actors, airlines and airports, will be analysed, trying to underline the possible cost and revenue synergies. Particular attention will be given to regional airports, some of which are now experiencing fast development, due to the interaction with airline companies. This is the case of the two Italian regional airports investigated in the second part of the paper. Keywords: airport–airline interaction, regional airports, vertical integration strategy.

1 INTRODUCTION In the last few years, the aviation industry has been affected by external events and developments, such as globalisation and liberalisation/deregulation processes, that have challenged all the actors belonging to the value system, with special reference to airports and airlines. On the one hand, the increasing competition between airlines, boosted by the entry of low cost carriers (LCCs) in the market, is squeezing companies to a price war, diminishing industry proﬁtability. On the other hand, airports are experiencing, because of the privatisation processes, managerial challenges which, in some cases, still have to be matched with political objectives. This is the case of regional airports, a large part of which is still public owned. As the environment is becoming more and more turbulent, companies operating in the aviation industry are seeking strategic paths in order to survive in the new competitive arena. Growth strategies, in particular, may enable ﬁrms to face high competition levels, maintaining a sufﬁcient proﬁtability, reaching economies of scale and scope and holding higher bargaining power, but to be effective, in an uncertain and very dynamic framework, the implementation process has to be fast. Internal expansion, known also as organic growth, may not be suitable, because it is usually a slow process that requires large ﬁnancial resources. So, the resources and competences needed for the expansion should be found in other ﬁrms, through different forms of relationship that range from simple agreements to mergers and acquisitions (external growth strategies). In recent years, the literature has extensively focused on horizontal alliances and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) processes inside many industries of the air transport value system, while less attention has been given to vertical integration strategies between airports and airlines in particular. Aiming at covering this literature gap, the present work explores airport–airline relationships from a strategic management perspective. Airports and airlines are very different subjects with a separate regulation regime, diverse competitive arenas, not similar strategic behaviours, but, at the same time, they are linked by a customer–supplier

20

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relationship and they serve the same ﬁnal customers, passengers [1]. These aspects, together with recent airport–airline interaction experiences, like Lufthansa’s cooperation with German airports of Frankfurt and Munich, require a deeper analysis of airport–airline forms of interaction. Moving from these considerations, the present paper focuses on airport–airline relationships in the Italian aviation industry. The Italian case is rather peculiar, at least for two reasons. Firstly, the network of national regional airports is highly spread, with many small airports characterised by different growth rates and there is a lack of a strong ﬂag carrier. Secondly, the Italian regulatory framework, with its particular ‘concession regime’, still has a very strong inﬂuence on airport operations and the development of any relationship with airlines. Moreover, the Italian aviation market is the ﬁfth largest European market in terms of passengers, with 135 million passengers in 2007, and it has recorded an average annual growth rate of 8.2% in the last 5 years, consistently higher than other more developed markets [2]. The paper is structured as follows. Section 2 shows managerial literature on the different forms of relationships between ﬁrms using corporate control as the lens of analysis and focuses attention on the literature contributions related to airport–airline interactions. This part of literature is less developed and there are still comprehension and behavioural gaps to overlap. Section 3 is aimed at identifying the drivers that may push airlines and airports to engage vertical integration strategies through different external implementation processes. Section 4 presents an up to date portrait of the Italian aviation industry, focused on the principal characteristics of the airport system and the airlines operating in the national area. Section 5 tries to verify the drivers of vertical integration strategies in two selected case studies of Italian regional airports. Finally, Section 6 concludes with a brief discussion of results and possible future ﬁelds of research. Although the paper is the outcome of a collective work, Paragraphs 1; 2.2; 4 and 5.2 can be attributed to S. Cepolina, while Paragraph 2.1; 3; 5.1 and 6 can be attributed to G. Profumo. 2 AIRPORT–AIRLINE VERTICAL FORMS OF INTERACTION The managerial literature on ﬁrms’ relationships is really deep and rich, following different lens of analysis. In this section, the approach based on corporate control will be used in order to evaluate the speciﬁcities of the airport–airline vertical forms of interactions. In the aviation industry, literature has extensively focused on ﬁrms’ relationships inside each sector (e.g. airline’s alliances and M&A, aircraft constructors’ concentration processes), while less attention has been given to the study of vertical forms of interaction between companies belonging to different stages of the value system. 2.1 Managerial literature on ﬁrms’ relationships Following their corporate strategies, ﬁrms may choose to grow by enhancing the resources and competences that are internally generated (organic growth) or by utilising and developing resources, knowledge and capabilities available in other companies. This second implementation process may take several forms, depending on the business relationship developed between the two ﬁrms. The existing managerial literature has elaborated different taxonomies of the phenomena. For the purpose of our paper, it is useful to classify business relationships according to the type of corporate control; following this classiﬁcation, they can range in a spectrum that goes from a simple, shortterm transactional relationship to a full acquisition or merger, in which a company takes the entire ownership of another [3], as indicated in Fig. 1. Moving towards M&A implies, on the one hand, a continuous increase in the commitment of the companies involved in the relationship to achieve the foreseen objectives and a greater steadiness of the interaction; on the other hand, a higher business risk, due to the greater investment and the difﬁculty to exit from the relationship.

21

Regional Airports Transaction Contract

Alliance Non equity alliance

Equity alliance

Purchase Joint Venture

Acquisition

Merger

Risk and control

Limited

Shared

Total

Duration

Short Term

Medium to Long Term

Permanent

Legal status

No new legal entity formed

New legal entity formed

Legal status of old entities changed

Figure 1: The spectrum of business relationships. Source: Adapted from Ref. [3]. In the case of a transactional relationship, as for example the interaction between a customer and its supplier, one company may, to some degree, inﬂuence the other ﬁrm, but the control is limited in scope (only to what is written in the contract) and duration. As the partners usually do not invest too many efforts, in terms of resources and competences, in this short-term relationship, their business risk is also limited. The different forms of alliance fall in the middle of the spectrum. They can be deﬁned as inter-ﬁrm relationships in which two or more companies jointly invest in a common activity over a number of years, sharing risks and returns, but remaining legally independent. Only in the case of a joint venture there is the creation of a new legal entity. The term ‘strategic alliance’ includes a wide range of relationships that vary from long-term purchasing agreements to marketing and research and development (R&D) collaborations, to joint ventures [4, 5]. Despite the differences, all the alliance forms present at least a few common features [4]: the link between the alliance’s scope and the strategic intent of each partner [6], the sharing of resources and knowledge among partners [7] and the creation of opportunities for organisational learning [8]. Alliances are more complex to manage than transactional relationships and usually have a longer lifetime, even if they have a clear endpoint. They are very useful in uncertain and risky market conditions, as they limit the resources a company must commit to the new venture [3]; they are, indeed, often viewed as a mechanism to cope with uncertainty. In some forms of alliance, the companies reciprocally purchase minority equity stakes in order to maximise the commitment to the joint project, this is the case of equity alliances. Because partners in an alliance remain independent, a single partner is not able to control the others completely and there is the multiplication of decision-making centres, which implies longer and more complex decisions on controversial issues, such as eliminating redundant assets, rationalising product lines or specialising facilities. Alliances are also transient in nature; they can be closed without too many difﬁculties. For these reasons, alliances are less effective when there is economic value to be gained through rationalisation, which implies cost cutting: ‘horizontal acquisition will always outperform scale alliances’ [9]. On the other side of the spectrum, we can ﬁnd M&A, in which the control on the other company is permanent and complete. In a merger, the level of integration between ﬁrms is maximum, as the companies become one new expanded legal entity, such an instrument is very complex to manage [10], as it implies the full blend of managers, staffs, competences and values. In an acquisition, a ﬁrm takes an ownership stake in another company, sufﬁcient to exercise the control; in this case, the integration process may be absent or focused on speciﬁc functions, such as information and technology (IT) or R&D. The full ownership control presents some speciﬁcities: on the one hand, a company has to invest resources, knowledge and to assume the responsibility for the acquired assets, increasing its business

22

Regional Airports

risk. So, if the market conditions are already very risky and uncertain, a company should choose other forms of relationships. On the other hand, the full corporate control allows the company to better achieve tough decisions much more rapidly than in case of alliances, in which the decision process may be blocked by the intervention of many actors [9]. 2.2 Airport–airline interactions literature Airport–airline interactions are frequent only in few parts of the world, e.g. Asia, Australia and Arab nations, where airport operators and airlines are part of the same group and share the mission to support each other for the sake of the country’s competitiveness and economic development [11]. This consideration supports the limited amount of research and only recent developments in this ﬁeld. Over the last decade, however, airport–airline interactions have gained increasing attention in US and Europe also, where they are seen as a strategic answer to the straightening competition in the aviation industry and to the privatisation process that characterises the entire aviation industry. On the one hand, airlines are squeezed among their neighbours in the aviation value system that leverages local monopolies (such as airports) or oligopolies (such as aircraft equipment manufacturers) [12]. Despite ongoing liberalisation, the regulatory framework still has not reached a common European level, to be able to push consolidation processes in the aviation industry. Airport price regulation forms are particularly relevant and there are strong differences in their stage of adoption among European countries [13, 14]. On the other hand, airports across the world are modifying their business model, focusing more and more on non-aeronautical revenues (retailing, advertisement, ground transport and property development) to generate ﬁnancial resources. In the case of hub airports, resources are designated to increase capacity to meet infrastructure demands; in the case of secondary airports, resources are designated to increase airport attractiveness and to gain air trafﬁc [15]. Secondary airports management often has an additional critical point to face because of the local public ownership, which seeks to balance economic aims (proﬁt maximisation) with political and social aims (occupation, local well-being). The top management needs to reach remarkable levels of air trafﬁc with a limited bargain power. Under these conditions, the strategy of secondary airports is to look more and more to LCCs as partners, because of their trafﬁc generating ability. Since these new competitive matters are gaining more and more relevance, researchers have started to highlight them and literature has been developed. The emerging literature on airport–airline relationships may be classiﬁed into two big categories. The ﬁrst category is based on the different aims of the agreement between airlines and airports. These types of classiﬁcations are numerous and are generally articulated in air service agreements and land service agreements. The ﬁrst tends to develop new trafﬁc and is devoted to airports with overcapacity status, like numerous European secondary airports. The second, however, tends to improve efﬁciency to better utilise existing capacity. They are devoted to highly congested airports, like European hub airports. In this category, some authors [16, 17] identify three agreement levels: marketing oriented (called land services), capacity oriented (called air side services) and security/technology oriented. The ﬁrst two levels are strongly strategic, aiming at growth of airports and airlines; security/ technology oriented collaborations are instead more operational, aiming at increasing performance. They usually tend to improve airport security level as well as process efﬁciency (baggage processing technology) and they do not need a long-term relationship. The second literature category is based on the characteristics of the relationship, like time coverage, steadiness and actors’ commitment. This category originates from general managerial relationships

Regional Airports

23

literature, modiﬁed in order to ﬁt aviation industry speciﬁcities. Different interaction forms are identiﬁed on the basis of the classiﬁcation highlighted in Fig. 1: cooperation agreements, alliances, joint ventures and M&A [18, 19]. Many recent aviation industry phenomena can be observed through this lens of analysis; long-term usage contracts between airlines and airports as cooperation agreements, signatory airlines as a form of alliance, joint ventures and acquisitions. We also include in this second category the studies which analyse airport–airline interactions on the basis of the different kinds of subjects involved, like the copious contributions focused on LCC and secondary airport interactions [1, 20]. 3 AIRPORT–AIRLINE INTERACTION DRIVERS The existing literature on the determinants of the different forms of business relationships is wide and rich, even if fragmented. There are several studies focused on each type of relationship, in particular, on the motivations of alliances and M&A, but less attention has been given to create a common framework from which arise the drivers that may push ﬁrms to expand using the resources and competences present in other companies. Related research has shown that the determinants of M&A and alliances, associated with the maximising of a ﬁrm’s value, are quite similar and may be broadly categorised into [21–23] efﬁciency or operational drivers and market power drivers. The former synergies are related to economies of scale and scope and all the other cost economies that may be achieved by larger ﬁrms; the latter synergies, however, emerge from the possibility to access or create new markets or ‘strategic windows’, to develop knowledge and capabilities that are not present in the ﬁrm, and from the ability of the partners to control the price, the quantity or the nature of the products sold, thereby generating extra-normal proﬁts (collusive synergies) [22]. The process of value creation may also involve taking strategic actions related to ﬁnancial and risk diversiﬁcation, in particular, in case of M&A [24, 25]. Alliances are the only form of external expansion that can be used in case of legislative barriers of entry (in the airline business, for example, as the regulatory framework strictly prohibits cross-border mergers, alliances represent the only instrument that allows airlines to serve the global market). The business relationship drivers have been extensively studied inside each stage of the aviation value system, in particular, in the case of alliances and M&A among airlines [26–30], less attention has been given to understand the motivations of vertical integration strategies. This literature is, in fact, more recent and it is mainly focused on case study analysis [17, 31–34]. The few studies related to the vertical forms of interaction between airports and airlines highlight that, although the relationship’s ﬁnal attempt is to jointly serve customers and cope with trafﬁc demand in a proﬁtable, efﬁcient and sustainable way [17], there are speciﬁc drivers for airports and airlines that push them to interact. The relationship is goal oriented; both parties enter into it for their own beneﬁt [11]. The airport–airline interaction has also changed in nature in the last few years, passing from a pure transactional ‘supplier–customer’ relationship to a more strategic agreement. Our attempt is to identify the drivers that may push airlines and airports to engage in vertical integration strategies through different external implementation processes and, then, to verify them in two case studies belonging to the Italian aviation industry. Following the drivers emerging from the general literature, airport–airline interaction drivers may be distinguished into efﬁciency driven and market power driven. Inside each category, it is then possible to identify speciﬁc drivers for airports and airlines, as summarised in Table 1. The efﬁciency drivers are in both cases related to the cost economies that may be achieved through the interaction. As regards airports, the increasing trafﬁc emerging from the relationship with an airline helps them to enhance operational capacity and consequently reduce unit costs; studies have

24

Regional Airports

Table 1: Airport–airline interaction drivers. Interaction category

Airlines drivers

Efﬁciency/operational drivers Cost economies, risk sharing, higher service quality Market power/strategic drivers Create a strong hub, create a feeding trafﬁc to the hub, control of airport slots, develop trafﬁc in the basin of the airport, better image

Airports drivers Cost economies, risk sharing, higher service quality Improved connectivity, increasing bargaining power, longer term planning, regional social beneﬁts, better image, increasing non-aviation revenues

Source: Our elaboration. in fact demonstrated that unit costs decrease signiﬁcantly as trafﬁc increases up to 1.5 million work load units (WLU – deﬁned as one passenger or 100 kg of freight) per annum and continue to fall until trafﬁc reaches 3.0 million WLUs per annum [13]. As regards airlines, cost economies may arise, besides from trafﬁc development, from a large set of activities undertaken by airports, called air service development [16]. Many airports, in fact, especially regional airports with low bargaining power, are now taking a share of the costs (and of the risks) of developing airline networks, providing services traditionally under the responsibility of airlines, such as analysis of the potential demand for a particular route, marketing activities for the development of the route trafﬁc, ﬁnancial incentives and handling cost reductions. The operational drivers are also related to the increase in service quality, due to more customised services and due to the development of operational airport capacity by joint management of on time performance [16]. However, one of the primary drivers for the formation of relationships between airports and airlines is the reduction of risk and uncertainty for both parties [17], obtained through the sharing of investment costs. The market power drivers are related to the acquisition of ‘revenue’ synergies, linked to the development of trafﬁc and the preference of consumers. From an airline’s point of view, a strong interaction with an airport may be driven by the will to create a feeding trafﬁc towards its primary hub, to set up a strong hub and to control airport slots (in particular in already congested airports), in order to offer customers seamless connections and gaining their preference. However, in case of M&A, some anticompetitive effects have been highlighted [32], such as decreasing quality for rival airlines, discrimination in the access to ground handling services and predatory practices towards competing airlines using cross-subsidies. From an airport’s point of view, the market power/strategic drivers are, instead, related to: the increase in its accessibility and connectivity; the possibility to plan with a longer term; the development of trafﬁc in the airport basin, with social beneﬁts for the region; and the increase in non-aeronautical revenues. In both cases, there could also be an improvement in the image and reputation of the partners that in some cases may proﬁt from the standing of each other. 4 ITALIAN AVIATION INDUSTRY: LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK AND SPECIFICITIES The Italian airline sector is one of the most attractive markets in the European panorama. Its weight in terms of passenger trafﬁc is relatively small (11.88% of the EU total pax trafﬁc based on OAG data), but it is destined to increase consistently in the next years.

25

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The evolution trend for past trafﬁc, with strong growth rates, in particular in the domestic sector, highlights the relative newness of the Italian market where the propensity to ﬂy is still lower than the European average. As a young market, Italy is also a very dynamic market, characterised by legislative openness and a consequent high level of competition. Italian market competitiveness is also affected by the low market share hold by the Italian national ﬂag carrier, Alitalia, which in 2006 was 25%, compared to the 45% hold by Air France in France. Moreover, in 2006 the Alitalia crisis emerged, resulting in a period of decline that ended only in 2008. In that year, a new company, Cai-Alitalia, was constituted with the purpose of integrating Alitalia and AirOne, the two most important Italian ﬂying carriers, by acquiring their main assets. This event had strong trafﬁc implications: comparing the data for the last 2 years (2007–2008), Alitalia has seen a fall of 26% in passengers carried (from 24.4 to 18 million); the nearly 6.5 million passengers who have abandoned Alitalia have not just moved to AirOne, whose clients have increased only from 7.1 to 7.4 million, but went elsewhere. So, by combining the two companies, there is a fall from 31.5 million passengers in 2007 to 25.5 in 2008. A last consideration refers to LCCs, which account for 29.9% of national supply (available seat kilometres) in 2008, with an annual growth rate of 48.5% in the period 2001–2008 (based on OAG source). In this business model there is no competitive national player (the ﬁrst Italian LCC, Myair, with a market share of just 6%, is now close to bankruptcy) and the great majority of the growth is imputable to foreign LCCs (Ryanair and Easyjet, in particular, have a market share, respectively, of 32.6% and 17.5%). As regards the Italian airport sector, the market is composed of 101 airports. Among them, 45 are classiﬁed by the Italian regulatory authority ENAC as international (they can schedule international ﬂights) while the remaining 56 are labelled as domestic (they can schedule only domestic ﬂights) [35]. The framework highlights a widespread dissemination of Italian airports, which is conﬁrmed by air trafﬁc statistics. Table 2 shows a low level of air trafﬁc concentration, which has decreased from 2000 to 2007. Concentration levels are calculated for different airports classes, including airports with the highest passenger trafﬁc. The ﬁrst two classes (top 5 and top 10 Italian airports) have lost much more trafﬁc, in the time gap considered, than the other classes (top 20 and top 30 Italian airports). This trend may be explained by the more intense growth of Italian secondary airports supported by the advent of LCCs and by the increasing weakness of the national ﬂag carrier. The development of secondary airports may be better appreciated by looking at Table 3, which shows total growth rate between 2000 and 2007 for different classes of Italian airports. In this case, airport classes are identiﬁed on the basis of the passenger trafﬁc related to year 2000. The total growth rates are indirectly related to the airports’ dimensions in terms of passengers: smaller airports have grown more than their bigger counterparts. Table 2: Italian air trafﬁc concentration. Airports

Pax 2000

First 5 First 10 First 20 First 30 Total

60,471,235 76,261,828 87,947,712 91,056,923 91,434,374

Concentration % 2000 66.14 83.41 96.19 99.59

Source: Our elaboration on ENAC data.

Pax 2007 79,200,150 104,769,202 128,360,982 134,406,226 135,315,674

Concentration % 2007 58.53 77.43 94.86 99.33

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Table 3: Total growth rate in different Italian airports’ classes (2000–2007). Airports <1,000 pax 1,000–2,000 pax 2,000–3,000 pax 3,000–5,000 pax >5,000 pax Total

Pax 2000

Pax 2007

Δ07–00

Δ07–00%

5,710,300 7,425,291 7,202,153 18,699,558 52,397,072 91,434,374

11,242,147 15,594,506 12,448,595 29,908,252 66,121,388 135,315,674

5,531,847 8,169,215 5,246,442 11,208,694 13,724,316 43,881,300

96.87 110.02 72.85 59.94 26.19 47.99

Source: Our elaboration on ENAC data.

A second Italian aviation industry speciﬁcity relates to airport governance. The great majority of Italian airports are managed by independent companies through a license delivered by the Italian regulatory authority (ENAC) (only 2 airports of the 45 international airports are public managed directly by ENAC). Licenses can be distinguished into total licenses and partial licenses. With the former, managing companies are responsible for the airport infrastructures and get all the airport’s charges; in the case of the latter, managing companies are responsible only for passenger and freight infrastructures (like terminals) and get only related charges. There is a third license category called precarious, similar to partial license with reference to infrastructures provision: in this case, managing companies obtain revenues only from terminal commercial activities (no collection of charges is foreseen) [36]. We have analysed airport governance with reference to airports with more than 1 million pax in 2007 (see Table 4) by classifying shareholders into two main categories: public and private subjects, of which the latter is split into airport management companies, airlines and a residual category. The resulting sample, which includes 34 airports, shows an advanced stadium of the privatisation process, formally started in 1993 (with Italian law n. 537/1993 and Italian law n. 351/1995), although public inﬂuence is still very strong. In fact, most of the airports (21) are controlled by public local authorities, like regional administrations and municipalities. Two airports are directly managed by ENAC and the remaining airports (11) are owned by private subjects. There are, however, very few cases in which airlines participate in airports’ capital. From these observations, it is clear that airlines prefer soft forms of relationships, like transactional relationships and alliances. In order to complete this scenario of the Italian airports sector we introduce some information on airport charge national regulation. In 2005, the Italian Government approved a new law (n. 248/2008) changing the framework for setting airport’s charges. The new policy set up a price cap hybrid till (allowing costs netted of 50% of commercial margin), abolishing any pre-existing alignment of Italian airport charges with the rest of Europe. As a consequence, the charges for Italian airports are now lower than the European average, in a range between 19% and 49%, depending on different variables [37]. The Italian association of airports (Assaeroporti), as well as ACI Europe, at the European level [38], states that the present average return on capital of airports is very low and might not be acceptable for the private sector, in order to sustain the necessary investments to maintain, upgrade or expand the long-term tangible assets of airports, such as terminals, runways, access roads and car parks, as well as to expand the capacity in order to follow a growing demand.

27

Regional Airports

Table 4: Italian airports classiﬁed by shareholders’ categories. Shareholders category

Airport 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34

Alghero Ancona Bari Bergamo Bologna Brescia Brindisi Cagliari Catania Crotone Firenze Forlì Genova Lamezia Terme Lampedusa Napoli Olbia Milano Malpensa Milano Linate Palermo Pantelleria Parma Pescara Pisa Reggio Calabria Rimini Roma Ciampino Roma Fiumicino Torino Trapani Treviso Trieste Venezia Verona

Private

Public

Airport management Other private companies Airlines subjects

Local Authorities

30% <10% 85%

30% <5%

<0,5%

<2%

>50% >33%

<20%

10% 15%

<20%

>5% <20%

ENAC

100% >90% 100% 40% >85% 15% 100% >97% 100% < 40% >30% 100% 90% >67% 100%

65%

5% <80%

5% >5% >5%

25% >20% >95% >95% 100% 100%

<67% 2%

>10% >5% <48%

>5% >4% 80%

>95% >95% >44% <42% <2% >50% >10%

>20% >95% >50% 100% >80% <5% <5% 51% 54% >18% 100% >33% >90%

Source: Our elaboration on AIDA data and company websites. To meet these requirements the European Commission has recently prepared a directive (2009/12/ CE of March 11, 2009), which establishes a general framework, setting common principles for the levying. Sharing the aim of the community legislator, we stress the narrowness of its application, limited to airports with more than 5 million passengers. In Italy, the directive could be applicable in only eight airports, which account for 70% of the total national trafﬁc.

28

Regional Airports

5 AIRPORT–AIRLINE INTERACTION DRIVERS: LESSONS FROM ITALIAN EXPERIENCES In order to verify the airport–airline interaction drivers identiﬁed in Section 3, we have selected two case studies, both regarding regional airports, emerging from the Italian airport sector. The ﬁrst case, Olbia Airport in Sardinia Island, with 1,741,120 passengers in 2007, is the only Italian case of an airport management company (Geasar S.p.A.) controlled by an airline, Meridiana, a regional carrier which holds 79.79% of Geasar shares. The second case, Genoa Airport, with 1,105,802 passengers in 2007, is a regional airport facing very high competition. In the same catchment area, in fact, at a distance lower than 200 km, there are ﬁve international airports: Nice (France), Turin, Milan Linate, Milan Malpensa and Pisa. In order to improve its competitive position, Genoa Airport has developed relationships with many carriers of different nature. 5.1 Case study A: Olbia Airport Olbia Airport is a regional airport located on the northeastern coast of Sardinia Island, with a prevalence of tourist trafﬁc. The airport management company Geasar S.p.A. represents a rather peculiar case in the Italian airport sector, as at the moment it is the only one controlled by an airline company. Meridiana Airlines, in fact, holds the majority of its shares (79.79%), whereas few public regional authorities are minority shareholders: Sassari Chamber of Commerce (with a share of 10%), Nuoro Chamber of Commerce (with a share of 8%), Sardinia Region Administration (with a share of 2%) and Emerald Coast Consortium (with a share of 0.2%). Olbia Airport started its operations in 1974, by substituting the former airport of Venaﬁorita, and was managed (with a partial license) by Geasar S.p.A since March 1989. In 2005, the company obtained the total license to manage the airport for 40 years. Meridiana Airlines, the principal shareholder of the airport management company, is a regional carrier established in March 1963, with the name Alisarda, by Prince Aga Khan. The carrier started its operations as an air taxi and charter operator, holding the objective of favouring the development of the tourist industry in the Emerald Coast, which until then was accessible only by sea. In 1966, the airline started to serve Rome and Milan from Olbia; in the following 2 years, it opened other national routes. In 1991, the carrier changed its name to Meridiana, following the shareholders’ agreement on the fact that the airline’s future was the pan-European market and it entered the European market with new international routes (Barcelona, Paris, London and Frankfurt). In December 2006, Meridiana acquired a 29.95% stake in the growing leisure carrier Euroﬂy, through the acquisition of 4 million shares from Spinnaker. In 2008, the carrier increased its stake in Euroﬂy to 46.1% of the shares. The ownership of Meridiana Airlines is held directly and indirectly by Aga Khan, with a majority stake (79.29%of shares), while the company’s employees and a bank foundation (Fondazione Cariplo) represent the other principal minority shareholders. The acquisition process of the Olbia Airport may be explained by the will of the airline to contribute to the development of tourism (and of the trafﬁc) in the area, increasing regional social beneﬁts. Prince Aga Khan is, in fact, the founder of the Emerald Coast Consortium, whose primary objective is the creation of an integrated tourist value system. The diversiﬁcation strategy that the carrier has followed in the last few years may be read in the same way: in June 2006, in fact, Meridiana launched Wokita.com, the company’s on-line tour operator. Wokita’s ambition is to offer tourist booking services (hotels, car rentals, ﬂights, holiday deals) on all the destinations served by Meridiana. Then, in September 2006, the carrier acquired 15% of the shares of ADF, the management company of Florence Airport.

Regional Airports

29

The other airline’s drivers of the acquisition process may be related to the customisation of services, cost sharing and the possibility to create a base in the airport, also with maintenance infrastructures. The airport’s drivers are ﬁrstly related to the development of passenger trafﬁc and the improvement of connectivity. The expansion of the airport has been strictly associated with the development of Meridiana Airlines which, obviously, is the dominant carrier, with 56.9% of the trafﬁc held in 2007. The rest of the trafﬁc is generated by LCCs, which account for 33.4% of the total passenger trafﬁc [39] and other charter operators; traditional carriers are almost absent. The airline business models serving Olbia Airport are perfectly coherent with the characteristics of passenger trafﬁc, i.e. seasonal and primarily related to tourism (as the prevalent north versus south trafﬁc highlighted by the route map in Fig. 2 shows). Starting from 1989, the year in which Geasar S.p.A. began its activities, the airport trafﬁc has continuously grown at an average rate of 5% per annum, reaching 1.5 million passengers in 2003 (in the same year the annual growth rate was 12%). This passenger trafﬁc increase, emerging mostly from the relationship with Meridiana Airlines, has helped the airport to enhance its operational capacity and consequently reduce unit costs. The sharing of risk and investment costs has been another important motivation for the airport. In 2004, for example, the process of renovation and expansion of the airport infrastructures was completed, with an investment of 46 million Euros. Part of this investment was also related to the creation of a commercial area for developing non-aeronautical revenues, according to the new airport’s commercial business model. All the drivers mentioned before are summarised in Table 5.

Figure 2: Olbia Airport route map. Source: www.rati.com.

30

Regional Airports

Table 5: Olbia Airport –airline interaction drivers. Interaction category

Airlines drivers

Airports drivers

Efﬁciency/ Cost and risk sharing (maintenance operational drivers infrastructures), customised services Market power/ strategic drivers

Risk and cost sharing (airport expansion investment; declining unit costs), higher service quality (increased operational capacity) Create a strong hub (Olbia is Improved connectivity Meridiana hub), control of airport (development pax trafﬁc), slots (Meridiana is the main shareholder regional social beneﬁts (tourism of the airport management company), development), increasing regional social beneﬁts non-aviation revenues (new commercial area)

Source: Our elaboration. 5.2 Case study B: Genoa Airport Genoa is a regional airport located on the northwest coast of Italy, which is public held (Genoa Port Authority 60%, Genoa Chamber of Commerce 25% and Roma Airport Management Company 15%). Genoa Airport is facing strong competition from ﬁve other airports which serve the same catchment area (the number of people living within the area in which Genoa Airport is reachable in approximately 2 hours of transport, i.e. less than 2 million people). This speciﬁcity, together with the absence of a focalisation strategy, explains Genoa Airport’s trafﬁc trend, which shows a slower growth rate than its counterparts. In order to improve its competitive position, the management company has started, in the last few years, to invest in a growth strategy based on different types of interaction with airlines. The ﬁnal goal is to increase passenger trafﬁc through higher connectivity (in fact Fig. 3 shows a limited number of routes) and market diversiﬁcation. In this way, the airport has intensiﬁed its relational network with different types of subjects, which can be classiﬁed into traditional carrier, charter carrier and LCC. Interaction drivers between Genoa Airport and different airline’s categories are next investigated and summarised in Table 6. The ﬁve traditional carriers that operate at the moment at Genoa Airport (Cai-Alitalia, Air France, Lufthansa, Iberia and British Airways) represent the great majority of airport trafﬁc. Cai-Alitalia, in particular, accounts for almost 50% of passenger trafﬁc, operating as the dominant carrier. The airport strategy towards this typology of carriers is focused on strengthening the company’s bargaining power by trying to decrease the dependence on the dominant carrier. In order to achieve this objective, Genoa Airport is building relationships with other traditional carriers. These types of relationship, mainly transactional based, are guided by the following airport’s drivers: promoting the region as a tourist destination as well as a connection airport, sharing market risk on a wider customer portfolio. Traditional carriers are interested in less congested airports, where it is easier to ﬁnd slot availability and to acquire new trafﬁc to redirect towards their hub. This is the kind of relationship developed between Genoa Airport and Lufthansa Airlines, through its controlled regional carrier Air Dolomiti. Genoa Airport is connected by Air Dolomiti to Munich, Lufthansa’s second hub, using small size vehicles with a high frequency (four connections per day). The two charter carriers that operate at Genoa Airport (Air Italy and TUI Fly) account for only 3% of the total passenger trafﬁc. They began to use Genoa Airport only recently (in the last 2–3 years)

31

Regional Airports

Figure 3: Genoa Airport route map. Source: www.rati.com. Table 6: Genoa Airport–airline interaction drivers. Interaction category Efﬁciency/ operational drivers Market power/ strategic drivers

Airlines drivers

Airports drivers

Cost economies (better load factor), Risk sharing (wider customers’ market risk sharing (airport ﬁnancial portfolio), higher service quality support), higher service quality (higher (customised services like free ﬂight frequency, customised services) parking for pax and lounge room) Create a feeding trafﬁc to the hub Face neighbour airports competition (Dolomiti airlines carries pax to Munich (higher pax trafﬁc and improved Malpensa hub), higher slots availability, connectivity), increase bargaining develop trafﬁc in the basin of the airport power (decreasing the dependence (co-terminalisation strategy) from Alitalia), regional social beneﬁts (tourism development)

Source: Our elaboration.

32

Regional Airports

and their trafﬁc has strongly improved. With reference to these partners, totally dedicated to the leisure industry, the airport’s non-economic objectives, like regional touristic development, acquire more relevance. In order to increase its attractiveness to outgoing charter networks, the airport management company has developed a co-terminalisation strategy with other Italian airports (e.g. Milan Malpensa) and has offered special conditions to passengers (e.g. free parking). The co-terminalisation strategy allows carriers to carry passengers originating from multiple points (in this case Genoa and Milan) to the same ﬁnal destination on the same plane. In this case, the airline’s drivers seem to be the increased ﬂight frequency and the achievement of a better load factor, while the airport’s drivers are cost and risk sharing. Regarding incoming charter trafﬁc, Genoa Airport may not rely on the strong touristic attractiveness of the region, so it has opted to exploit some niche markets, like the cruise industry, which has in Genoa’s port the second Italian home port, and emerging markets like Russia and Scandinavia. Genoa Airport offers marketing incentives and facilities (dedicated lounge room) to tour operators to stimulate development of new routes. Genoa Airport is at the moment working on a plan for the establishment of a Ryanair base. Ryanair requirements could not be matched by the only airport company: it needs the support and the involvement of the local public administration. The success of new LCC routes depends on a deep and widespread marketing plan involving public entities of destination and origin airports. Bureaucratic and legislative obstacles in addition to time lags in organising and defying public intervention hardly ﬁt in with the strategy of LCCs, which tends to catch strategic windows and to exploit market opportunities for brief periods of time. The four LCCs that operate at Genoa Airport (Ryanair, Belleair, Transavia and Blu-Express) account for 11.53% of the total passenger trafﬁc. This type of interaction is particularly crucial for Genoa Airport, which has failed till now to establish a stable relationship with any LCC and has seen a dynamic opening and closing of air routes in the last 6–7 years. This trend has had an impact in terms of passenger rate volatility: for example, the LCC passenger rate has ﬂuctuated in the last 2 years ranging from 12.52% in 2007 to 11.53% in 2008. The main interaction problems are related to low bargaining power of the airport, imbalance in the incoming and outgoing passenger trafﬁc, scarce number of repeating passengers, high load factor requirements and limited contractual obligations for LCCs. 6 CONCLUSIONS In this paper, we have tried to explore vertical integration strategies between airports and airlines, with the aim of thoroughly understanding the interaction drivers. We have proposed a set of determinants distinguished by subject which can be broadly categorised into efﬁciency driven and market power driven (see Table 1) and then we have applied our assumptions in two case studies related to the Italian aviation industry. The investigated cases, which involve different types of subjects (regional airports, traditional airlines as well as charter carriers and LCCs), have shown the validity of the proposed drivers (as Tables 5 and 6 show). In particular, they seem to be not dependent on the different types of interaction, whereas they appear to be much more related to the characteristics of the partners involved in the relationship. In the case of regional airports, one of the most critical drivers is the creation of social beneﬁts, whereas for LCCs efﬁciency drivers are prevailing (cost economies and risk sharing). These preliminary conclusions require a deeper and more well-documented analysis in the future. In order to achieve stronger support, the research needs more empirical investigation through a wider number of case studies.

Regional Airports

33

Further research in this ﬁeld should also be focused on the future environmental developments that could affect the risk rate and the competition level in the aviation industry, such as the 2008 ﬁnancial crisis. IATA’s latest data, in fact, outlines a strong passenger trafﬁc drop (8% in the last 12 months). These environmental changes could, in fact, make vertical forms of interaction a strategic survival option for airports and airlines in order to maintain their competitive advantage. REFERENCES [1] Francis, G., Fidato, A. & Humphreys, I., Airport–airline interaction: the impact of low-cost carriers on two European airports. Journal of Air Transport Management, 9(4), pp. 267–273, 2003. [2] International Center for Competitiveness Studies in the Aviation Industry (ICCSAI), Fact Book 2008. La Competitività del Trasporto Aereo in Europa, ICCSAI Editors: Bergamo, 2008. [3] Cools, K. & Roos, A., The Role of Alliances in Corporate Strategy, The Boston Consulting Group Report, 2005. [4] Spekman, R.E., Forbes, T.M., Isabella, L.A. & MacAvoy, T.C., Alliance management: a view from the past and a look to the future. Journal of Management Studies, 35(6), pp. 747–772, 1998. [5] Lorange, P., Roos, J. & Broon, P.S., Building successful strategic alliances. Long Range Planning, 25(6), pp. 10–17, 1992. [6] Hamel, G., Competition for competence and inter-partner learning within international strategic alliances. Strategic Management Journal, 12, pp. 83–103, 1991. [7] Borys, B. & Jemison, D.B., Hybrid arrangements as strategic alliances: theoretical issues and organizational combinations. Academy of Management Review, 14(2), pp. 234–249, 1989. [8] Lei, D. & Slocum, J.W., Global strategy, competence building and strategic alliances. California Management Review, 35(1), pp. 81–97, 1992. [9] Rock, M.L. (ed), Fusioni e Acquisizioni. Aspetti Strategici, Finanziari e Organizzativi, McGraw-Hill: Milano, 1990. [10] Garette, B. & Dussauge, P., Alliances versus acquisitions: choosing the right option. European Management Journal, 18(1), pp. 63–69, 2000. [11] Goetsch, B. & Albers, S., Towards a model of airport–airline interaction. German Aviation Research Society, www.garsonline.de, 2007. [12] Franke, M., Innovation: the winning formula to regain proﬁtability in aviation? Journal of Air Transport Management, 13(1), pp. 23–30, 2007. [13] Graham, A., Managing Airports: An International Perspective, Butterworth Heinemann: Oxford, 2001. [14] Klenk, M., New approaches in airline/airport relations: the charges framework of Frankfurt airport (Chapter 9). The Economic Regulation of Airports. Recent development in Australasia, North America and Europe, ed. P. Forsyth, Ashgate Editors: Berlin, pp. 125–139, 2004. [15] Meersman, H., Van de Voorde, E. & Vanelslander, T., The air transport sector after 2010: a modiﬁed market and ownership structure. European Journal of Transport and Infrastructure Research, 8(2), pp. 71–90, 2008. [16] Auerbach, S. & Koch, B., Cooperative approaches to managing air trafﬁc efﬁciently – the airline perspective. Journal of Air Transport Management, 13(1), pp. 37–44, 2007. [17] Albers, S., Koch, B. & Ruff, C., Strategic alliances between airlines and airports – theoretical assessment and practical evidence. Journal of Air Transport Management, 11(2), pp. 48–58, 2005. [18] Koch, B., Opportunities and limitations to vertical alliance partnerships between airports and airlines. Proceedings of the 6th Conference on Applied Infrastructure Research, 2007.

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[19] Oum, T.H. & Fu, X., Impacts of airports on airlines competition: focus on airport performance and airport–airline vertical integration. Joint Research Transport Centre OECD, discussion paper 17, pp. 3–37, 2008. [20] Humphreys, I., Ison, S. & Francis, G., A review of the airport-low cost airline relationship. Review of Network Economics, 5(4), pp. 413–420, 2006. [21] Seth, A., Sources of value creation in acquisitions: an empirical investigation. Strategic Management Journal, 11(6), pp. 431–446, 1990. [22] Seth, A., Value creation in acquisitions: a re-examination of performance issues. Strategic Management Journal, 11(2), pp. 99–115, 1990. [23] Williamson, O.E., Economies as an antitrust defence: the welfare tradeoffs. American Economic Review, 58(1), pp. 18–36, 1968. [24] Lewellen, W.G., A pure ﬁnancial rationale for the conglomerate merger. Journal of Finance, 26(2), pp. 521–537, 1971. [25] Vicari, S., Nuove Dimensioni della Concorrenza. Strategie nei Mercati Senza Confini, Egea: Milano, 1989. [26] Oum, T.H. & Park, J.H., Airline alliances: current status, policy issues, and future directions. Journal of Air Transport Management, 3(3), pp. 133–144, 1997. [27] Iatrou, K., Oretti, M., Airline Choices for the Future: From Alliances to Mergers, Ashgate Publishing Ltd.: Hampshire, 2007. [28] Clougherty, J.A., US domestic airline mergers: the neglected international determinants. International Journal of Industrial Organization, 20(4), pp. 557–576, 2002. [29] Doganis, R., The Airline Business, 2nd edn, Routledge: London, 2006. [30] Kim, E.H. & Singal, V., Mergers and market power: evidence from the airline industry. American Economic Review, 83(3), pp. 549–569, 1993. [31] Carney, M. & Mew, K., Airport governance reform: a strategic management perspective. Journal of Air Transport Management, 9(4), pp. 221–232, 2003. [32] Serebrisky, T., Market power: airports, vertical integration between airports and airlines. Public Policy Journal, Note Number 259, 2003. [33] Fuhr, J. & Beckers, T., Vertical governance between airlines and airports – a transaction cost analysis. Review of Network Economics, 5(4), pp. 386–412, 2006. [34] Kuchinke, B.A. & Sickmann, J., The joint venture terminal 2 at Munich airport and its consequences: an analysis of competition economics. Proceedings of the 4th Conference on Applied Infrastructure Research, eds F. Fichert, J. Haucap & K. Rommel, INFER Research Perspectives: Berlin, pp. 107–133, 2007. [35] Malighetti, P., Martini, G. & Paleari, S., An empirical investigation on the efﬁciency, capacity and ownership of Italian airports. Rivista di Politica Economica, 47(I–II), pp. 157–188, 2007. [36] Sciandra, L., Aeroporti e Infrastrutture: Prospettive e Criticità del Quadro Regolatorio, Rapporto ISAE, Priorità nazionali. Infrastrutture materiali e immateriali, 2008. [37] Assaeroporti, Analisi della Sostenibilità Economica e Proposte per lo Sviluppo la Mobilità, www. assaeroporti.it, 2006. [38] SH&E International Air Transport Consultancy, Capital Needs and Regulatory Oversight Arrangements. A Survey of European Airports. Aci Europe, 2006. [39] Rosato, P., Proprietà e Governo dell’Impresa di Gestione Aeroportuale, Cacucci Editore: Bari, 2008.

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POTENTIAL DEMAND FOR NEW HIGH SPEED RAIL SERVICES IN HIGH DENSE AIR TRANSPORT CORRIDORS C. ROMÁN & J.C. MARTÍN Departamento de Análisis Económico Aplicado, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017 Las Palmas G.C., Spain.

ABSTRACT Demand analysis is a key element in the evaluation of public policies. The ex ante evaluation of large scale projects involving for example new high speed rail (HSR) services requires the estimation of reliable choice models to predict ridership shares of the new alternatives and to identify the main sources for trafﬁc diversion and trafﬁc generation. This paper analyses and forecasts potential demand for HSR services in the high dense air transport route: the line Madrid–Barcelona. The model aims to explain changes in the demand for interurban rail and air transport as a result of substantial improvements in the level of service due to the introduction of the HSR. Results highlight that the expected volume of demand for the HSR in the corridor is not enough to guarantee a positive social beneﬁt of this project. Keywords: discrete choice modeling, intermodal competition stated preference, mixed RP/SP data.

1 INTRODUCTION Congestion at roads and airports terminals, road accidents and greenhouse gas emissions, represent nowadays the main externalities of the transport systems. These negative effects have raised serious concerns about the impact of infrastructures on regional development, the competitiveness of the transport systems and the environmental quality. To improve intercity mobility, attention has been focused on evaluating alternative transportation services which provide an efﬁcient response to incremental demand in the near future. These include, among others, upgrading conventional rail services to new high speed services using advanced technologies. The impacts caused by investments in high speed rails (HSRs) have been analyzed in the literature in many different ways. Thus, we can classify the studies into the following groups: (i) general assessments [1–7]; (ii) evaluations of the economic proﬁtability of particular corridors or areas, de Rus and Inglada [8, 9] for the HST Madrid–Sevilla, Levinson et al. [10] for Los Angeles–San Francisco, de Rus and Román [11] for the HST Madrid–Zaragoza–Barcelona, Steer Davies Gleave [12] and Atkins [13] for the case of the UK, de Rus and Nombela [14] for the European Union, and Martín and Nombela [15] for the case of Spain; (iii) assessments of the regional effects [16–19], studies of the impacts on accessibility [20–24] and, ﬁnally, regarding (iv) intermodal competition, Combes and Linnemer [25] studied the impacts of the creation of a new infrastructure connecting two points that coexists with old network infrastructure (like roads) using a game theoretic approach. Demand analysis is a key element in the evaluation of public policies. Investment decisions in transport infrastructures cannot be made independently of the volume of potential demand in the inﬂuence area of the new infrastructure, because it determines to a large extent the social beneﬁts of the project. The ex ante evaluation of large scale projects involving for example new HSR services requires the estimation of reliable choice models to predict ridership shares of the new alternatives and to identify the main sources for trafﬁc diversion and trafﬁc generation. The analysis of the perceptions and preferences of passengers on interurban transport is not new in the literature. Discrete choice modeling is usually claimed as a proper methodology to assess and compare the preferences of passengers in the context of modal competition. The behavioral nature

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of disaggregate discrete choice models has led to a widespread use of this tool in the ﬁeld of travel demand modeling. Some recent applications in the context of intercity travel mode choice can be found in Refs. [26–34] among others. The objective of this paper is to analyze and forecast potential demand for new HSR services, the Madrid–Barcelona route, entering in a market characterized by a high density air transport services, and then to compare the estimate and actual measured demand after the entrance of the HSR in the market. The analysis is based on the estimation of a disaggregate demand model that uses information about travelers preferences in the existing modes in this corridor. Preferences for the new HSR alternative are obtained from a stated choice experiment facing air plane users with this new option. The rest of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents some relevant information about the market background. The main characteristics of the datasets used in the analysis are presented in Section 3. Section 4 provides the demand model as well as estimation results. An analysis of potential demand and potential competition of the HSR with air transport is presented in Section 5. Finally, our main conclusions are presented in Section 6. 2 MARKET BACKGROUND Rail sector has received considerable attention within the European transport policy during the past decades, focusing more recently on the development of the HSR networks. Spain has adopted this policy and will account by 2010 with one of the densest HSR network in the world, with more kilometers than Japan and France, countries that have been pioneers in the development of their HSR networks (Table 1). In fact, the Spanish Infrastructure Master Plan has considered an expenditure of nearly 250 billion Euros in the development of the HSR until the year 2020, and by this time, the Spanish network is expected to reach 10,000 km. Figure 1 shows the Spanish HSR network. Some lines are in operation (in green), some under construction (in yellow), some are planned (in red) and some other are in study (in pink). The picture gives an idea of the density of the network in the future. The new HSR link between Madrid and Barcelona is a good example of this type of policy. Madrid and Barcelona are the most important metropolitan areas of Spain with ﬁve and three million of inhabitants, respectively; they represent important centers of economic activity and there are more than seven million trips per year. Regarding this line, the main difference with respect to the policy followed within the European Union is that Spain accounts with a very good level of other transport facilities linking these two cities. Until the inauguration of the HSR line in February 2008, RENFE provided rail services using conventional trains (Talgo) that connected the two cities in 5 h and 30 min offering a service frequency of eight departures per day in each direction. There is a 625-km motorway connecting these two cities in about 6 h and 20 min (being the link Zaragoza–Barcelona a toll road). Madrid and Barcelona are also connected by air shuttle and regular services and this route has recently become the most important domestic market in the world, with near ﬁve million passengers per year. This route is comparable, in terms of trafﬁc, with other important domestic markets, e.g. Sao Paulo–Rio de Janeiro, Melbourne–Sydney, and Cape Town–Johannesbourg (Table 2). Table 1: Length of the HSR networks. Country Spain (year 2010) Japan (Shinkansen) France (TGV)

HSR network (km) 2,230 2,090 1,893

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Figure 1: High speed railway network in Spain. Year 2008. Table 2: High dense air domestic markets. Route Madrid–Barcelona Sao Paulo–Rio de Janeiro Melbourne–Sydney Cape Town–Johannesbourg

Flights per week 971 894 851 831

Source: OAG BACK Aviation Solutions. The new high speed train (HST) replaced conventional train services and entered in the market with the objective of attracting new passengers and deviating trafﬁc from the air transport (the principal mode in the route), offering an improved level of service. In Table 3 we compare the main service attributes of the HST with the rest of the modes. As we can see, the HST improves substantially the level of service of the conventional train in terms of travel time (50% reduction) and service frequency (more than 50% increment in departures per day). This new alternative represents a close substitute of the air transport mode, but while total travel time (in vehicle plus waiting time) is similar in both modes, the plane is still very competitive in service frequency. In fact, one of the air sector reactions to the HST entrance was to use planes of reduced size in order to maintain a good level of service frequency.

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3 DATA COLLECTION 3.1 The sample selection A survey of travelers in the Madrid–Barcelona corridor was conducted in order to obtain information about the principal modes of transport: car driver, car passenger, bus, conventional train, and airplane. Data were collected during the second term of the year 2004, avoiding vacation periods (Easter and local holidays). At this time, the HST was already operating between Madrid and Zaragoza, but rail services between Madrid and Barcelona were still provided by conventional trains. A speciﬁc revealed preference (RP) questionnaire was designed for each mode of transport. As the main purpose of the research was to study the potential demand for the new HST alternative to stated choice (SC) experiment was included in the questionnaire of plane users as this mode was thought to be a close substitute of the new service. A choice-based sample was selected in order to ensure that sufﬁcient observations are obtained for each of the modes currently chosen by each traveler. Modal shares in the sample were determined trying to replicate modal shares in the population, given the available information at the time the surveys were carried out and considering a maximum error of 10% [35]. Table 4 presents the modal share in the sample. Air travel is by far the dominant mode in this corridor, transporting over 66% of travelers. Car travel is the next largest market (12%), followed by train (11%) and bus (8%). The survey was randomly administered to bus, train and plane travelers through personal interviews. Bus users were interviewed in the bus station, train users inside the train, while air transport users were approached at the corresponding boarding gates at the Barajas Airport (Madrid). For the latter, interviews were completed with the aid of personal computers that allowed us to implement a stated choice experiment (facing the actual alternative with the new HST) according to the current trip experience. Flights and scheduled trips by bus and train were sampled over 1 week and at various times of the day in order to capture both peak and off peak travelers. A self-administered Table 3: Comparison of the main service attributes. Attribute

HST

Travel time (in vehicle) Fare/(fuel + toll): Regular Shuttle service Frequency (departures/ day one way)

Plane Conventional train

2 h 38 min

1h

5 h 30 min

102€ 163€

96€ 199€

65€

18

138

8

Car

6 h 22 min 8–9 h 70.52€ (24.15€ toll) 28€–35€–41€ (46.37€ fuel) 26

Table 4: Modal share in the sample. Mode Car driver Car passenger Bus Train (conventional) Plane

Bus

Travelers

%

38 18 39 51 295

8.62 4.08 8.84 11.56 66.89

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questionnaire was randomly distributed to motorist traveling between Madrid and Barcelona. Individuals were located at petrol stations strategically placed in the national motorway A-II and were asked to complete the questionnaire and mail it back. 3.2 The revealed preference questionnaire In all cases, the RP questionnaire was divided into four sections of questions: identiﬁcation data, current trip information, household information and personal information. Details of the current trip included trip origin and destination, travel cost, time spent on the main travel mode, access and egress mode and the time taken to access and egress the main mode, waiting time, trip purpose, trip frequency, habitual mode for a similar trip, and other details needed to measure the attributes of the non-chosen alternatives. Socioeconomic information was collected at household and individual level. Household questions included: members in the household, number of cars and household income. Individual level questions include: age, gender, education level, activity, number of working hours, job position and personal income. In our sample, total travel time by plane (3 h 10 min) is substantially less than in the rest of the modes (6 h 20 min in car, 7 h 8 min in train and 9 h 39 min in bus) but, in this mode the proportion of access and egress time reaches about 70% of the total trip duration. Nearly 56% of trips were mandatory (work and education) being this percentage over 60% for plane and train travelers. The highest proportion of non-mandatory trips is found among bus travelers (74%). Regarding gender, 54% of travelers were men. We also observed substantial differences in per capita weekly income, ranging from 167 € for car passengers to 351 € for plane users. Table 5 shows the classiﬁcation of the habitual mode used for a similar trip in terms of the chosen mode for this trip. Figures show that most of plane users (85.76%), use regularly this mode for traveling between Madrid and Barcelona, and rarely use conventional train and bus. This is not the case for the rest of the modes where the ﬁdelization rate does not exceed 52%. Also a substantial percentage of people in the sample who chose car declared that this was their ﬁrst trip. This percentage is very low for plane users (7.12%) which demonstrate that this segment (plane users) corresponds to frequent travelers. 3.3 The stated choice experimental design Given that the HSR services were not currently available at the time this study, the ability to predict HSR market share using RP information about the existing modes is not possible. For this reason, a SC experiment was designed and included in the questionnaire devoted to plane travelers. The experiment creates hypothetical choice situations facing plane users with the new HSR alternative. These choice scenarios are created using the actual trip context to give the experiment more realism. Table 5: Chosen mode vs. habitual mode. Habitual mode (%)

Chosen mode

Plane

Car

Train

Bus

First trip

Plane Car Train Bus

85.76 10.71 13.73 0.00

5.08 41.07 13.73 10.26

1.69 8.93 47.06 0.00

0.34 5.36 0.00 51.28

7.12 33.93 25.49 38.46

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The attributes included in the experiment represent typical level-of-service variables like travel time, access time, travel cost and headway (time between two consecutive services). We also include the latent variables reliability and comfort. This set of variables helped us to deﬁne the global quality of the alternative in each choice situation. In order to simplify the exercise and reduce the respondent burden (avoiding unnecessary biases), the effect of other attributes, such as the waiting time, was measured only in the RP context. (Other reason for not including waiting time in the SP experiment is that a substantial amount of this time is imposed by the safety control regulations at airports and it is out of control of the managers of the transport system.) All the effects are posteriorly included in the hybrid utility constructed in the mixed RP/SP estimation method. To gain realism, the levels assigned to some attributes in the SC exercise were customized to each respondent experience pivoting the information provided by the RP questions around the reference alternative (the plane, in this case). Thus, the levels of travel cost and access time were deﬁned in terms of the values experienced by the sample respondents and plausible percentage variations according to the available information about future fares and access time for the HSR were also considered. The attribute levels used in the SC experiment are summarized in Table 6. Table 6: Attributes and levels. Mode Attributes Travel cost (cv) Travel time (tv)

Access + egress time (ta)

Levels

Plane

HSR

0 1 2 0 1 2 0 1 2

cv × 1.10 cv cv × 0.90 1 h 20 min 1 h 10 min 1h ta × 1.20 ta ta × 0.80

cv cv × 0.90 cv × 0.80 2 h 45 min 2 h 30 min 2 h 15 min ta ta × 0.90 ta × 0.80

Departure Departure before 9:00 after 9:00 Every 30 min Every 60 min Every 15 min Every 30 min 30 min delay (Inside the plane) 15 min delay (in the boarding gate) Departure on time Low: Small leg room Narrow seats High: Ample leg room Wide seats

Departure Departure before 9:00 after 9:00 Every 60 min Every 90 min Every 30 min Every 60 min 10 min delay

Frequency (headway) (f)

Reliability (r)

0 1 0 1

Comfort (C)

2 0 1

cv = travel cost in plane. ta = access + egress time in plane.

5 min delay Departure on time

High: Ample leg room Wide seats

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An experimental design consisting in nine scenarios for each alternative was created using the program WINMINT (a standard software, developed by Rand Europe http://www.hpgholding.nl/ (the former Hague Consulting Group (HCG)), which is frequently used to conduct SC experiments). Table 7 presents the combination of attribute levels in the experimental design. The program automatically created nine different choice sets for each person, selecting at random one scenario in each alternative. Thus, for example, if the scenario 3 was selected for the plane and the scenario 8 for the HSR, the choice set in Table 8 would be presented to the traveler. Thus, every respondent (i.e. the 295 plane users) provided nine stated preference (SP) observations obtaining a total of 2,655 statistical observations. After removing 179 inconsistent responses (those where the individual chose the worse alternative), we obtained a mixed RP/SP database of 2,917 observations. 4 THE DEMAND MODEL Discrete choice models have been widely used to study consumers’ behavior. The main interest lies on their ability to predict decision maker’s choices and to analyze demand response to changes in the

Table 7: Attribute levels in the experimental design. Plane (attribute levels)

HSR (attribute levels)

Scenario.

cv

tv

ta

r

f

C

cv

tv

ta

r

f

C

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

0 0 0 1 1 1 2 2 2

0 1 2 0 1 2 0 1 2

0 1 2 1 2 0 2 0 1

0 2 1 1 0 2 2 1 0

0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0

0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0

0 0 0 1 1 1 2 2 2

0 1 2 0 1 2 0 1 2

0 1 2 1 2 0 2 0 1

0 2 1 1 0 2 2 1 0

0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Table 8: Example of choice situation.

Travel cost Travel time Access + egress time Reliability Service frequency Comfort

Plane

HSR

99 € 1h 36 min 15 min delay Every 30 min Low (small leg room)

72 € 2 h 30 min 45 min 5 min delay Every 60 min High (ample leg room)

Actual Travel cost: 90 €, Actual Access time: 45 min, Departure before 9:00 Which alternative do you prefer for a trip like this one? Plane HSR

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attributes of the alternatives. The classic model of rational choice is based on two fundamental properties: consistency and transitivity. The ﬁrst implies that the same choice selection should be obtained under identical circumstances; the second provides a unique ordering of alternatives on a preference scale (see e.g. Ref. [36]). A choice among a set of alternatives requires the application of a decision rule. The utility maximization behavioral rule lies under the scheme of the rational choice and normally implies a compensatory decision process, i.e. individuals made trade-offs among attributes in determining the alternative with the highest utility. Since the analyst does not have full information about the utility of the decision maker q for the alternative j, it is modeled as the sum of two components: a deterministic or observable utility Vjq, expressed in terms of a vector of attributes (Xjq) of the alternative and a vector of socioeconomic characteristics of the individual (Sq); and a random term ejq, representing the portion of utility unknown to the analyst. Thus, the true utility to the decision maker is represented by the random variable Ujq = Vjq + ejq; and therefore, the analyst, under the assumption of utility maximization, is only able to model the choice probability of the different alternatives. Different assumptions about the distribution of the unobserved portion of utility ejq result in different representations of the choice model. Thus, the famous multinomial logit (MNL) and nested logit (NL) models are obtained when ejq are i.i.d. extreme value and a type of generalized extreme value, respectively (see Refs. [37, 35] for more details about the derivation of choice probabilities in random utility models). In this paper we use a mixed RP/SP data set. In order to obtain the same variance in the error terms for the RP (se2 ) and SP (sh2 ) utilities, a scale factor µ satisfying se2 = m2 sh2 needs to be estimated [38]. Bradley and Daly [39] proposed an estimation method based on the construction of an artiﬁcial NL structure, usually referred as the ‘Nested Logit trick’, where RP alternatives are placed just below the root and each SP alternative is placed in a single-alternative nest with a common nest parameter µ [35]. We speciﬁed modal utility in terms of the main level-of-service attributes, namely, travel time (tv), travel cost (cv), waiting time (te), access + egress time (ta) and service headway ( f ). We considered a linear-in-the-parameter (but not linear-in-the-attributes) speciﬁcation that included transport costs divided by the expenditure rate (g, deﬁned as per capita family income divided by available time, that is, total time per period (a week in this case) minus working hours) (following Jara-Díaz and Farah [40]). We also included cost squared terms divided by the expenditure rate and the income (I, deﬁned as per capita family income per week), as we obtained a signiﬁcant proportion of money spent in transport, for the different modes, as recommended by Jara-Díaz [41]. This speciﬁcation indicates that the marginal utility of the travel cost (which coincides with minus the marginal utility of income) varies with g, I and cv yielding a different value for each individual. We also deﬁne two different interactions, namely T (trip motive) with travel time and access + egress time with a dummy variable Ta < 60 (1, if access + egress time is less than 60 min, 0 otherwise). The last dummy variable is used to capture the time intensity of this component on the total travel time. For the SP alternatives (the new HST and plane) the utility was deﬁned in function of the attributes included in the choice experiment: travel time (tv), travel cost (cv), access + egress time (ta), service headway (f), reliability (r), expressed in terms of the delay time and comfort (C). The latter was speciﬁed interacting with travel time in order to obtain the perception of comfort in terms of the duration of the trip as well as the perception of travel time in terms of the level of comfort. Regarding model structure we tested different NL structures for the RP alternatives. The best ﬁt was found in the case of correlation between the plane and the conventional train. Estimation results are shown in Table 9. All parameter estimates have the expected sign and are signiﬁcant at a 95% conﬁdence level, with the exception of the headway, the waiting time and the

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Table 9: Estimation results. Parameter

Estimates (t-test)

Car driver constant

Ccc

Car passenger constant

Cca

Bus constant

Cb

Train constant

Ct

Travel time (tv)

qtv

Travel cost/g (cv/g)

qcv/g

Headway (f)

qf

Travel cost2/gI (cv2/gI)

qcv2/gI

Access + egress time (ta)

qta

Waiting time (te)

qte

Travel time_Work + education (tv × T)

qtv_T

Access + egress time_T acc + egr < 60 (Ta<60 × ta)

qta_Ta<60

Reliability (delay) (r)

qr

Travel time × comfort high (C × tv)

qC_tv

HSR–Plane nest parameter

Φ

Scale factor SP

m

l*(0) l*(q) Observations

−3.8060 (−3.1) −4.7120 (−3.4) −2.5810 (−2.5) −1.0000 (−2.5) −0.0047 (−2.8) −0.0572 (−4.7) −0.0011 (−0.5) 0.0174 (3.9) −0.0199 (−4.9) −0.0028 (−0.4) −0.0009 (−1.0) 0.0096 (2.5) −0.0180 (−2.6) 0.0026 (1.8) 0.3651 (3.2) [−5.62]* 0.9026 (3.2) [−0.34]* −2124.7995 −1997.3985 2917

*t-Test with respect to Φ = 1 and µ = 1. interaction of travel time with trip motive. All the alternative speciﬁc constants (considering plane as reference) for the RP alternatives are signiﬁcant and have negative sign, indicating that plane would be preferred if the effect of the other attributes were zero. We also obtained that the disutility produced by travel time increases as the level of comfort diminishes and that access + egress time

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produces more disutility to individuals who employ more than 60 min in access and egress to and from the airport or station. 5 DEMAND FOR NEW HIGH SPEED RAIL SERVICES 5.1 Potential demand To obtain the choice probabilities, we apply the sample enumeration method [35] to individuals in the RP data base. Probabilities are computed from a hybrid utility containing common and noncommon RP/SP parameters (see Ref. [42] for more details). If attributes were only deﬁned for the SP case (i.e. comfort, and reliability) their parameters must be scaled by µ. However, those corresponding to attributes measured in the RP data base do not need to be scaled even if they only appear in the SP utility [43]. Table 10 presents the actual (without the HSR; this was the situation at the time this study was carried out and the alternatives were: car (driver and passenger), bus, conventional train and plane) and future (with the new HSR) predictions of the market share for the different modes. Actual market shares are obtained from the values of the different attributes in the RP sample for the existing alternatives. As the HSR will replace the conventional train, future market shares are obtained considering all the available information about this new alternative. This includes 50% reduction in travel time, 50% increase in the service frequency and special reductions in fares for internet tickets. Thus, it is assumed a 30% reduction in prices for individuals paying the tourist fare. According to this, the model predicts an entrance market share for the new HSR (without considering generated trips) of near 36%, representing an increase of 190% for the share of the rail mode. Considering a total demand of six million passengers per year in the most important modes of public transport (rail and plane), and considering different hypothesis about generated trafﬁc (new trips produced as a result of the introduction of the new alternative) in the HSR (15%, 20% and 30%), Table 11 shows the demand forecast for the new HSR in the ﬁrst year of operation. Even in the most favorable hypothesis of 30% of generated trafﬁc, the demand for the new HSR would not exceed 3.2 million passengers per year. This ﬁgure does not cope with the high expectations of RENFE (the company that operates railways in Spain) that predicted an entrance share for the HSR of 60%. Figure 2 compares predictions of the model with real volumes of trafﬁc in the ﬁrst year of operation of the HSR (2008). Although it is difﬁcult to know how many new trips are going to be generated as a consequence of the introduction of the new rail alternative, the hypothesis that better ﬁts the real data for the year 2008 is 10%, which represents about 0.25 million new passengers per year. Table 10: Predicted market shares. Predicted market share Mode Car driver Car passenger Bus Train/HSR Plane

Actual (without HSR) (%) Future (with HSR) (%) 6 4 8 12 69

4 3 6 36 51

% −30% −29% −32% 190% −26%

Table 11: Demand prediction for the HSR and plane. Demand prediction Madrid–Barcelona Million pax/year (Share %)

Predicted market shares for rail and plane (%)

Train/HSR Plane Total (million pax/year)

Actual (without HST)

Future (with HSR)

15% 85% 100%

41% 59% 100%

% 172% −31%

0.91 (15.16%) 5.09 (84.83%) 6.00

Future (including generated trafﬁc in HSR (%)) 10% 2.71 (43%) 3.54 (57%) 6.25

20%

30%

2.95 (45%) 3.20 (48%) 3.54 (55%) 3.54 (52%) 6.49 6.74

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Mode

Actual (6 million pax/year in public transport plane + rail)

Including generated trafﬁc.

45

46

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Million Passengers per year (2008)

8.00 7.00 6.00 5.00

Real Data (2008) 10% gen. traffic

4.00

20% gen traffic 30% gen traffic

3.00 2.00 1.00 0.00 HSR

PLANE

TOTAL

Figure 2: Demand predictions vs. actual volume of trafﬁc. Year 2008. Evolution of the HSR and plane market shares 80% 70%

Market share

60% 50% 40% 30% HSR PLANE PLANE BEFORE HSR (69%)

20% 10%

80%

75%

70%

65%

60%

55%

50%

45%

40%

35%

30%

25%

20%

15%

10%

5%

0%

0%

Reduction in plane fares

Figure 3: Reaction of plane to HSR entrance.

5.2 Potential competition In this section we analyze how competition is going to be held in this market according to our model. Figure 3 shows the reaction of the plane, in terms of price competition, to the HSR entrance (the other modes (car and bus) which present a marginal share in this corridor are not shown in the

47

Regional Airports Evolution of the HSR and plane market shares 80% 70%

Market share

60% 50% 40%

º

30% HSR PLANE HSR ENTRANCE SHARE (36%)

20% 10%

95%

100%

Reduction in HSR fares

90%

85%

80%

75%

70%

65%

60%

55%

50%

45%

40%

35%

30%

25%

20%

15%

10%

5%

0%

0%

Figure 4: Reaction of the HSR to the reduction of plane fares.

ﬁgure). The model predicts an entrance market share for the HST of 36% (Table 10). If the plane reacts to the HSR entrance, a reduction in fares of 70% would be needed in order to attain the previous market share before the HSR entrance (69%), leaving for the HSR a 20% of the market. In after the plane strategy, the HSR reacts lowering its own fares, a reduction of 95% would be required in order to obtain the HSR entrance share of 36% (Fig. 4). Whether these pricing policies could be exerted by airlines and RENFE is out of the scope of the present paper. However, airlines and bus companies are accusing RENFE, a public ﬁrm, of anti-competitive behavior because prices are based on political decisions that do not reﬂect the infrastructure costs. 6 CONCLUSIONS Most infrastructure projects, such as the HSR between Madrid and Barcelona, require an ex ante evaluation before compromising public funds. However, in practice, it is common to observe that these analyses are biased and tend to exaggerate the competitive advantages of the HSR. The special attention paid within the European transport policy to the rail sector, has created an important debate among economists about the social proﬁtability of the HSR projects, which depend to a high extent on the volume of trafﬁc as well as the travelers willingness to pay for improvements in the quality of the service. (All the willingness to pay measures corresponding to this corridor are presented in Ref. [44].) In fact, the value of the different components of the travel time in this corridor represents substantial ﬁgures: 10.17 €/h for the waiting time, 22.41 €/h for in-vehicle travel time for business trips and 46.45 €/h for the access and egress time [44]. In this paper we have analyzed the potential demand for new HSR services in high dense air transport corridors like the route linking Madrid and Barcelona. The analysis is based on the estimation of a discrete choice model using a mixed RP/SP dataset. RP data provide information about individuals’ preferences in a real market; while SP data provide travelers’ stated behavior in the presence of new alternatives. The utility function for the different RP alternatives is deﬁned in terms of the

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main level-of-service attributes: travel costs, the different components of total travel time and service frequency. For the SP alternatives (plane and HSR), we also include the latent variables reliability and comfort. The model detects a source of correlation between the plane and conventional train. This correlation is expected to be higher after the entrance of the HSR as this mode is a closer substitute for the air transport. The analysis carried out shows that the expected volume of demand for the HSR in the Madrid– Barcelona corridor (between 2.7 and 3.2 million passengers per year) is not enough to guarantee a positive social beneﬁt of this project. De Rus and Román [11] point out that at least 17 million passengers would be needed to obtain a positive net present value in this corridor. These results, jointly with the low rate of return of HSR projects, cast some doubts on the potential competition that HSRs can exert in markets that have been characterized in the past by a high frequency of air services. For this reason, policy makers should take into account that the amount of money dedicated to build very expensive infrastructures could have had alternative uses that might be more efﬁcient. REFERENCES [1] Laird, J.J., Nellthorp, J. & Mackie, P.J., Network effects and total economic impact in transport appraisal. Transport Policy, 12, pp. 537–544, 2005. [2] Martin, F., Justifying a high-speed rail project: social value vs. regional growth. The Annals of Regional Science, 31, pp. 155–174, 1997. [3] Nash, C.A., The case for high speed rail, Institute for Transport Studies, The University of Leeds Working Paper 323, Leeds, 1991. [4] Sichelschmidt, H., The EU programme “trans-European networks” – critical assessment. Transport Policy, 6, pp. 169–181, 1999. [5] Short, J. & Kopp, A., Transport infrastructure: investment and planning. Policy and research aspects. Transport Policy, 12, pp. 360–367, 2005. [6] Van Exel, J., Rienstra, S., Gommers, M., Pearman, A. & Tsamboulas, D., EU involvement in TEN development: network effects and European value added. Transport Policy, 9, pp. 299–311, 2002. [7] Vickerman, R.W., High-speed rail in Europe: experience and issues for future development. The Annals of Regional Science, 31, pp. 21–38, 1997. [8] de Rus, G. & Inglada, V., Análisis coste-beneﬁcio del tren de alta velocidad en España. Revista de Economía Aplicada, 3, pp. 27–48, 1993. [9] de Rus, G. & Inglada, V., Cost-beneﬁt analysis of the high-speed train in Spain. The Annals of Regional Science, 31, pp. 175–188, 1997. [10] Levinson, D., Mathieu, J.M., Gillen, D. & Kanafani, A., The full cost of high speed rail: an engineering approach. The Annals of Regional Science, 31, pp. 189–215, 1997. [11] de Rus, G. & Román, C., Análisis económico de la línea de alta velocidad Madrid-Barcelona. Revista de Economía Aplicada, 42, pp. 35–80, 2006. [12] Steer Davies Gleave. High Speed Rail: International Comparisons, Commission for Integrated Transport: London, 2004. [13] Atkins, High-speed Line Study, Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions: London, 2004. [14] de Rus, G. & Nombela, G., Is the investment in high speed rail socially profitable? Documento de trabajo EIT, Universidad de Las Palmas, 2004. [15] Martín, J.C. & Nombela, G., Microeconomic impacts of investments in high speed trains in Spain. The Annals of Regional Science, 41, pp. 715–733, 2007.

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[16] Blum, U., Haynes, K.E. & Karlsson, C., Introduction to the special issue: the regional and urban effects of high-speed trains. The Annals of Regional Science, 31, pp. 1–20, 1997. [17] Haynes, K.E., Labor markets and regional transportation improvements: the case of high-speed trains: an introduction and review. The Annals of Regional Science, 31, pp. 57–76, 1997. [18] Plassard, F., High speed transport and regional development. European Conference of Ministers of Transport (eds) Regional Policy Transport Network. OECD, Paris, 1994. [19] Vickerman, R.W., The regional impacts of Trans-European networks. The Annals of Regional Science, 29, pp. 237–254, 1995. [20] Fröidh, O., Market effects of regional high-speed trains on the Svealand line. Journal of Transport Geography, 13(4), pp. 352–361, 2005. [21] Gutiérrez, J., González, R. & Gómez, G., The European high-speed train network: predicted effects on accessibility patterns. Journal of Transport Geography, 4(4), pp. 227–238, 1996. [22] Gutiérrez, J., Location, economic potential and daily accessibility: an analysis of the accessibility impact of the high-speed line. Journal of Transport Geography, 9, pp. 229–242, 2001. [23] Martín, J.C., Gutiérrez, J. & Román, C., Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) index to measure the accessibility impacts of new infrastructure investments: the case of the high-speed train corridor Madrid-Barcelona-French border. Regional Studies, 38(6), pp. 697–712, 2004. [24] Vickerman, R.W., Spiekermann, K. & Wegener, M., Accessibility and economic development in Europe, Regional Studies, 33(1), pp. 1–15, 1999. [25] Combes, P.P & Linnemer, L., Intermodal competition and regional inequalities. Regional Science and Urban Economics, 30, pp. 131–184, 2000. [26] Koppelman, F.S. & Wen, C.H., Nested logit models: which are you using? Transportation Research Record, 1645, pp. 1–7, 1998. [27] Bhat, C.R., Accommodating variations in responsiveness to level-of-service measures in travel mode choice modelling. Transportation Research Part A, 32(7), pp. 495–507, 1998. [28] KPMG Peat Marwick in association with ICF Kaiser Engineers, Inc., Midwest System Sciences, Resource Systems Group, Comsis Corporation and Transportation Consulting Group. Florida High Speed and Intercity Rail Market and Ridership Study: Final Report, Submitted to Florida Department of Transportation, 1993. [29] Hensher, D.A., A practical approach to identifying the market potential for high speed rail: a case study in the Sydney-Canberra corridor. Transportation Research Part A, 31(6), pp. 431–446, 1997. [30] González-Savignat, M., Competition in air transport. The case of the high speed train. Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, 38(1), pp. 77–108, 2004. [31] Park, Y. & Ha, H.-K., Analysis of the impact of high-speed railroad service on air transport demand. Transportation Research Part E, 42, pp. 95–104, 2006. [32] Ahern, A.A. & Tapley, N., The use of stated preference techniques to model modal choices on interurban trips in Ireland. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 42(1), pp. 15–27, 2008. [33] Rigas, K., Boat or airplane? Passengers’ perceptions of transport services to islands. The example of the Greek domestic leisure market. Journal of Transport Geography, 17(5), pp. 396–401, 2009. [34] Ortúzar, J. de D. & Simonetti, C., Modelling the demand for medium distance air travel with the mixed data estimation method. Journal of Air Transport Management, 14, pp. 297–303, 2008.

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[35] Ortúzar, J. de D. & Willumsen, L.G., Modelling Transport, 3rd edn. John Wiley & Sons: Chichester, 2001. [36] Koppelman, F.S. & Bhat, C., A self instructing course in mode choice modeling: multinomial and nested logit models. U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration, 2006. [37] Train, K., Discrete Choice Methods with Simulation, Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 2003. [38] Ben-Akiva, M.E. & Morikawa, T., Estimation of travel demand models from multiple data sources. Proceedings 11th International Symposium on Transportation and Traffic Theory, Yokohama, 1990. [39] Bradley, M.A. & Daly, A.J., Estimation of logit choice models using mixed stated preference and revealed preference information. Understanding Travel Behavior in an Era of Change, ed. P.R. Stopher & M. Lee-Gosselin, Pergamon: Oxford, pp. 209–32, 1997. [40] Jara-Díaz, S.R. & Farah, M., Transport demand and users’ beneﬁts with ﬁxed income: the goods/leisure trade-off revisited. Transportation Research, 21B, pp. 165–170, 1987. [41] Jara-Díaz, S.R., Time and income in travel choice: towards a microeconomic activity-based theoretical framework. Theoretical Foundations of Travel Choice Modeling, ed. T. Garling, T. Laitila & K. Westin, Elsevier Science: Nueva York, pp. 51–74, 1998. [42] Louviere, J.J., Hensher, D.A. & Swait, J.D., Stated Choice Methods: Analysis and Application, Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 2000. [43] Cherchi, E. & Ortúzar, J. de D., On ﬁtting mode-speciﬁc constants in the presence of new options in RP/SP models. Transportation Research, 40A, pp. 1–18, 2004. [44] Román, C., Espino, R. & Martín, J.C., Analyzing competition between the high speed train and alternative modes. The case of the Madrid-Zaragoza-Barcelona Corridor. Journal of Choice Modelling, 3(1), pp. 84–108 2010.

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REGIONAL AIRPORTS AND THE ACCESSIBILITY OF MOUNTAIN AREAS: NETWORKS, IMPORTANCE AND CONTRIBUTION TO DEVELOPMENT X. BERNIER Laboratoire EDYTEM, CNRS, Université de Savoie, France.

ABSTRACT This paper looks at the role and importance of regional airports in mountain areas. The question of accessibility is examined at different scales, from regional airports serving mountain areas to high-altitude aerodromes (altiports) and airstrips (altisurfaces) in mountain resorts. The ways in which air transport is integrated into intermodal transport systems serving tourist areas, most notably mountain resorts, are also investigated. Given the highly seasonal and speciﬁc nature of their use, many airports serving mountain areas are faced with problems of over-sizing or seasonal congestion. Issues such as the socio-economic and environmental integration of regional airports are also extremely important for mountain areas. Altiports and altisurfaces can contribute substantially to the tourism development of mountain regions by improving accessibility for visitors and through leisure aviation. Consequently, regional airports have a substantial impact on an area’s image, whether they are viewed positively, as an aid to development, or negatively, as harmful to the environment. The present analysis was based on several case studies that highlight different aspects of regional air transport in mountain areas. The speciﬁcities of regional airport development in the Alps, and particularly in France, are illustrated by the story of Air Alpes. Attention is also focused on the links between the United Kingdom and Chambéry and Grenoble airports, which are dominated by low-cost airlines. Looking at the larger picture, examples of mountain-periphery and extra-mountain airports in France, Switzerland and Nepal are examined in order to investigate the formation of networks, the importance of regional airports and their contribution to regional development. Keywords: accessibility, Alps, altiports, Himalaya, mountain, regional airports, transport networks, tourism.

1 INTRODUCTION Giblin’s [1] work on regional airports highlights the exceptional density of airports in countries such as the United States and France. For example, France has 1.02 airports per million inhabitants (based on airports with a trafﬁc ﬂow of more than 10,000 passengers per year). Even if the difference with its European neighbours is less substantial when airport density is calculated as a function of the size of the country, its large volume of tourist trafﬁc tends to make France a special case. Trafﬁc-ﬂow statistics for 2008 [2] show that France’s mountain and mountain-periphery airports have performed particularly well. These airports include Chambéry (270,632 passengers) and Grenoble (469,777) in the Alps, and Tarbes (678,897) in the Pyrenees (Table 1). Having grown rapidly since 2002, these airports are characterised by very high percentages of international trafﬁc (83.5% of recorded trafﬁc in 2008 for Tarbes, 98.5% for Chambéry and 99.5% for Grenoble). At a time of rapid restructuring within the air-transport sector, and although the implications of the current ﬁnancial crisis are difﬁcult to discern, these airports have beneﬁted from the development of links with northern Europe, in particular with Scandinavia and Great Britain. Most of this growth can be attributed to the development of low-cost services (76,210 passengers, an increase of 78.7% since 2004 for Chambéry) and of business aviation, even if the neighbouring international airports of Geneva-Cointrin (Switzerland) and Lyon-Saint Exupéry (France) are becoming increasingly competitive in this latter market. One of the cornerstones for these ongoing processes is the liberalisation of air transport [3, 4], which began in the early 2000s.

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Table 1: Statistics for France’s three regional mountain airports. % of Incl. Passengers 2004–2008 international low-cost 2008 (%) trafﬁc services Chambéry 270,632

10.6

98.5

Grenoble

469,777

23.2

99.5

Tarbes

678,897

13.4

83.5

Main airlines

Run Car Area away parks (ha) (m) (m+2)

76,210 Jet2/Flybe/ 100 2,020 35,000 Snowjet 242,477 Easyjet/Ryanair/ 200 3,050 45,000 Transavia/Wizz air 0 Air France 196 3,000 62,000

Source: UDF/2008. The development of mountain airports must be considered in terms of access to mountain areas, particularly tourist areas. Hence, the present article examines the accessibility of mountain areas through the prism of regional airports. It begins by showing how the development of airlines such as Air Alpes contributed to the formation of a network of airports. These airports formed the foundation for a ‘primary’ air-transport network. The development and evolution of specialist airﬁelds, such as ‘altiports’ (a term coined in 1962 following the ﬁrst landing on a rough airstrip at Meribel in the French Alps), is one of the keys for understanding the current situation. However, accessibility has often become synonymous with intermodality, with different types of intermodal strategy for connecting mountain areas to regional airports being possible. The article concludes by presenting a typology of regional airports based on how they are integrated into evolving mountain and mountain-periphery transport systems. 2 ACCUMULATIVE FORMATION OF A NETWORK OF SERVICES AND THE NODAL–AXIAL INTERACTIONS AT THE ORIGIN OF A ‘PRIMARY’ AIR-TRANSPORT NETWORK Transport networks in mountain areas were not designed as networks from the outset. The networks we see today were formed by the accumulation of individual services set up by the pioneers of mountain aviation. The result was a transportation network that can be considered ‘primary’. 2.1 Speciﬁc infrastructure, technical and legal frameworks The speciﬁc characteristics of the mountain environment led Debarbieux [5] and Sacareau [6] to re-examine and redeﬁne the scientiﬁc paradigms used to deﬁne the notion of ‘mountain area’. Because mountains impose a certain number of constraints on air trafﬁc, and because of the distinctive characteristics of mountain aerodromes and trafﬁc ﬂows, the infrastructure, technical and legal frameworks surrounding mountain airports are often highly speciﬁc. Regional airports capable of accepting a wide range of aircraft require large areas of land. For example, Tarbes airport covers 196 ha, which includes 62,000 m² of car parks and a 3,000-m runway. Grenoble and Chambéry airports both cover 200 ha, and have 45,000 m² and 35,000 m² of car parks and 3,000-m and 2,000-m runways, respectively. Suitable sites are often difﬁcult to ﬁnd because the ﬂat expanses of land airports needs tend to be coveted for other uses and areas surrounding centres of population are often already built up. Sandwiched between Lake Bourget and the mountains, Chambéry airport undoubtedly feels most strongly the constraints imposed by mountain topography. In fact, pilots landing at

Regional Airports

53

Chambéry have to undergo speciﬁc training and obtain a special qualiﬁcation. Most regional airports are nevertheless located at low altitude. Airports at higher altitudes are subject to local conditions. In its Aeronautical Information Publication, France’s Civil Aviation Authority (Direction Générale de l’Aviation Civile) deﬁnes altiports as aerodromes with special characteristics built in mountain areas for the purposes of air transport. They are approved for restricted uses and pilots and aircraft using these aerodromes must meet the conditions stipulated by the head of the district. France has an especially large number of this type of airﬁeld (Mégève in Haute-Savoie, Courchevel and Méribel in Savoie, Alpe d’Huez in Isère, Corlier in the Ain, La Motte-Chalançon in the Drôme and Peyresourde in the Hautes-Pyrénées). Most have tarmac runways and some have a control tower. Altisurfaces (including ‘glacier’ altisurfaces) are areas in the mountains that can be used by certain types of aircraft for air travel, transport on demand or non-commercial air operations. They are certiﬁed under prefectoral by-laws and restricted to pilots and aircraft that meet certain conditions. In both cases, pilots making wheeled landings must have a ‘mountain’ qualiﬁcation, and pilots making ski landings must have a ski qualiﬁcation (snow extension). Some altiports also require pilots to have a ‘site authorisation’. It should be noted that France is the only country with speciﬁc legislation for altiports and altisurfaces. Despite the speciﬁc topography-related conditions associated with airﬁelds in the mountains (mountain wind systems, local turbulence/‘rabattants’, foehn winds, venturi effect), pilots do not need any special qualiﬁcations when the departure and arrival points are ‘classic’ aerodromes. The lack of ﬂat ground has been turned into an advantage, as altiports and altisurfaces use the slope to assist take-offs and landings. Another factor that may be more limiting in some mountain areas is ﬂight restrictions associated with national parks: by law, aircraft cannot ﬂy low over national parks, regional parks and nature reserves (minimum altitude of 1,000 m above ground for national parks and 300 m above the ground for regional parks and nature reserves). Despite these difﬁculties, most altiports and altisurfaces (C and D) are linked to regional airports (B). Figure 1 provides a summary model of the processes at work. The resulting network constitutes a more or less whole, even if operations are very seasonal and reliant on tourism. A small number of actors have been determinant in the development of this network. 2.2 A cumulative process that is closely linked to the story of certain airlines In this process of network formation by accumulation, which truly began in the early 1960s, Air Alpes is a key company for understanding the improved accessibility of mountain areas and, more generally, the recent history of regional aviation in Western Europe. Formed in 1961 by two French pilots, Robert Merloz and Michel Ziegler, Air Alpes was the ﬁrst airline to be set up speciﬁcally to provide regular services to ski resorts (which led in 1962 to the building of the world’s ﬁrst altiports at Courchevel – where Air Alpes had its head ofﬁce – and at Méribel) and to offer new services within resorts, such as landing skiers on glaciers. The ﬁrst phase was the creation of winter services (Lyon to Courchevel and Méribel and Geneva to Courchevel and Méribel), connections with other altiports (such as La Plagne, Val d’Isère, Alpe d’Huez, Avoriaz and Tignes), the ﬁrst inter-resort services, and the ﬁrst summer services to Corsica (Ajaccio, Propriano, Calvi). In 1967, 10,590 passengers were carried using aircraft such as the famous Pilatus Turbo Porter. The second period, starting in 1968, was the golden age of regional aviation. Air Alpes contributed enthusiastically to this development, alongside other airlines such as Rousseau Aviation, TAT (Touraine Air Transport), Air Paris and Europe Aéro Service. Almost 50 airlines operated a total of 100 regular or seasonal services and carried more than 500,000 passengers. Aircraft plying the Chambéry (where Air Alpes now had its head ofﬁce)–Grenoble–Nice–Ajaccio route were even ﬁtted with skis in order to land at Courchevel altiport! This was the era of ﬂights from Paris-Le Bourget to Chambéry (in 115 min and,

54

Regional Airports (a)

(b)

Figure 1: Formation of networks by accumulation. most importantly, it was a direct service), Geneva and Lyon to Courchevel, Grenoble to Alpe d’Huez, and Nice to Courchevel. It also saw links being made with other airlines, such as Switzerland’s ATA (Air Tourisme Alpin) and the formation, largely due to the efforts of Michel Ziegler of ATAR (Association of Air Transporters, which brought together Air Alpes, Air Alsace, Air Aquitaine, Air Languedoc, Pyrénair, Air Rouergue, Air Antilles, Air Martinique and Guyane Air Transport). The airports of Grenoble-St. Geoirs and Lyon-Bron (where Air Inter was based) became the ﬁrst ‘hubs’

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55

of regional aviation. At the same time, Switzerland’s Geneva-Cointrin Airport began to occupy a strategic position in the network. This period also saw the peak of Air Alpes’ business with the airline operating almost 50 services in 1973 (using larger Corvette and Fokker aircraft) and introducing new direct services from Paris to Megève (1975) and Alpe d’Huez (1976). However, the decline was already on the horizon. The TAG group became the main shareholder in Air Alpes (1977), which moved to Paris-Orly. This was followed by agreements with Air Inter, and then with TAT, who took a 75% interest in Air Alpes in 1981. It was the end of an era that had made a great contribution to the development of regional aviation in France. As is frequently the case, this decline was due to a combination of factors, not least of which was the oil crises of 1973 and 1979. However, there were also technical difﬁculties that prevented the change from Visual Fly Rule (VFR) navigation to Instrument Fly Rule (IFR) navigation in mountain areas, which are subject to highly variable and unpredictable atmospheric conditions. Competition with new operators was another determining factor, in particular due to the introduction of helicopters at the end of the 1970s, which offered the same made-to-measure, air-taxi type services. There was also increased competition from road transport (dual-carriageway or motorway links, such as the Autoroute Blanche between Geneva and Chamonix) and soon from TGV high-speed rail services. Increasing regulation provided a further obstacle, with the creation of the ﬁrst national parks (Vanoise National Park set up in 1963) and, in 1980, the ban on landing skiers on glaciers. Although inter-resort services and tourist ﬂights continued, a page seemed to have been turned. 2.3 Outside France: a few signiﬁcant examples Air Alpes also contributed to the development of regional aviation in other mountain areas, especially in Nepal, where the company invested in commercial mountain aviation. The press coverage given to Air Alpes’ transport network in the Alps led pilots from the Royal Nepal Airline Corporation (RNAC) coming to the Alps for the 1973 season, in order to observe operations and to learn to land on and take off from mountainside airstrips at Courchevel’s altiport. This was followed by a visit to Nepal by pilots from Air Alpes to continue the Nepalese pilots’ training and to advise RNAC on the building of aerodromes with short and steeply inclined runways. Some of these altiports, including Lukla (now called Tenzing–Hilary Airport) on the route to Everest, have been successful because they have daily ﬂights to Kathmandu and because they are located in tourist areas. In the air-transport network, other regional airports, such as Pokhara, have emerged for similar reasons. Outside France and Nepal, only Spain (Ager in Catalonia), Italy (Chamois Valtournanche in the Aosta Valley), Switzerland (Croix de Cœur Verbier in the Valais) and, more recently, Poland (Zar in the Carpathians) have built altiports, most of which are linked to regional airports. Once again, tourism is essential to maintaining services. The strategies behind these regional services are relatively complex in all these cases. 3 INTERMODALITY AND ACCESS: THE WEIGHT OF THE DIFFERENT ACTORS IN CURRENT INTERMODAL STRATEGIES 3.1 Speed or multiple destinations: an impossible compromise? Spatial analysis [7, 8] provides an important tool for exploring these ongoing processes. The graph method [9, 10] can thus be used to reveal the priorities of these networks. The ‘connectedness’ of a network indicates whether or not it is possible to go from one node to any other node. A network has

56

Regional Airports

high connectedness if it is possible to go from any one node to all the other nodes, either by a direct arc, or via other nodes. By contrast, the ‘connectivity’ of a network is a measure of the number of different pathways between nodes. The higher the connectivity index the greater the number of pathways from one node to another. Figure 1 provides a key for deciphering ‘primary’ air-transport networks, as it describes situations produced when networks form by accumulation. Although a graph may consist of pairs of connected components (for example, A-C′ or B-C-C′′′-D), the overall graph may still have a low level of connectedness. Of course, most aerodromes, whatever system they belong to (high-altitude, intra-mountain, mountain-periphery, etc), want to be linked to the network, and regional airports do everything they can to increase the number of destinations they serve. However, with a few exceptions, this generally results in a large number of routes that do not necessarily form a coherent network. Thus, national and international airports (A) provide direct services to regional airports (B) and, sometimes to high-altitude aerodromes (C or D). Figure 2b shows the different ways in which the accessibility of mountain areas can be organised in relation to regional airports. Combined with Figs 1 and 2a, Fig. 2b can be used to investigate the evolving ways in which transport networks are formed. Transport operators may favour different strategies depending on time of the year, day of the week, the target clientele or proﬁtability, etc. For services to the Alps, the priority of low-cost airlines in winter is the speed (more direct ﬂights to the Alps). In summer, the same airlines favour other airports. Another strategy is to serve a maximum number of places, even if this increases journey times and involves changing to a different mode of transport. Air Alps has modiﬁed its strategy several times depending on market conditions. In the ﬁrst half of the 1970s, when Air Alpes was at its peak, there were several services linking type A airports (such as Paris-Le Bourget, Paris-Orly or Geneva-Cointrin) with type B airports (such as Lyon-Bron, Chambéry or Grenoble-St. Geoirs) or directly with type C or D aerodromes (such as Alpe d’Huez, Megève or Courchevel). Courchevel’s altiport managed to maintain a regular commercial service after the end of the Air Alpes era. Initially, it was run by TAT, using aircraft with wheeled undercarriages that could carry 18, and then 40 passengers. It was later taken over by the Austrian airline Tyrolean Airways, operating under the TAT ﬂag, which provided return ﬂights from Paris-Orly to Courchevel at weekends, and later introduced charter ﬂights from Graz-Innsbruck to Courchevel. Savoie Airlines, and then Alpe Azur picked up the reins during the winters of 1998–1999 and 1999– 2000, after which regular commercial mountain aviation ceased deﬁnitively in France. Commercial helicopter-taxi ﬂights and ‘on-demand’ ﬂights then began (see below) in order to provide direct connections with sometimes-distant airports. Tourism, particularly ski-resort winter tourism is essential to the continued operation of this type of service. The modernisation of Courchevel altiport has also played an important role. In other areas, these services are based on more traditional airports. For example, the Swiss airports of Sion and Lugano form arrival points for mostly tourist air services. This is even more clearly the case for Samedan, Europe’s highest aerodrome (1,707 m), which provides an almost direct gateway to the upmarket resort of St. Moritz. Saanen, which provides direct access to Gstaad, is another example. However, new challenges for intermodal strategies are now emerging [11]. 3.2 The example of the northern French Alps The northern French Alps once again provides an edifying case study that can be more clearly understood with reference to Fig. 2. As indicated above, the current air-transport network was created over a long period of time. Within this network, the airports of Lyon-Bron, Grenoble-St. Geoirs and Chambéry played the role of small regional hubs [12]. Since 2004, Grenoble-St. Geoirs and Chambéry

Regional Airports

57

(a)

(b)

Figure 2: Intermodality and accessibility.

regional airports have been run by Vinci Airport and Keolis on behalf of the ‘départemental’ councils of Isère and Savoie. Passenger numbers have grown rapidly in recent years, increasing from 204,114 in 2004 to 469,777 in 2008 for Grenoble, and from 180,813 in 2004 to 270,632 in 2008 for Chambéry (source: Union des Aéroports Français). With 440,356 passengers between December 2008 and April 2009, Grenoble-St. Geoirs airport recorded a new record (257,592 passengers for ChambérySavoie for the same period). A detailed analysis of trafﬁc ﬂows provides much interesting information. First, it highlights the extremely seasonal character of passenger ﬂows, thereby underlining the role these airports play in servicing the area’s winter sports resorts. Chambéry airport has seen regular

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growth in charter trafﬁc (snow charters), consisting of aircraft that are directly chartered by tour operators (British, Scandinavian and Russian) for package holidays (69% of total trafﬁc). The regular trafﬁc is dominated by the British, through Flybe and Jet2, but no longer through Sterling Airlines since it went bankrupt. As pilots must have a special qualiﬁcation to land and take off at Chambéry (special training that can be done on a simulator), most of the low-cost trafﬁc (Easyjet, Ryanair, etc) has been absorbed by neighbouring Grenoble airport, which can also accommodate all types of aircraft. The British market is also very important at Grenoble airport, as British citizens account for 77% of passengers, thanks to regular ﬂights to 11 United Kingdom airports (including three of London’s airports: Stansted, Gatwick and Luton). Cross-channel charter trafﬁc is also promoted by the presence of two of Europe’s biggest tourism groups: Tui Travel and Thomas Cook. As a response to the growing competition from Geneva-Cointrin and Lyon-St. Exupéry airports, highly effective intermodal strategies have been developed. As well as direct TGV rail services to Grenoble, Chambéry and Bourg-St-Maurice, a wide range of road connections by coach are available. These coach services mostly provide connections to the main ski resorts (Altibus runs services from Chambéry airport to the resorts of the Tarentaise Valley, which include the largest ski area in the world), and to railway/coach stations: Grenoble railway station (service operated by Grenoble Altitude) and Lyon Part-Dieu (service operated by AG Bus). Hence, numerous intermodal combinations are possible and the connectivity index is high (at least during the winter), with a sometimes complex nodal structure [13]. 3.3 The case of ‘on-demand’ transport and business aviation Travellers whose most important consideration is time often make use of on-demand services, which are becoming increasingly personalised (Fig. 2). Trafﬁc ﬂows are small but, because they involve people who are likely to contribute heavily to the local economy, regional development bodies focus a lot of attention on this market. The air-service offer is complemented by luxury coach services run by different operators, chauffeur-driven limousines and taxis, etc. However, connections to ﬁnal destinations are not the unique preserve of road transport, as several companies offer air-taxi and helicopter-taxi services from the regional airports. As a result, many valley-level airports have speciﬁc business-travel terminals. Designed to provide the fastest possible routes to the mountain resorts (type C airports), this type of service is provided by companies such as Helijet, based at Chambéry airport, Air Zermatt, in the eponymous Swiss resort, and Air Glaciers, which provides ﬁxed-wing and helicopter services from Sion airport (Switzerland). Trafﬁc ﬂows can be signiﬁcant. For example, every winter 6,000 passengers arrive in Courchevel by air and a total of 15,000 air movements are recorded every year for the altiports at Alpe d’Huez, Megève and Méribel, although the latter ﬁgure includes other types of air movement, particularly pleasure ﬂights around Mont-Blanc. This type of movement belongs to the category of sports and leisure aviation, and is of sufﬁcient importance to have generated two pilots’ associations (AFPM, French Association of Mountain Pilots and EMP European Mountain Pilots). This type of aerodrome also formed the starting point for heliskiing, an activity that is authorised in Switzerland but banned in France by the ‘Loi Montagne’ of 1985, which forbids the landing of skiers at altitudes above 1,500 m other than at altiports and helicopter landing grounds. When added to other restrictions related to protected areas, this has led to the development of services that take skiers to summits just outside France. Once again, all these intermodal strategies are closely linked to tourism, with some cases concentrating on number of destinations served, some cases focusing on speed and others providing a compromise.

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4 THE INTEGRATION OF REGIONAL AIRPORTS IN EVOLVING MOUNTAIN AND MOUNTAIN-PERIPHERY TRANSPORT SYSTEMS In all cases, these strategies have an impact on how well regional airports are integrated into the local/regional transport system (Fig. 3). The deregulation of air transport, particularly in Europe, has also contributed to a profound reorganisation of the ﬁeld. One of the most important changes in air transport in recent years has been the development of low-cost airlines and services, which followed (a)

(b)

Figure 3: The place of regional airports in an evolving transport system.

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the liberalisation of the air-transport market. In addition, a hierarchy of accessibility and a polarisation around hubs have developed [12, 14]. The current context is also one of increasingly ﬁerce competition between different regional airports and between regional and national/international airports. Nevertheless, the effects have been most radical for secondary regional airports that offer only small numbers of direct services, and this has often led to uncertainty about the maintenance of these services. In addition, some temporary airstrips (on glaciers for example) are no longer used by commercial ﬂights for legal reasons. Changes to the accessibility of mountain areas are occurring very quickly; however, each type of airport is affected differently by these changes. Type B regional airports include those that are completely integrated into local/regional transport systems. Type A mountain-periphery airports often ﬁll this role because they offer maximum connectedness and connectivity for access to mountain areas, and because they are sometimes true multi-modal transport hubs. In the Western Alps, and for access to mountain areas, Geneva-Cointrin airport also tends to operate as a regional airport in competition with neighbouring French regional airports. At a lower level, but still in Switzerland, Zurich airport can also be considered a type B airport. As well as being well integrated on an international and national level, Zurich airport has numerous air and land connections to mountain airports and resorts. It has excellent connections with railway (major CFF hub) and bus (13 regional bus routes and 600 daily bus services) stations. Conversely, other mountain-periphery airports (type B′) do not have direct links with mountain areas. Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrenees airport, at the foot of the French Pyrenees, undoubtedly falls into this category. It boasts substantial volumes of trafﬁc and is one of France’s largest airports in terms of passenger numbers. In 2008, the airport registered 678,897 passengers, an increase of 13.4% compared with 2004. Although it has three routes to Paris, 80% of its passengers are international, generally via charter ﬂights, as there are no low-cost services. Most of the trafﬁc is related to religious tourism and pilgrimages to Lourdes. Therefore, despite not having good intermodal connections, perhaps because of a lack of demand, the airport has very poor links to the true mountain system. This is not the case of type B″ airports, which include regional airports that specialise in speciﬁc types of trafﬁc, often with limited or seasonal services. As explained above, most of the trafﬁc through Grenoble and Chambéry airports is concentrated in the winter season, and most passengers are tourists from Northern Europe heading to the area’s ski resorts. Many second-rank airports in the Himalayas, particularly in Nepal, also belong to this category. Built after the 1950s [15], these airports are part of a highly centralised network based around the capital Kathmandu. As a result, connectivity is quite low. Served by the national carrier (RNAC) or by a series of private airlines (such as Yeti Airlines), these airports, which include Pokhara, Bhaïrahawa, Biratnagar and Nepalgunj, can appear to be very rudimentary. In all cases, they are highly dependent on tourism. 5 CONCLUSION The fragility of their business and a great dependence on tourism and on the global ﬁnancial situation seem to be recurring characteristics of most regional airports linked to mountain areas. However, this tourism dependence can also be a strength, as tourists now play an essential role in determining the accessibility of mountain areas. This is true from the point of view of service provision, both in terms of direct services and in terms of the intermodal transport offer. The myth of airports as keys to development has frequently been nuanced or even highly criticised [16], on both regional and local scales. Although this myth is based on impetus effects (Chambéry airport is linked to Savoie Technolac technology park. Altiports can greatly affect a resort’s real estate market), the greatest contribution of regional airports is in terms of an area’s image. In their promotional strategies, and in order to ensure they have a high proﬁle on the regional, national or even international stage,

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regional airports are an essential part of the development strategies implemented by mountain areas. However, for airports to contribute fully to an area’s image in today’s world, they must have the smallest possible impact on the environment. REFERENCES [1] Giblin, J.C., Les aéroports régionaux à la veille de la décentralisation. Hérodote – Aviation et géopolitique, 114(3), pp. 101–121, 2004. [2] Union des aéroports français (eds), Résultats d’activité des aéroports français 2008, www. aeroports.fr, 59 p., 2009. [3] Thompson, I.B., Air transport liberalisation and the development of third level airports in France. Journal of Transport Geography, 10(4), pp. 273–285, 2002. [4] Zembri, P., The spatial consequences of air transport deregulation: an overview of the French case since 1995, Nectar book, www.nectar-eu.org/, 30 p., 2005. [5] Debarbieux, B., La montagne, un objet de recherche? Revue de Géographie Alpine, 89(2), 131 p., 2001. [6] Sacareau, I., La montagne, une approche géographique, Belin Sup: Paris, 288 p., 2003. [7] Haggett, P., L’analyse spatiale en Géographie Humaine, Armand Colin: Paris, 390 p., 1973. [8] Abler, R., Adams, J. & Gould, P., Spatial Organization: The Geographer’s View of the World, Prentice Hall International: London, 587 p., 1972. [9] Plassard, F., Les réseaux de transport et de communication (Chapter 28). Encyclopédie de Géographie, Economica: Paris, pp. 533–556, 1992. [10] Pumain, D. & St-Julien, Th., L’analyse spatiale – Localisation dans l’espace, Armand Colin: Paris, 167 p., 2004. [11] Chapelon, L. & Bozani, S., L’intermodalité air-fer en France: une méthode d’analyse spatiale et temporelle. L’Espace Géographique, 1, pp. 60–76, 2003. [12] Kelly, O. & Morton, E., A geographer’s analysis of hub-and-spokes networks. Journal of Transport Geography, 6(3), pp. 171–186, 1998. [13] Bernier, X., Transports et montagne: quelle spéciﬁcité pour les sytèmes nodaux? Proposition d’un modèle synthétique illustré à travers l’itinéraire transalpin Grenoble-Bourg d’OisansBriançon-Suse. Cahiers Scientifiques des Transports, 48, pp. 81–97, 2005. [14] Bavoux, J.J., Beaucire, F., Chapelon, L. & Zembri, P., Géographie des transports, Armand Colin: Paris, 232 p., 2005. [15] Bernier, X., Transports, communications et développement en Himalaya central: le cas du Népal, PhD, Univ-Aix-en-Provence France, 443 p., 1996. [16] Offner, J.M., Les effets structurants du transport: mythe politique, mystiﬁcation scientiﬁque. L’Espace Géographique, 3, pp. 233–242, 1993.

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Regional Airports

ANALYSIS OF THE REGIONAL AIR PASSENGER TRANSPORT SYSTEM IN BRAZIL: SOME ASPECTS OF ITS EVOLUTION AND DIAGNOSIS S.C. RIBEIRO, C.C.L. FRAGA & M.P.S. SANTOS Transport Engineering Program, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

ABSTRACT Passenger air transport in Brazil, as elsewhere in the world, has been undergoing substantial changes in recent years, not only because of external factors, but also as a consequence of several important changes in the regulatory framework. This paper focuses on the regional aspects of airline passenger trafﬁc in Brazil, based on a review of the literature and interviews with some key government authorities. We ﬁrst provide an overview of the country’s regions and sketch out the historical evolution of regional air transportation in the country. We then discuss the recent changes affecting the sector, considering the regulatory and operational factors at play, particularly in relation to the network of Brazilian cities served by air transport. Keywords: air transport, commercial aviation, regional air transport, regional development, transport regulation.

1 INTRODUCTION Air transportation is a basic input for business, government and tourist activities, as well as for the overall economy. The increasing use of aviation to carry people and goods in recent decades has been one of the most important factors for closer cultural and commercial exchange, contributing directly to improve the welfare of society. Its characteristics of speed and broad geographic coverage make it an important vector for socioeconomic development and an agent to foster territorial unity in many countries [1]. Salgado and Oliveira [2] stress the fundamental role played by the aviation sector, mainly regional air transport, in promoting the sustainable and more balanced development of any country or region. This is particularly true for a country with continental dimensions like Brazil, and also because of the existence of vast areas of tropical forest and relative lack of good roads and railways. For this reason, regional air transport stands out for its strategic importance as an element to spur economic activity in more remote and underdeveloped regions, such as the Amazon and northern part of the country. The stimulus to business in goods and services generates jobs and income, improving the quality of life in these regions. Graham and Guyer [3] discussed the political and economic aspects resulting from the development of air transport in the regions of the United Kingdom, after the establishment of public policies aimed speciﬁcally at the case of regional air transport and airports. More recently, the fundamental importance of regional air transport as a contributor to development of the served regions has been shown by Tapiador et al. [4] for the case of regional airports in Spain. The assessment of the impacts of regional airports on the regional development within the airports economic inﬂuence area is considered and analyzed in the work of Malina and Wollersheim [5]. Brazil is the world’s ﬁfth largest country in terms of landmass, covering more than 8 million square kilometers. The country is customarily divided into ﬁve geographic regions: north, northeast, southeast, midwest and south (Fig. 1). These regions have accentuated differences, not only in geographic terms, but also especially in their social and economic characteristics. This is a relevant aspect when examining the role of regional air transport in Brazil (Table 1).

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Figure 1: Brazilian regions. Table 1: Characteristics of Brazilian regions.

Population (2008) Landmass (km2) Population density (inhab./km2) Share of GDP (%) Airports in regular operation

South

Southeast

Midwest

Northeast

North

26,733,575 576,000 46.41

77,873,120 924,511 84.23

13,222,854 1,606,371 8.23

51,534,406 1,554,257 33.16

14,623,316 3,853,327 3.80

13 26

58 32

9 22

13 29

5 46

Source: Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics [7]. In the face of these geographic and economic characteristics, combined with the historic lack of investments in transport infrastructure, the regional airline sector plays a fundamental role in inducing the country’s development. Indeed, air transport is virtually the only way to interconnect some points and to maintain strong regional integration and national political unity [6].

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Table 1 also shows that the number of cities served, in function of the number of airports with scheduled cargo and passenger trafﬁc in the regions, varies inversely with the population density and level of economic activity. The Brazilian air transport market has been growing intensively over the last four decades. Table 2 presents the evolution over this time period of the value of seat-km used in comparison to the behavior of the Brazilian economy. The indicator of air transport demand, as represented by seat-km used, has been subjected to substantially higher increase rates when contrasted with the gross domestic product of Brazil. This is particularly noted if the present decade is focused, considering the period between 2000 and 2008, when the increase rates were 133.8% and 33.0%, respectively, for the value of seat-km used and gross national product. The importance of regional air transport for more balanced social and economic development in geographic terms is clear in Brazil, not only because of the Brazilian peculiarities, but also as shown by international experience. However, an examination of the data on the evolution of regional air transport in Brazil shows a gradual reduction in the number of cities served over time. This stands in stark contrast to the important role that regional air transport can play in reducing the sharp social and economic differences among the country’s regions. These regions have markedly different population characteristics, with demographic densities varying from 3.8 inhab./km2 in the Amazon region (mainly in the North region) to 84.2 in the Southeast, which also concentrates 58% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). Because Brazil’s population is highly concentrated in urban areas, regions with low population densities can present great physical distances between cities, as is the case in the North (Amazon) and Midwest. These are the very same regions with the smallest shares of the country’s GDP, making regional air transport even more important for their social and economic development. It is thus relevant to investigate the role of regional air transport in Brazil based on the standard of service provided to the country’s cities and regions. Although there have been periodic ﬂuctuations, over the past 50 years the number of cities served by scheduled air routes in Brazil has declined from roughly 400 to only 130, according to a study by the magazine Flap Internacional [9]. Figure 2 shows the evolution in recent decades of the number of cities served by scheduled airlines in Brazil (as opposed to air taxi and special charter service). Within the scheduled domestic air transport sector in Brazil, the regional segment has a very small participation. According to the latest data from the Brazilian Regional Air Transport Association (ABETAR), the market share of this segment does not exceed 2% of the country’s total commercial aviation market. Because of the evidently high potential for regional air transport to serve as an instrument for more geographically balanced economic and social development, there is a need to investigate the factors that have led to this timidity of a segment of such strategic importance, not only for the country’s development, but also for its territorial integration and unity. Below we discuss some aspects of the historic evolution of air transport in Brazil, especially regional trafﬁc, followed by an analysis of the current situation. Table 2: The evolution of Brazilian air transport passenger demand and gross domestic product. Year

Seat-km used

Variation (%)

GDP per capita (US$ millions)

Variation (%)

1981 1990 2000 2008

9,456,380 14,281,498 20.493.072 47,920,523

– 51.0 43.5 133.8

1,516,094.88 1,851,108.47 2,367,127.26 3,148,857.55

– 22.1 27.9 33.0

Source: Civil Aviation National Agency (ANAC) [8].

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Figure 2: Number of Brazilian cities served by scheduled air transport. 2 HISTORY OF BRAZILIAN REGIONAL AVIATION Brazilian commercial aviation dates back to 1927. One of the most relevant government action taken focused on air transport as an inducer of national integration occurred in 1963. That year the government established a program called the “National Integration Network (Rede de Integração Nacional, or RIN), which provided subsidies to lines using DC-3s and PBY-5 Catalina to serve communities in remote and relatively underdeveloped areas. Later the government created the Integrated Regional Air Transport System (SITAR), endowing it with new resources to stimulate the regional segment. From an overall perspective, Brazilian commercial aviation has undergone two critical moments in its history regarding its regulation. According to Oliveira [10], these two moments, characterized by two substantial reforms of legislation on the sector, divide the Brazilian aviation into two periods, known as the period of strict regulation (1968–1986) and the period gradual regulatory relaxation (1990–2001). These are discussed in more detail next. 2.1 Period of strict regulation (1968–1986) The period of strict regulation was characterized by direct intervention of the government in Brazilian commercial aviation, with the objective of stimulating its growth by establishing regulatory instruments to support development policy mechanisms. From the 1940s through the 60s, more than 20 private companies were founded. These ﬂew routes concentrated in the country’s more developed regions, particularly along the coast. But this led to oversupply in relation to still incipient demand, at a time when Brazil still had a relatively small internal market, making air transport precarious from an economic perspective. Malagutti [11] observed that this crisis situation brought an intense lobbying effort by the country’s four main carriers: Varig, Vasp, Cruzeiro do Sul and Transbrasil. Their aim was to alert the federal government to the risks of failing to maintain regular and reliable air transportation services. Because of the problems faced by the country’s civil aviation industry, the sector’s regulator during the period, the Civil Aviation Department (DAC), organized three conferences involving various agents interested in the sector, especially airlines. The aim was to debate and systematize the main questions affecting air transport in Brazil. These events, in their various editions, were known as the National Commercial Aviation Conference (CONAC).

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This effort produced some ﬁndings on measures necessary to resolve the problems: reduction of the number of companies by promoting mergers; government regulation of fares and schedules; barriers to the entry of new companies in the market; and division of the market by segment. This was the start of the period known as ‘controlled competition’, and was implemented by Decree 72,898 in October 1973, by which the four largest carriers were given exclusivity. One of the consequences of the policies adopted during this period was a decline in demand. The main reason was that the airplanes of these large carriers were not compatible with many Brazilian airports. Thus, from a total of 335 cities served by scheduled routes in 1958, there were only 92 still served in 1975 [12]. This precipitous decline in the number of cities served by air transport prompted the government to establish policies to foster regional aviation. One of the means was to promote the recovery of the scope of the network, by reactivating and maintaining routes that were uneconomic or only marginally proﬁtable, because of medium/low potential passenger trafﬁc, through subsidies. The set of these government policies became concrete with the creation in 1975 of the Integrated Regional Air Transport System (SITAR), under which the country was divided into ﬁve areas, each served by one regional monopoly carrier. There were two main mechanisms created to try to assure the proﬁtability of these regional carriers. The ﬁrst was the establishment of the ‘Tariff Surcharge’, which was a surtax of 3% on the tickets sold by domestic carriers, to be transferred to the SITAR system as a form of cross-subsidy to the regional carriers. The second was the creation of special credit lines for the purchase of aircraft made domestically. The main model was the medium-range Bandeirante, made by Embraer (at the time under government control). This policy also sought to stimulate development of the Brazilian aeronautical industry [9]. 2.2 Period of relaxation of Brazilian commercial aviation regulation (1990–2001) As the name suggests, the period of relaxation of commercial aviation regulation saw the undoing of much of the former regulatory framework. The federal government made this ofﬁcial in the Federal Deregulation Program, ushering in the ‘Policy to Flexibilize Commercial Aviation’, instituted through a series of edicts issued by the Civil Aviation Department (DAC), part of the Defense Ministry (more speciﬁcally the Air Force). The overall aims of this policy were to stimulate the opening of the market and the introduction of competition in it, with the extinction of the monopolies and segmentation, along with reduced regulation of fares (Oliveira [10]). This program was carried out in three steps, starting, respectively, in 1992, 1998 and 2001, as described below. 2.2.1 First liberalization step (1992–1997) The ﬁrst liberalization step was initiated after a meeting of the National Civil Aviation Council (CONAC), established to advise the executive branch on civil aviation questions. At this meeting, some decisions were taken to extinguish the ﬁve regional airline monopolies that had been established under the Regional Air Transport System (SITAR) in the 1970s. This policy, which also ended monopolies on certain routes granted to nationwide carriers, provided a new dynamic to the market, with the ability of new competitors to enter the fray. During this ﬁrst step of liberalization, fares were not totally deregulated; their control was only relaxed. ‘Tariff bands’ were created, allowing airlines to offer tickets at prices ranging from 50% under to 32% over the benchmark fare. This was a big advance in terms of competition, in contrast to the rigid system of price controls in the previous period, when fares were strictly regulated.

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2.2.2 Second liberalization step (1998–2001) The second step of liberalizing the air transport market was marked by the adoption to two strategies by the Brazilian government, both aimed at eliminating fare controls. The ﬁrst strategy consisted of removing the ‘tariff band’ system, stimulating greater competition. The second was the extinction of restrictions on the operation of lines called special, represented by routes linking the central airports of the main Brazilian cities. These two measures spurred an intense competitive movement that culminated in a true ‘fare war’, as observed by Salgado and Oliveira [2]. However, the situation of the airline industry changed drastically starting in early 1999 with the exchange rate volatility after the ﬁxed exchange rate regime was abandoned in favor of a ﬂoating regime. The resulting steep devaluation of the Brazilian currency (Real) against the dollar caused a spike in operating costs of Brazilian airlines, prompting them ﬁrst to suspend promotional fares, and then to raise prices across the board. This required intervention by the federal government to authorize them to raise fares above the upper bound of the fare band. 2.2.3 Third liberalization step (2001–2003) The third step of the liberalization process began on August 16, 2001, when a new agreement between the Civil Aviation Department, the regulatory agency of the Defense Ministry, and the Finance Ministry established ‘total freedom’ to set prices. There were various effects of this measure, such as the entrance of new companies, various requests to operate new routes, frequencies and ﬂights. One of the most representative occurrences of this period was the emergence of the airline Gol Transportes Aéreos, considered the ﬁrst Brazilian ‘low cost and low fare’ carrier [13]. There have been other events regarding regulation of the air transport market in Brazil since the end of the third step. However, the measures involved have not represented signiﬁcant changes for the analysis of regional air transport in Brazil. 3 EVOLUTION OF REGIONAL AIR TRANSPORT IN BRAZIL The need for a more homogeneous deﬁnition of the regional air transport segment among the various agents involved is a difﬁculty that needs to be considered in the analysis of regional air transport in Brazil. The concept of regional air transport in Brazil arose in 1975 with the establishment of speciﬁc government policies for this segment, with the aim of enhancing the country’s regional integration. Decree 76,590, issued in November 1975, created the Regional Air Transport System (SITAR), formally tied to the ﬁve regions into which the country is traditionally divided, as discussed before. With the end of this system in 1999, the concept of regional air transport became diluted into a varied set of carriers, routes and regulatory aspects. Currently the concept is roughly associated with any scheduled route linking state capitals (which are nearly always the largest cities in the respective states) with cities in their hinterlands. However, this oversimpliﬁcation does not consider all the criteria involved (distance covered, geographic region, type of aircraft, number of inhabitants in the cities generating demand, among others) in determining what regional air transport is nowadays. For Salgado and Oliveira [2], the criteria for deﬁning regional markets in practice are demarcation based on airline company, type of aircraft (smaller airplanes characterizing regional carriers), population (cities with fewer than one million inhabitants), trafﬁc density (up to 15,000 passengers/year) and route length (up to 1,000 kilometers). Below we analyze the evolution of air transportation in Brazil in function of the number of cities served over time and how these cities are distributed in terms of their populations. To make the source of data homogenous, we used the monthly ﬁgures published by the magazine Panrotas [14], since 1953. We systematized the data obtained into a historic series from 1953 to 2008 for the total

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69

number of cities served, and for the years 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000 and 2008 with respect to the cities served classiﬁed by population level. The evolution over time of the number of cities served by scheduled air transport is shown in Fig. 3. It can be seen that the number of cities served peaked in 1958 and then declined to fewer than 100 cities served in 1975 for the ﬁrst time since 1942. During the period considered, many factors combined to produce this pattern, such as the growth of land transport (particularly new highways), technological evolution of the transport sector, especially regarding aircraft, and the pattern of regional development of the country, with increasing populations concentrated in large urban areas. As mentioned, in 1975 the federal government established a program to stimulate regional air transport, aiming to boost development of interior regions of the country and increase territorial integration. The result was that starting in 1975 the number of cities served started to rise again. This lasted until 1990, when, possibly because of deregulation, the number of cities served began to fall sharply, bottoming out in 1995. Since then, the number of cities served has grown again until 2008, but still far short of the peaks reached in the 1950s. To provide more detail on the variation in the number of cities served by scheduled air routes over time, we classiﬁed the set of cities by population ranges. We adopted the following population intervals: fewer than 100,000 inhabitants; between 100,000 and 300,000 inhabitants; between 300,001 and 500,000 inhabitants; between 500,001 and 1,000,000 inhabitants; and more than 1,000,000 inhabitants. It is reasonable to assume that the larger the number of small and medium cities served by air transport, the greater the contribution of this system to more balanced economic and social development of the country’s regions.

Figure 3: Cities served by air transport by population range.

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The variation in the number of cities served by scheduled air transport, broken down by the different population intervals, is presented in Fig. 3. The main point that stands out in Fig. 3 is the reversal of the trend in the variation of the number of cities with fewer than 100,000 people in the past 40 years. The number of ‘small’ cities (population under 100,000) served by scheduled air transport fell sharply and steadily from 1970 to 2000, then it began to rise again until 2008. After the interval of greatest changes in the sector’s regulation, with no new public policy to stimulate regional air transport as occurred previously, the number of small cities served almost doubled between 2000 and 2008. The same pattern since 2000 can be observed for cities with between 100,000 and 300,000 inhabitants, albeit less accentuated. Together these two facts suggest a broader reversal in the composition of the network of cities served by scheduled air transport in Brazil. For cities with larger populations the variations over this period remained relatively stable. This is partly a consequence of the country’s substantial population growth over the period, and the increasing concentration in urban areas, as mentioned before. Particular attention is warranted to the greater growth of the number of cities with between 300,001 and 500,000 people. The set of evidence analyzed appears to indicate a growing trend in the pattern of scheduled air transport service to smaller cities. If this trend becomes better established, it can indicate that the contribution of regional air transport is becoming increasingly important for the country’s more balanced and equitable regional development within the existing economic and social context. 4 CONCLUSIONS The picture that emerges from the evidence presented here is one of great changes in the pattern of air transport in Brazil regarding the number of cities served. After a period of general decline since the end of the 1950s, with some variations because of measures adopted by the federal government, in recent years there has been a clear reversal of this downward trend. The experience with public policies in Brazil speciﬁcally aimed at stimulating regional air transportation, starting with the implementation of the SITAR (Regional Air Transport System) in 1975, was not continued, nor has there been any analysis of the possible contributions of these policies to Brazilian regional development. There is a particular need to examine the role of regional air transport in regions with large territorial extent and population dispersion, as in the Midwest and North, especially the Amazon. The treatment of the problem just from the number of cities served, even with their classiﬁcation by population range, produces a result that should be analyzed with care. Besides factors linked to the sector’s regulation, there are other inﬂuences with distinct magnitude, such as those involving technological and industrial aspects of the air transport sector, the participation and integration of other transportation modes in the national context and other government national policies for development and integration. REFERENCES [1] Moura, G.B., Transporte aéreo e responsabilidade civil/Air Transport and Civil Responsability, Aduaneira: São Paulo, Brazil, 2002. [2] Salgado, L.H. & Oliveira, A.V.M., Constituição do marco regulatório para o mercado Brasileiro de aviação nacional/Regulatory Aspects for the Brazilian Regional Air Transport Market, Nectar/ITA São José dos Campos: São Paulo, Brazil, 2008. http://www.nectar.ita.br. [3] Graham, B. & Guyer, C., The role of regional airports and air services in the United Kingdom. Journal of Transport Geography, 8, pp. 249–262, 2000. [4] Tapiador, F.J., Mateos, A. & Martı-Henneberg, J., The geographical efﬁciency of Spain’s regional airports: a quantitative analysis. Journal of Air Transport Management, 14, pp. 205–212, 2008.

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[5] Malina, R. & Wollersheim, C., The regional impact of airports: how can we measure it? Aerlines Magazine, 2008. [6] Silva, W.P., Sistema integrado de informações geográficas e técnicas de alocação para análise da demanda por transporte aéreo de passageiros. DSc. Thesis, Transport Engineering Program, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2000. http://www.pet.coppe.ufrj.br. [7] IBGE, Instituto Brasileiro de Geograﬁa e Estatística/Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics, Brasília, Brazil. http://www.ibge.gov.br. [8] ANAC, Agência Nacional da Aviação Civil/Civil Aviation National Agency. http://www.anac. gov.br. [9] Flap Internacional, 427. Grupo Editorial Spagat: São Paulo, Brazil, 2008. [10] Oliveira, A.V.M., Transporte aéreo e políticas públicas/Air Transport and Public Policy, Pezco: São Paulo, Brazil, 2009. [11] Malagutti, A.O., Evolução da aviação civil no Brasil/Civil Aviation Evolution in Brazil. Câmara dos Deputados. Aérea XVII Segurança e Defesa Nacional: Brasília, Brazil, 2001. [12] Gomes, S., Lacerda, S., Bastos, V. & Castro, M., Aviação Regional Brasileira/Brazilian Regional Aviation). Informe Infra-Estrutura – Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social/National Bank for Social and Economic Development – BNDES 50. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2002. http://www.bndes.gov.br. [13] Palhares, G.L., Transporte aéreo e turismo: gerando desenvolvimento socioeconômico/Air Transport and Tourism: Promoting Social and Economic Development, Aleph: São Paulo, 2001. [14] Panrotas, Editora Panrotas, São Paulo, Brazil, 1953–2008.

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Regional Airports

REGIONAL AIRPORTS’ ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT: KEY MESSAGES FROM THE EVALUATION OF TEN EUROPEAN AIRPORTS D.J. DIMITRIOU & A.J. VOSKAKI Department of Aerospace Science, School of Engineering, Cranﬁeld University, UK.

ABSTRACT In a modern society, connectivity is the basis for economic competitiveness, social reform, regional development and cultural exchange. City airports serving mature markets have already expanded to meet existing and future demand and the challenge for the airport industry is now focused on the development of the secondary and regional airports to accommodate further air transport demand. Consequently, regional airports attract the interest of investors by providing new business opportunities. Although airports bring signiﬁcant beneﬁts to local and national economy, their contribution to environment disturbance in local and global scale is signiﬁcant. As a result of the growing environmental sensitivity, airport environmental management is a crucial element of the aviation industry development. This is for reasons related to the control of community and nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) complaints on one hand, and to meet the regional and national targets set by the civil aviation and local authorities on the other hand. Especially for regional airports, the need to identify the environmental issues is essential, because their business development is directly linked to disturbance in the environment and to the local/national communities’ level of tolerance. Although environmental management process is crucial to regional airport development, there is little research related to measuring the efﬁciency and the performance of their environmental management systems. Nevertheless, not many regional airports, especially those serving fewer than 5 million passengers, annually, have set speciﬁc targets for their environmental performance. This paper presents the results of the evaluation of 10 European regional airports’ environmental plans. Conventional wisdom is to provide some key messages, in order to improve the planning and decision process in airport environment management, as well as highlight some recommendations for further research in the future. The key research ﬁnding is that the national legislation framework and resident’s ethics along with the airport business factions (such as the management scheme, the location topology and the airport size) are essential elements strongly related to regional airport’s environmental efﬁciency. Keywords: airports sustainable development, environmental plan, environmental planning, regional airports.

1 INTRODUCTION In the global society of the 21st century air transport plays a signiﬁcant role in supporting social and economic development by providing accessibility. Planners, economists and managers recognise that the aviation industry plays a key role in the globalisation of the economy, national/regional economic development and social affairs. The airport industry has experienced strong growth during the last 40 years, and International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) estimates that worldwide aircraft departures and aircraft kilometre ﬂown will increase at an average annual rate of 3.6% and 4.1%, respectively, between 2005 and 2025. Despite the small decline in the air transport demand growth, because of the recent economic crisis, long-term forecasts indicate that air transport demand will continue to increase in both mature markets, such as those of the USA and Europe, as well as in developing markets, such as those of the East Asia and China [1]. Although the beneﬁts of aviation growth are signiﬁcant, the environmental implications of meeting the new demand are signiﬁcant too. Increased public concern regarding the protection of the environment from the impacts of air transport has shown that an appropriate balance between the growth of air transport and environmental protection must be found. Opportunities to grow exist, only if environmental capacity could be increased. As a result, the development of existing environmental management plans and procedures is inevitable.

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This paper deals with the measures to control environment disturbance due to the growth of aviation trafﬁc. The main concern of this research is to investigate the differences of the environmental plans that have been adopted by the airport industry, and propose the key issues towards a sustainable airport development. The research is focused on European regional airports, where the analysis of the existing environmental plans shows that country’s legislation, location and airport’s size play a signiﬁcant role to airports’ environmental protection performance. The paper is organised in ﬁve sections. In the ﬁrst section, the role of airports in regional development is brieﬂy given. In the second section, the key issues of the environmental management system at airports are analysed. In the next section, the elements of the environmental plans of 10 European regional airports are presented, while in the following section, the key messages of the analysis of these environmental plans are given. Finally, the research conclusions and the references used can be found at the end of the paper. 2 AIRPORTS AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Airports bring signiﬁcant social beneﬁts and in many cases they are thought to be the single largest generator of economic activity in the regions they serve, as emphasised by Airports Council International (ACI) Europe [2]. Whilst important for economic growth, the strong and sustained growth of transport is anticipated to be accompanied by signiﬁcant environmental impacts. It is well recognised that the beneﬁts of aviation are signiﬁcant, although aviation has also signiﬁcant impact upon climate change and disturbance of the local environment, which can generate opposition to airport operations and act as a capacity constraint to aviation growth [3–5]. Air transport is essential to the development of regional and local economies, as it generates economic growth, makes possible the expansion of the world trade, broadens people’s leisure and cultural experiences, provides a wide choice of holiday destinations around the world, delivers emergency and humanitarian aid anywhere on earth, and provides access to remote areas. Besides that, airports provide economic prosperity to the region they serve, through direct and indirect jobs and other commercial development. Planners and urban policy-makers have long been concerned about the growth of air transports trafﬁc and they recognise that airport location and its access system are issues that impact signiﬁcantly the urban development and the local economy. Major transport infrastructures such as airports, have substantial effects on cities’ urban development because of their impact on local trafﬁc, employment, economy and environment. The volume of air trafﬁc is growing according to the trend of the aviation industry, leading airports to invest in new infrastructure to increase capacity. Therefore, air trafﬁc accommodation along with surface trafﬁc to and from the airport is related directly to airport accessibility and constitutes a signiﬁcant part of the problem of urban development and land use planning. Although airports carry out the businesses’ and people’s aspirations and needs, they have a negative impact on the environment and on the communities around them. Environmental impacts such as air pollution, noise, water and soil pollution, biodiversity loss can arise from the operation and development of airports. Therefore, the key question in the debate between airport managers and environmentalists is when the social and economic beneﬁts of an airport to a region overbalance the disturbance on the environment and the human health [6, 7]. The answer to this question is not a simple one and in many cases is not clear either, mainly because the estimations of the environmental impacts in surrounding communities and the regional urban activities transformations are based on assumptions that usually do not reﬂect what really happens. Especially in Europe, any cost-beneﬁt analysis of airport development is focused on business and management scenarios to keep the balance between the beneﬁts from airport activities and the total cost (including the externalities) for the life cycle of the airport. However, the debate about the

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external cost and the impacts of environmental disturbance provides much opposition between stakeholders and NGOs on one side and airport authorities and business associations on the other. Therefore, the management of the environmental disturbance is a critical issue towards airport development. The impacts at a regional level are always the ﬁrst point of interest on the local level, but, also, the climate change and carbon control attract the interest at a national and international level. The global environmental sensitivity affects signiﬁcantly the development of regional airports and leads to signiﬁcant constrain to any future expansion. 3 KEY ISSUES ON AIRPORTS’ ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT In Europe, the need to encourage a more sustainable policy is well recognised. The High Level Group report on Networks for Peace and Development [8] devotes just three paragraphs (pp. 26–27) to the ‘environmental dimension’, which is treated in the most general of terms. The Group highlights ‘the need to pay a special attention to environmental sustainability at the stage of project deﬁnition and analysis as well as when implementing the horizontal priorities’. Recently, ACI Europe [9,32] has committed to a landmark environmental resolution, as a further indication of how they wish to mitigate impacts on climate change. Also, the environmental sustainability of aviation in tourism destinations is discussed by many researchers, where the critical role of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) in future development of airports is highlighted [10]. On a global scale, the greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, oxides of nitrogen and water vapour) emitted ﬁrstly from aircraft engines into the atmosphere and secondly from airports various activities make a signiﬁcant and growing contribution to global warming and climate change. Worldwide aviation seems to be one of the most rapidly growing sources of CO2 emissions and recent studies have shown that the total inﬂuence of aviation on climate is greater than that has been suggested, reaching about 4.7% of the total anthropogenic change [10–12]. On a local level, acoustic airport capacity represents the main limit to their expansion, especially in regional airports. Noise seems to be one of the most signiﬁcant causes of community reaction related to airports’ operations. It has been recognised that air transport industry will develop sustainable if it could meet the increasing demand, while at the same time, constrain or reduce the number of people exposed to unacceptable levels of nuisance from aircraft noise [4, 10]. It is noteworthy that, a recent survey of European airports indicated that approximately two-thirds are already subject to noise restrictions, or have their operations constrained by noise related issues and that this ﬁgure could increase up to 80% in the next 5–10 years [3]. In addition, airports disturb the environment in many other ways, such as the consumption of natural resources, land use and impacts on biodiversity, microclimate and natural ecosystems located near them, which may face signiﬁcant changes due to the airport operations [13]. 3.1 Noise The most signiﬁcant local impact is the disturbance caused by aircraft noise in communities surrounding airports. This can make some destinations less attractive and generate opposition amongst local residents which can lead to constraints to the operations and growth of those airports [4]. Nowadays, many European airports are likely to be seriously constrained by environmental factors due to them being located close to inhabited areas. According to the environmental noise directive 2002/49/EC speciﬁc measures and initiatives should be implemented in order to reduce the environmental noise. This has forced airports’ operators to prepare strategic noise maps and action plans,

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adopt a series of measures in order to reduce and mitigate noise pollution and inform the public about environmental noise. Some of them are listed below: 1. Preparation and implementation of airport’s Noise Action plan, supported by noise indicators and strategic noise mapping. Day-evening-night level of noise Lden and night-time Lnight noise indicators are deﬁned by the directive’s proposed formulas. Noise maps are produced through a modelling process and identify areas exposed to different levels of noise. Using the contour areas the population affected can be measured [14–16]. 2. Air trafﬁc management. Departing and arriving aircrafts are required to stay within deﬁned corridors so as to affect as few people as possible. 3. Operating restrictions and limits, especially at night. For example a limit to the allowed night movements could be set. 4. Differential charging in order to encourage the use of quieter aircraft. 5. Monitoring of noise level in order to revise the existing plan and assess measures for further noise reduction. 6. Construction of anti-noise barriers to protect the local communities. 7. Registration of noise complaints by local communities. 3.2 Emissions Airport activities produce an enormous amount of various pollutants that inﬂuence the air quality of the area and contribute to climate change. For the purpose of this paper only emissions of CO2, major contributor to global warming, will be taken into consideration. Airports, in order to be sustainable, must calculate their carbon emissions of all their activities. Recently, ACI Europe [17] has launched the ‘Airport Carbon Accreditation program’, according to which, airports that will join the scheme must commit to reducing CO2 emissions within their direct control, as an effort to improve their environmental behaviour. Airports, in order to reach carbon neutrality, follow a series of measures; a few of them are mentioned below [18]: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

Energy-efﬁcient design of the airport building and infrastructure. Reduction of required energy. Promote public transport. Use energy from renewable sources. Participate in an emission trading scheme and purchase carbon credits to cover emissions. Force airline industry to reduce CO2 emissions. Use hybrid or electric vehicles.

3.3 Water The various activities of the airport require enormous amount of water. Considering the increasing pressure to reduce water consumption and conserve the water resources, airports must manage their activities in order to consume less water and to protect the surface and ground water resources. Airports, in order to protect and conserve water resources, follow a series of measures, a few of them are mentioned below: 1. Reduce water consumption at the airport site. 2. Reuse water, after treatment (wastewater treatment plant and sewage treatment plant) in toilet facilities or for irrigation purposes. 3. Use rainwater in toilet facilities or for irrigation purposes. 4. Protect the groundwater from pollution.

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5. Monitor water consumption. 6. Monitor the quality of surface and groundwater. 3.4 Waste The various activities of the airport generate a lot of waste. According to ‘The Polluter Pays’ principle, airports must develop a complete waste management system that includes, amongst other, waste separation at source and recycling. Airports waste management, follow a series of measures, a few of them are mentioned below: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Source separation and recycling on airport site. Waste minimisation and charges for waste. Reuse equipments and materials where possible. Promote the usage of products that are renewable and have the least environmental impact.

4 KEY ELEMENTS OF TEN EUROPEAN REGIONAL AIRPORTS’ ENVIRONMENTAL PLANS 4.1 Regional airports’ environmental plan The need to monitor airport performance has been recognised in the literature from the early 1990s. Especially for regional airports the need to identify the environmental issues is essential, because their business development is directly linked to disturbance in environment and local/national communities’ level of tolerance. Surprisingly, in contrast to many other industries many airports still only assess their performance by using simple trafﬁc, operational and ﬁnancial measures. This happens especially to regional airports for several reasons, among which two are the most important: 1. the nature of the airport business, where many airports are still under the government protection accepting purely ﬁnancial and productivity objectives; and 2. there does not exist a widely accepted business practice or system for measuring airport operational performance. It is noteworthy that while many publications present airport operational and management performance [19–21] there is a little research on comparing environmental measures efﬁciency between airports and other industries [22]. The difﬁculties on deﬁning environmental capacity may provide some difﬁculties to evaluating performance of environmental management systems; however, the need for the industry to put forward potential measures, best practices and evidence of calibration towards sustainability should provide the framework for more focused research on the future. This paper presents the research results related to key components of the environmental plans that have been adopted in 10 European regional airports. Key issue of this research is to investigate the differences and common practices applied in environmental strategies and systems. A detailed analysis of airports’ environmental plans showed the following categories: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

noise; climate change; air quality; water; waste; and ecosystems.

According to the above categories, Tables 1 and 2 illustrate the information included in environmental plans of 10 European airports.

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Table 1: Selected European regional airports.

Airport (IATA code)

Operator Manchester Airports Group (MAG) Newcastle International Airport Ltd. Manchester Airports Group (MAG)

Bologna Guglielmo Marconi Airport BLQ) Leipzig/Halle Airport (LEJ) Ibiza Airport (IBZ) Strasbourg Airport (SXB) Eindhoven Airport (EIN) Rhodes Airport (RHO)

Manchester, UK Newcastle, UK East Midlands, UK (Derby, Leicester and Nottingham) Bologna, Italy Leipzig and Halle, Germany Ibiza Island, Spain Entzheim, France Eindhoven, Netherlands Rhodes Island, Greece

Bologna Airport SpA Flughafen Leipzig/Halle Aena CCI de Strasbourg et du Bas Rhin Eindhoven Airport N.V. Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority

Corfu International Airport (CFU)

Corfu Island, Greece

Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority

Manchester Airport (MAN) Newcastle Airport (NCL) East Midlands Airport (EMA)

*Total take-offs and landings in 2008. Source: Airport operators’ ofﬁcial web-sites [23–31].

21,200,000 5,039,993 5,620,673

204,610 72,904 93,038

4,225,446 2,462,256 4,647,360 1,333,049 1,629,893 3,625,962 (2007) 1,999,457 (2007)

62,042 59,924 57,233 42,894 17,217 32,776 (2007) 7,819 (2007)

Regional Airports

Cities/location served

Aircraft Passengers movements* (2008) (2008)

Table 2: Environmental plan categories for 10 European regional airports.

Manchester Airport (MAN) Newcastle Airport (NCL) East Midlands Airport (EMA) Bologna Guglielmo Marconi Airport (BLQ) Leipzig/Halle Airport (LEJ) Ibiza Airport (IBZ) Strasbourg Airport (SXB) Eindhoven Airport (EIN) Rhodes Airport (RHO) Corfu International Airport (CFU)

NO NO Yes, since 2002 Yes, since 2005 NO Yes, since 2001 Yes, since 2008 Yes NO NO

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No

× × × × × × × ×

× × × × × × × ×

× × × × × × × ×

× × × × × × × ×

× × × × × × ×

× × × × × ×

Regional Airports

Airport (IATA code)

Categories of the environmental plan Environmental Climate Air Eco management system Environmental Noise change quality Water Waste systems (EN-ISO 14001) plan

Source: Airport operators’ ofﬁcial web-sites [23–31].

79

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4.2 Content of the main categories of environmental plans The most signiﬁcant measures adopted, by the 10 European regional airports are presented in Tables 3–8.

Table 3: Measures taken, regarding noise, for 10 European regional airports. Airports Measures regarding noise Noise action plan or other noise protection program Aircraft noise impact reporting Noise monitoring Operating restrictions Air trafﬁc management Land use planning Noise barriers or other special infrastructure to buildings Noise fee policy Registration of noise complaints

MAN NCL EMA BLQ LEJ ×

×

×

× × × × × ×

× × × × ×

× × × × ×

× ×

×

× × × × ×

× × ×

×

×

× ×

IBZ SXB EIN RHO CFU ×

×

×

×

× × × ×

× × ×

×

×

× × ×

Source: Airport operators’ ofﬁcial web-sites [23–31].

Table 4: Measures taken, regarding climate change, for 10 European regional airports. Measures regarding climate change Climate change policy or other plan to reduce CO2 emissions Calculation of the CO2 emissions arising from all activities associated with the airport Energy-efﬁcient design or measures to improve buildings’ energy performance Reduction of required energy Renewable electricity or ecological energy generation Promotion of public transport Use or plan to use hybrid or electric vehicles

Airports MAN NCL EMA BLQ LEJ IBZ SXB EIN RHO CFU ×

×

×

×

×

× ×

×

× ×

×

×

×

×

× ×

× ×

×

×

×

×

Source: Airport operators’ ofﬁcial web-sites [23–31].

×

×

× ×

× ×

×

× ×

×

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Table 5: Measures taken, regarding air quality, for 10 European regional airports. Airports Measures regarding air quality

MAN NCL EMA BLQ LEJ IBZ SXB EIN RHO CFU

Air quality monitoring × Air quality reporting/modelling × Air quality management (reduction × of air quality related emissions)

× × ×

× × ×

× × ×

× × ×

× × ×

×

Source: Airport operators’ ofﬁcial web-sites [23–31]. Table 6: Measures taken, regarding water, for 10 European regional airports. Airports Measures regarding water Monitor the quality of surface and/or groundwater Management of the water runoffs Monitor water consumption Water conservation program or water saving policy Use or plan to use rainwater or grey water after treatment (where possible) Water saving devices, leak detection program Wastewater treatment

MAN NCL EMA BLQ LEJ IBZ SXB EIN RHO CFU ×

×

×

×

×

× × ×

×

×

×

×

×

×

× ×

×

×

×

× ×

×

×

× ×

×

Source: Airport operators’ ofﬁcial web-sites [23–31]. Table 7: Measures taken, regarding waste management, for 10 European regional airports. Measures regarding waste management Recycling Waste and recycling facilities Charges for contamination of recycling containers Calculation of the generated waste Waste minimisation policy Land ﬁlled waste minimisation policy

Airports MAN NCL EMA BLQ LEJ IBZ SXB EIN RHO CFU × × × × × ×

×

× ×

×

×

×

×

×

×

Source: Airport operators’ ofﬁcial web-sites [23–31].

× ×

× ×

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5 RESULTS OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL PLAN EVALUATION IN TEN EUROPEAN REGIONAL AIRPORTS The evaluation deals with several criteria and sub-criteria in airports’ environmental plans. Following a systematic approach the key issues should be included in the environmental plans grouped in six main categories of criteria. In addition, for the purpose of the evaluation analysis these criteria include 34 sub-criteria, covering most environmental issues that have to be managed by airports. Table 9 summarises the criteria and the sub-criteria of the evaluation. Table 10 presents the number of sub-criteria assessed in the environmental plan for the sample of ten European regional airports. Table 8: Measures taken, regarding ecosystems, for 10 European regional airports. Airports Measures regarding ecosystems Protection of biodiversity, areas and features of wildlife value or other ecological interest Monitor fauna or/and ﬂora

MAN NCL EMA BLQ LEJ IBZ SXB EIN RHO CFU ×

×

×

×

×

×

×

×

Source: Airport operators’ ofﬁcial web-sites [23–31]. Table 9: Criteria and sub-criteria of evaluation. Noise 1. noise action plan 2. noise reporting 3. noise monitoring 4. operating restrictions 5. air trafﬁc management 6. land use planning 7. special infrastructure to buildings 8. noise fee policy 9. registration of noise complaints Climate change 1. climate change policy 2. calculation of CO2 emissions 3. energy efﬁciency 4. reduction of required energy 5. renewable electricity 6. public transport 7. use hybrid or electric vehicles Air quality 1. air quality monitoring 2. air quality reporting/modelling 3. air quality management

Water 1. monitor water quality 2. manage water runoffs 3. monitor water consumption 4. water conservation program 5. use of rainwater, grey water or treated water 6. water saving devices 7. wastewater treatment Waste 1. recycling 2. waste and recycling facilities 3. charges for contamination of recycling containers 4. calculation of the generated waste 5. waste minimisation policy 6. land ﬁlled waste minimisation policy Ecosystems 1. protection of biodiversity 2. monitor fauna or/and ﬂora

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Table 10: Mitigating measures included in the environmental plans of the selected airports. Number of sub-criteria covered in the selected airports’ environmental plans

Evaluation criteria Description Noise Climate change Air quality Water Waste Ecosystems Total

Subcriteria MAN NCL EMA BLQ LEJ 9 7 3 7 6 2 34

9 7 3 6 6 2 33

7 4 3 2 2 2 20

8 4 3 2 3 1 21

5 4 3 3 2 0 17

6 2 0 3 0 1 12

IBZ SXB EIN RHO CFU 3 4 3 5 2 1 18

7 3 3 4 2 1 20

5 3 1 1 2 0 12

0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Additional ﬁndings of the environmental plan evaluation could be summarised as follows: 1. None of the 10 European regional airports meet all of the selected criteria of evaluation. 2. All airports recognise the need to specify an environmental management strategy to meet the national standards and the EU regulation framework. 3. Not many regional airports, especially the small ones, have set speciﬁc targets about their environmental performance. It seems that, the environmental strategy of the regional airports, whenever exists, depends on their location. Airports located in countries/states that have applied speciﬁc environmental policies appear to have set speciﬁc short, medium and longterm targets regarding noise, air quality, water resources, waste management, climate change and ecosystems. In addition, those airports were developed based on a sustainable and neutral airport development model focusing their strategy on reducing energy consumption and supply renewable energy. 4. Not many regional airports have introduced emission charging strategies, in order to optimise aircraft type and encourage low emission operation. This may have happened because most of the regional airports have focused on attracting new routes and stimulating demand to new destinations, rather than restrict existing operations. 5. Many airports in order to extend their activities apply special measures to increase the community’s tolerance through modern techniques in air trafﬁc management (e.g. route paths control), terminal operation, noise monitoring, landside noise barriers (e.g. charges for road use), special infrastructure to buildings, and public consultation with the stakeholders and the local communities. 6. Most of the airports initiatives focus on airside trafﬁc and did not include the landside development and operation in the airport environmental planning process. This may happen because in most of them the landside area is controlled by the local authorities and the airport operator is not authorised to apply measures to control surface access and land use development. 7. Airports that serve more than 5 million passengers per year seem to have a more detailed environmental management strategy. 8. The majority of the regional airports in our sample seemed to have at least a written document under the title of environmental plan or strategy. However, only half of them have set speciﬁc targets. It is noteworthy that, airports operated by civil authorities, located in countries that do

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9.

10. 11. 12. 13.

14.

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not have applied speciﬁc environmental policies, do not have any environmental plan or some notes about policies and targets to control environment disturbance. The majority of the regional airports in our sample presented a noise action plan focused on methods and procedures for monitoring airport noise. Also, most of them have adopted operational restrictions and limitations for the noise control of the area surrounding them. The majority of the regional airports in our sample had a climate change policy and took measures to reduce emissions. Most of them used renewable energy or energy ecologically generated. The majority of the regional airports in our sample recycled their waste, but most of them did not have a complete waste management system. The majority of the regional airports in our sample was controlling the discharges and monitors the water quality, but only some of them were trying to minimise their water consumption. The majority of the regional airports in our sample published only general guidelines not speciﬁc measures or numerical data that can be easily standardised and used in an evaluation model. As a result, even a simple evaluation model about efﬁciency measures is difﬁcult to be conducted. Indices that could be used for the evaluation of the measures adopted by various environmental plans have to do with the nuisance of the locals (noise complaints, number of residents affected, movements allowed at night, etc.), energy used, carbon footprint, water consumption, recycling and waste management.

6 CONCLUSIONS Across Europe there exist examples of airports that are unable to make full use of their capacity, as a result of the disturbance caused by aircraft noise and climate change. If regional airports development intents to add demand across European air transport network, strategic consideration regarding noise disturbance should be given. This may not only require investment in noise control and mitigation strategies, but also require major investment in new infrastructure to shield local communities from ground noise or, in the case of the construction of a new runway, to enable arriving and departing aircraft to be ﬂown away from noise sensitive communities and environmental sensitive locations. The economic implications of such an action could be signiﬁcant but, in the context of sustainable development, such investment could be critical to ensure the ongoing growth of aviation, and thereby economic development at a particular location. The results of the existing environmental plans analysis for a sample of 10 European regional airports present signiﬁcant differences, mainly, due to the national legislation framework and resident’s tolerance along with the airport business strategy, such as the management scheme and the accommodate trafﬁc. If the airport industry wants to be in alignment with the sustainable development concept then it should give more attention to the regional airports’ environmental management and provide the essential framework to enforce uniformity on both management systems and industry targets. The limited literature allowing a comparison of airports’ environmental systems performance, leads us to call for more research in this area in the future. REFERENCES [1] International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Growth in air traffic projected to continue to 2025, ICAO, RIO 08/2007, www.icao.int/icao/en/nr/2007/pio200708_e.pdf, accessed January 2009. [2] Airports Council International (ACI), Creating employment and prosperity in Europe: a study of the social and economic impacts of airport, ACI Europe, 1998. [3] Dimitriou, D., Daley, B. & Thomas, C., Aviation and environment at tourism destinations: issues of sustainable development. Proceedings ATRS 2008, Paper 354, Athens, 2008.

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[4] Thomas, C. & Lever, M., Aircraft noise, community relations and stakeholder involvement. Towards Sustainable Aviation, Earthscan: London, pp. 97–112, 2003. [5] Caves, R., The social and economic beneﬁts of aviation, Part 1. Towards Sustainable Aviation, Earthscan: London, pp. 36–47, 2003. [6] Thomas, C., Dimitriou, D. & Iatrou, K., Airports sustainable development: principles and key issues, ACI, Aviation dialogue, Issue 1, pp. 2–3, 2009. [7] Upham, P., Thomas, C., Gillingwater, D. & Raper, D., Environmental capacity and airport operations: current issues and future prospects. Journal of Air Transport Management, 9, pp. 145–151, 2003. [8] European Commission, Networks for peace and development. Report from the High Level Group Chaired by Loyola de Palacio, European Commission (EC), pp. 26–27, 2005. [9] ACI Europe, ACI Europe position on aviation and climate change, 2007, www.aci-europe.org, accessed July 2009. [10] Daley, B., Dimitriou, D. & Thomas, C., Chapter 18: The environmental sustainability of aviation and tourism. Aviation and Tourism, Ashgate: UK, pp. 239–253, 2008. [11] Lee, D., Fahey, D., Forster, P., Newton, P., Wit, R., Lim, L., Owen, B. & Sausen, R., Aviation and global climate change in the 21st century. Atmospheric Environment, 43, pp. 3520–3537, 2009. [12] Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), IPCC Fourth Assessment Report: Climate Change 2007, accessed July 2009. [13] Aviation Environment Federation (AEF), UK, www.aef.org.uk, accessed July 2009. [14] Hooper, P., Aircraft noise. The Communication Challenge, Sustainable Aviation Short Course, 2009. [15] Directive 2002/30/EC, http://eur-lex.europa.eu, accessed July 2009. [16] Directive 2002/49/EC, http://eur-lex.europa.eu, accessed July 2009. [17] Airport Carbon Accreditation, www.airportcarbonaccreditation.org, accessed July 2009. [18] Meinshausen, M. & Raper, S., The rising effect of aviation on climate. Omega Report, CATE, MMU, 2009. [19] Airports Council International (ACI), Airport Benchmarking to Maximise Efficiency, ACI Europe, pp. 6–12, 2006. [20] Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), Airport Performance Indicators, pp. 6–10, 2004. [21] Air Transport Research Society (ATRS), Airport Benchmarking Report: Global Standards for Airport Excellence, pp. 4–14, 2007. [22] ACI Europe, Airport Awards, www.aci-europe-events.com/annual-general-assembly/awards, accessed July 2009. [23] East Midlands Airport, www.eastmidlandsairport.com, accessed July 2009. [24] Eindhoven Airport, www.eindhovenairport.com, accessed July 2009. [25] Environmental Plan of Manchester Airport, Manchester Airport Master Plan to 2030, 2005. [26] Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority, www.ypa.gr, accessed July 2009. [27] Ibiza Airport, www.aena.es, accessed July 2009. [28] Leipzig Halle Airport, www.leipzig-halle-airport.de, accessed July 2009. [29] Newcastle International Airport Noise Action Plan (draft for consultation), 2009. [30] Strasbourg International Airport, www.strasbourg.aeroport.fr, accessed July 2009. [31] Sustainability report of Aeroporto ‘G. Marcoli’ di Bologna, 2007. [32] ACI Europe, General Assembly. Annual Congress and Exhibition, Airports Council International Europe, 18–20 June 2008, Paris, France, Air Transport News, htpp://www.airtransportnews/ reports, accessed June 2008.

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SUSTAINABLE LOGISTICS PLATFORM IN A REGIONAL BRAZILIAN AIRPORT O.F. LIMA Jr1, E.W. RUTKOWSKI2, C.C. de CARVALHO1 & J.C.F. LIMA2 1Geotechnics and Transportation Department, FEC UNICAMP, Brazil. 2Sanitation and Environmental Issues Department, FEC UNICAMP, Brazil.

ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to design a sustainable logistics platform concept based on different applications of global airport logistics platforms and industrial ecology principles. This concept has been developed for a southern Brazilian application [Campinas Metropolitan Region, São Paulo state]. The design guidelines establish a balance between the logistics activities and the environmental constraints on business viability. Keywords: airport logistics platforms, Brazilian logistic platforms, Campinas logistic platform, environmentally sustainable, freight villages, industrial ecology, sustainable logistics platform.

1 INTRODUCTION The market economy, with its just-in-time production system and globalized supply chains, promoted the development of logistics and a variety of specialties such as urban logistics. Increase in urban population density leads to an increased need for urban distribution logistics operations, which brings more truck trafﬁc on to the streets, containers moving in unsuitable locations, increased carbon emissions, higher levels of noise pollution, cargos thefts and, as a consequence, higher delivery costs. Four relevant agents are affected: the logistics operators, urban residents, government and environment. The logistics operators see their efﬁciency reduced as increased trafﬁc levels hinder access to routes and destinations, increase trafﬁc congestion undermine schedules and compromise their level of service. Urban residents have their quality of life negatively affected by pollution and truck movements interfering in their working and living areas. The government has great difﬁculty in regulating and minimizing the impacts of this process without jeopardizing the continuity of economic activities associated with it [1]. The environment suffers from air pollution and noise caused by ﬂeet increase. Such problems have contributed to the improvement from ‘cargo distribution centers’ to ‘logistics platforms’. A logistics platform is deﬁned as a strategically situated site, encompassing several logistics activities, with a large transportation infrastructure that provides competitive advantages and enhances the logistics activities of the participants engaged in the companies business. This platform also generates signiﬁcant number of jobs [2]. In the context of current globalization given by the geographical extent and the territory organization changes, it is important to develop logistic sites that meet the needs of companies from the suppliers to the customers, reducing costs and speeding the ﬂow of information and goods [3]. The literature review on logistics platforms and multimodes terminals emphasizes the importance of an airport. With the increasing complexity of supply chains, Cappa [4] notes, ‘large companies use air transport and cargo hub airports, integrated logistics and industrial operations are part of their corporate strategies to expand the marketing of goods’. Thus airport based logistics platforms are an alternative to meet the demand for greater reaction speed in the logistics supply chain. An airport based logistics platform adds competitive advantage to air mode by integrating it to others modes, speeding operations and distribution of loads. Its installation nearby or even inside an airport site gives the differential. This type of platform gives greater agility and better structure for

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products and perishable goods besides more security for the transportation of merchandise with higher added value. The air mode enables not only quicker and safer transportation of seasonal goods, but also the goods to reach markets with awkward accessibility and reduces distance as well [4, 5]. As the logistics platforms gain productive activities and social, environmental and economic services, they have great potential both to optimize activities and processes and to avoid or minimize environmental impacts. Despite growing environmental concerns in business management, environmental initiatives are still not commonly found in the development of a logistics platform. Some speciﬁc initiatives do exist in relation to water reuse, wastewater treatment, recycling or energy optimization. These are important actions as they improve the environment and minimize losses, and might induce a different economic perspective: environmental expenditures as an investment instead of costs. The industry implanted into a logistics platform integrates and has a better control from production to post-production activities, distribution and technical assistance. The integration can be extended to the supply chain, attracting suppliers to base themselves inside the platform as well. This tendency to improve company inter-relationships is one of the principles of industrial ecology, a fundamental concept for the sustainability of productive activities. This paper aims to develop, based on the precepts of industrial ecology, the concept of sustainable logistics platform for southeast Brazil (Metropolitan Region of Campinas/SP) and to establish design guidelines aiming to strike a balance between logistics activities and environmental constraints. In order to construct the concept, the authors adopted the building theory methodology, proposed by Seuring et al. [6], and a critical review of literature [7]. The concepts of different logistics platforms available both in literature [8–12]; and in practice were analyzed and compared. From this critical analysis, a proposition was constructed. The design guidelines were also established through a critical analysis from theoretical models and existing facilities. 2 INDUSTRIAL ECOLOGY Sustainable development was brought to the international debate by the United Nations and emphatically announced in ‘Our Common Future’ as: ‘[…] a process of change in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development, and institutional change are all in harmony and enhance both current and future potential to meet human needs and aspirations’ [13]. For Manzini and Vezzoli [14] this deﬁnition highlights the need to review the pattern of existing development and aims to achieve systemic conditions at the regional and global levels. In 1989, for the debate on sustainable development and its instrumentation, Frosch and Gallopoulos [15] published the article Strategies for Manufacturing, in Scientiﬁc American, where they stated ‘that the traditional model of industrial activity – in which individual manufacturing processes take in raw materials and generate products to be sold plus waste to be disposal of – should be transformed into a more integrated model: an industrial ecosystem. […]. An ideal industrial ecosystem may never be attained in practice, but both manufactures and consumers must change their habits to approach it more closely if the industrialized world is to maintain its standard of living – and the developing nations are to raise theirs to a similar level – without adversely affecting the environment’. This article became one of the most important references for the construction of the industrial ecology concept. The principles of industrial ecology brought new ways for analyzing productive processes, guided by ecological concepts: ecosystem metabolism, interconnections and organisms functionality. The linear industrial activity perception – input of raw material and output of ﬁnished products and waste – is replaced by an integrated production processes concept, where the energy and materials consumption are optimized and shared by different industries. The material cycles tend to be closed with the waste of one process serving as raw material for another one. The industrial system, similar to the natural ecosystem, basically consists of material, energy and information ﬂows and also depends on

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Figure 1: Industrial ecology operates at three levels [17]. resources and services provided by the biosphere. The word industrial in industrial ecology alludes to all human activities in a modern technological society, from agricultural activities to tourism activities or health services. According to Erkman et al. [16], the main precepts of industrial ecology are

• • • • •

to optimize resource use; to close material cycles; to minimize emissions; to reduce the quantities of materials used in activities; to reduce or eliminate dependence on non-renewable energy sources.

Chertow [17] comments that an industrial project based on industrial ecology has three scales of operation, represented in Fig. 1:

• • •

within the company, for example, design for the environment; between companies, for example, industrial symbiosis; on a regional scale, for example, studies of industrial metabolism.

Industrial ecology makes possible activity scales that go beyond the corporate environmental management strategies. It may well induce changes in industry dynamics on a regional scale. Peck [18] emphasizes that industrial ecology directs business to a new paradigm, which emphasizes the policies, technologies and management systems of a more cooperative production process. Over the last two decades of the 20th century, some industrial ecology proposals have been implemented – Kalundborg in Denmark and eco-parks in the USA and Netherlands. Kalundborg, an industrial city on the Danish west coast, is considered a classic example, because in 1961, it united the interests of the local community with developers of a new oil reﬁnery to ensure its future supply of drinking water from the waters of Lake Tissø. The local authorities assumed responsibility for the construction of the pipeline and the reﬁnery paid for it. From there, the community negotiates with other industries and shapes a Kalundborg interconnected network of production ([19], shown in Fig. 2). Lowe [20] divided eco-industrial projects in three categories:

•

Eco-industrial park: an industrial park developed and managed as a real estate development enterprise and seeking high environmental, economic and social beneﬁts as well as business excellence.

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Figure 2: Network inter-connectivity production in the city of Kalundborg, DK [21].

• •

By-product exchange: a set of companies seeking to utilize each other’s by-products (energy, water and materials) rather than disposing of as waste. Eco-industrial network: a set of companies collaborating to improve their environmental, social and economic performance in a region.

An eco-industrial park is an enterprise managed as a condominium. Veiga and Magrini [22] consider this model ‘an initiative that seeks to achieve sustainable development by integrating issues such as economic, environmental and social responsibility from corporation and communities. It may result in jobs number and quality increase and sustainable communities, contributing to reduce pollution and waste while increasing for the companies both market insertion and opportunities for new business’. Lowe [20] from the Indigo Development Group considers that these condominium strategies should deal with different aspects – from natural resources use to neighborhood – described in Table 1 [15]. Considering the multiple conﬁgurations of the logistic platforms, this work adopts the eco-industrial park model as the aim for a Sustainable Logistic Platform. 3 LOGISTICS PLATFORM The ﬁrst concept of logistics platforms appeared in France in the 1960s due to advances in studies of management operation [23]. The initial goal was to reduce the disorderly ﬂow of goods distributed by cargo terminals in big cities outskirts. The study of logistics sites starts in order to concentrate and optimize the distribution and reduce logistics costs [24]. The logistics locations were organized in three main groups, according to Collin [25]:

• •

Logistics Site: a well-deﬁned region under the intervention of only one logistic operator; Logistics Zone: a well-deﬁned region under the intervention of several operators in intermodal logistics and with the ability to group multiple logistic sites;

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Table 1: Strategies for designing an eco-industrial park (EIP) [15]. Aspects Natural resources

Premises Integration into natural systems

Energy systems

Waste

Building Management

Neighborhood

Water Materials ﬂows and waste Management for the whole site

Constructionrehabilitation Effective management

Integration to the host community

Strategies Select the site through the ecological carrying capacity assessment Minimize local environmental impacts – integrating the EIP to the local landscape, the hydrologic settings and the ecosystem Minimize contributions for global environmental impacts Maximize energy efﬁciency Achieve higher efﬁciency through inter-plant energy ﬂows Use renewable sources extensively Design the rational use of water Emphasize cleaner production and pollution prevention Seek maximum re-use and recycling of materials amongst EIP enterprises Reduce toxic materials risks Link the EIP tenants to neighborhood companies for resource exchanges and recycling networking Follow the best environmental practices in materials selection and building technology Keep a mix of companies for by-products exchanges Support environmental performance improvement for individual companies and the whole EIP Operate a information site for inter-company communications, information on local environmental conditions and for feedback on EIP performance Beneﬁt the local economy and communities – training and education programs, community business development and collaborative urban planning Develop housing for EIP companies’ employees. Create a community strategic plan for reducing the wastes ﬂux Develop a effective regional by-product exchange, providing markets for materials discarded as waste Strength economic development planning to encourage businesses ﬁtting the EIP proﬁles Mobilize educational resources to help the community businesses and government actions to increase energy efﬁciency and pollution prevention Finance EPI development costs through public–private partnership

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Logistics Hub: an ample space not very well deﬁned that concerted logistics activities, various logistics sites and logistics zones.

The logistics platform was classiﬁed as a logistics zone and received different denominations, such as, plateformes logistiques publiques (public logistic platform), distriport, distripark, interporto, freight village, centrales integradas de mercancias (merchandises integrated center) and park logistic center [18]. Logistics platform is a speciﬁc area where several activities such as transportation, logistics and distribution of national or international transit merchandise are realized. This infrastructure is a modern alternative to solve the problems caused by the increased ﬂow of vehicles circulating in a city because of the intensiﬁed demand of goods distribution [26]. These platforms involve alliances between organizations responsible for transport services, warehousing and distribution that can generate signiﬁcant reductions in urban trafﬁc, environmental pollution and social problems [12]. In 1992, Europe consolidated an European Association of Freight Villages known as EUROPLATFORMS. This association brought a broad and complex concept of logistics platforms: ‘a defined area within which different operators realize all activities related to transportation, logistics and distribution of goods, both for the national and international transit. These operators can be owners or tenants of the buildings, equipment, facilities (warehouses, storage areas, workshops) that are built and operating within the condominium. A platform should have a system of free competition for all the companies concerned interested in performing the activities described above and provide common services for people and the users’ vehicles. It is compulsorily managed by a single public, private or mixed entity’ [21]. Regardless of its classiﬁcation and the modes present in the logistics platform, its main purposes are to increase organization efﬁciency, being formed by a group of companies in either a region or a state or a country, to create jobs, to improve the service value and service timing and to increase competitiveness among partners. According to Boudouin [27], the investments in a logistics platform can be divided in public and private investments. The public investments generally focus on areas of land development, transport infrastructure implementation and, eventually, in leasing buildings to service companies and operators. The private investment, on the other hand, focuses on sites construction, where goods are handled and services delivered. Taniguchi and Van der Heijden [28] believe that logistics platforms are the means to increase cooperation in transportation systems, which contributes not only to carbon dioxide emission reduction, but also to reduce the distances traveled by delivery vehicles. Consequently, the platforms reduce environmental impacts. 3.1 European logistics platforms The majority of European logistics platforms are public initiatives with the exception of pioneering experiences, such as Garonor and Sogaris, which present characteristics of a private initiative. In the public initiatives the government is responsible for design plans, goals, investment guidelines and development, and also for coordinating and managing the logistics platforms. However, regardless the different types of initiatives, the logistics platforms are part of national development plans for transportation terminals [29]. Another striking feature of European logistics platforms are the intermodality. They include in theirs structure at least two different modes of transportation enabling the adoption of logistics network policy, a policy that encourages interaction, partnerships and cargo ﬂows between the European continent and other continents [25, 30]. Nowadays the best known European logistics platforms are the logistics activities zones (ZAL), PLAZA – the logistics platform of Zaragoza (Spain), the Interporto Campano – the logistics platform of Nola (Italy), Sogaris Enterprise – various logistics platforms in France, the freight village in the

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UK, the GVZ (Guterverkehrszentren) – the logistics platforms in Germany and the distriparks in Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg [25]. Although they all develop logistics activities, they have subtle differences in concept or management. The port of Barcelona accommodates the ZAL with the highest economic activity in Spain. It is a multimodal center of distribution and logistics and is considered the main Mediterranean port for container trafﬁc and goods as it connects more than 400 ports around the world [25]. The Barcelona ZAL is strategically positioned with four different infrastructures to perform their logistics operations: air, rail, sea and road [31]. Another logistics platform of great importance to Spain is PLAZA, located in the city of Zaragoza, on Madrid–Barcelona road axis. PLAZA is the largest logistics zone in Europe with public management. The Government of Aragón (51.52%), the City Council of Zaragoza (12.12%), the Banco de Zaragoza, Aragón y La Rioja (18.18%) and the Banco de Inmaculada (18.18%) form the PLAZA society. PLAZA was consolidated in 2000 and is initiating the transition from the public to private domain. The road mode is the most used, despite having a railway and a barrier-free airport [2, 32]. The Italian interportos are characterized by the hierarchy of terminals, the proﬁle of an industry with less logistics outsourcing and the focus on small and medium enterprises. They are located in the north, around Milan, Novara and Turin; in the south, in Rome, Naples and in the port of Gioia Tauro [25, 26]. The Interporto Campano is a large logistics zone in Naples region. The management is private and has a solid infrastructure: a road transport, a railway, and airport and also serves as a dry port. The enterprise offers many activities and services that add value to goods [33]. The French platforms, according to Rosa [29] invest strongly in real estate for warehouse rents. Therefore, they attract logistics operators and industries with focus on logistics distribution. The multimodal platform in northern Toulouse is a public institution, which focuses on industrial activity. This platform was developed jointly by several partners and funded by the French state and the European Union. Other French example is the SOGARIS group, which manages private platforms [34–36]. In Germany, this enterprise presents a public–private partnership. The German platforms develop distribution activities and services, local and long distance logistics, custom services, internal security and vehicles maintenance [29]. Logistics platforms in Belgium characteristically offer a large specialized storage area and strong logistics operators. They also maintain a strong relationship with ports, attracting distribution centers of international companies. The Belgium platforms also offer an organism for protection of private interests and legal alternatives for different warehouses proﬁles [25]. In the United Kingdom, the Freight Villages promote intermodal transportation by providing a common service not only for carriers and logistics companies located within the platform but also for external customers. These Villages provide handling services, warehouse operation, and management for smaller companies. A British example is New Castle Freight Village [37]. 3.2 The potential of Brazilian logistic platforms In Brazil, the logistics platforms are a recent enterprise in an accelerated development. They emerged as an evolution of the integrated logistics centers in order to optimize the logistics processes and the supply chain activities. The Integrated Logistics Center was designed by Brazilian public bodies as an area which should accommodate a road–rail intermodal terminal and a logistics platform capable of storage operations, distribution, containers consolidation and deconsolidation, support services and customs areas [38].

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The Interior Custom Station (EADI) is a dry port, designed for public services of goods circulation and warehousing. It also provides custom services for all merchandise and luggage under Brazilian Internal Revenue Services, either arriving from abroad or leaving the country [38]. According to the Brazilian Custom Operators Companies Association, ABEPRA, there are 62 dry ports in Brazil. They attract distribution centers aiming to integrate the whole supply chain, through transport facilities, cargo removal from primary area (port, airport or border points) to the dry ports (secondary zone). The ﬁrst consolidated logistics platform in Brazil is the Goiás Multimodal Logistic Platform, PLMG, operating with multimodality and freight optimization [37]. The platform has a condominium concept and could be controlled by investors. The project will be implemented in four phases. The ﬁrst one began in 2007 with Services and Administration Pool, road system and terminal [39]. The TERGUA Project, is another Brazilian logistics platform project, which consists of a multimodal port terminal. This project aims for multimodal integration – sea, road and rail – with a terminal exclusively for heavy loads, specialized in containers, GLP and solids bulk (fertilizer and grain). This is a project for Rio Grande do Sul, the southern state of Brazil [31]. 4 PROPOSAL Campinas, with one million inhabitants, is the second largest city of São Paulo state, the most industrialized state of Brazil. The Metropolitan Region of Campinas is considered the Brazilian Silicon Valley; therefore it has an important role in the national logistics industry. Viracopos International Airport handles 31.7% of total cargo imported in 2009 and 27.8% of cargo exported in 2009 from all the Brazilian air terminals. The airport is 14 km from Campinas center and 99 km from São Paulo city. From the airport, it is possible to access the major state highways. The Viracopos International Airport serves large companies spread in 430 Brazilian municipalities: 266 cities in the Southeast (61.9% of total); 130 cities in the South (30.2%); 24 cities in the Northeast (5.6%); 6 cities in the Midwest (1.4%); 4 cities in the North (0.9%) [40]. The importance of Viracopos International Airport, and logistics infrastructure that integrates the operations of large industrial companies, is signaled by their contribution to the growth of Brazil’s GDP. In the 1990s, the airport emerged into the international air cargo sector and became one of the main hubs in Latin America. Its logistics terminal for import and export freight occupies an area of over 81,000 m2. The infrastructure and automation of freight handling and customs clearance, developed in partnership with Brazilian Internal Revenue Services, turned Viracopos airport in a air logistics reference of national importance. Figure 3 shows the location of Campinas city, the Viracopos International Airport and the Campinas Logistic Platform (PLC).

Figure 3: Location of Campinas city, the Viracopos International Airport and the Campinas logistic platform.

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The Campinas Logistic Platform (PLC) is due to be constructed in a 7,000,000,000-m2 area in front of the Viracopos International Airport. The design guidelines for this sustainable logistics platform express six interconnected topics and is summarized in Table 2 that it the compares with some examples of European logistics centers: 1.

The enterprise hosts and organizes the logistics activities An airport always causes relevant environmental and urban impacts not only locally. A neighboring logistics platform will amplify those impacts besides causing speciﬁc ones. Therefore, this kind of enterprise should keep all its activities inside its limits avoiding spreading routines to the nearby streets and avenues in order to maximize public safety. Table 2: Summary of sustainable logistics platform aspects.

Guidelines for sustainable of PLC (Campinas logistic platform, Brazil)

The enterprise hosts and organizes the logistics activities

The enterprise becomes the local services productive arrangement secondary radiator

The enterprise ﬂexes the expansion

The enterprise invests in research and development The enterprise is socially responsible

The enterprise is environmentally sustainable

*Information not available.

Similar initiatives in European logistic centers GVZ – Bremen freight village (Germany) Distriparks (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg) ZAL (Spain) PLAZA (Spain) INTERPORTO CAMPANO (Italy) SOGARIS GROUP (France) GVZ – Bremen freight village (Germany) Distriparks (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg) ZAL (Spain) PLAZA (Spain) INTERPORTO CAMPANO (Italy) SOGARIS GROUP (France) GVZ – Bremen freight village (Germany) PLAZA (Spain) ZAL (Spain) SOGARIS GROUP (France) PLAZA (Spain) – Zaragoza Logistics Center (International Center for Training and Research in Logistics – A joint venture formed between the Government of Aragón, PLA-ZA, S.A., the University of Zaragoza, with the participation of the ‘Center for Transportation and Logistics’ of the ‘Massachusetts Institute of Technology’ – MIT) * PLAZA (Spain) – speciﬁc actions (environmental rules, preservation of green areas, ecological constructions and environmental suitability of warehouses ‘Eco initiatives’ of enterprise Gazeley) SOGARIS GROUP (France) – speciﬁc actions (use of cleaner technologies and optimization of resources) GVZ – Bremen freight village (Germany)-speciﬁc actions (recycling of waste materials)

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3.

4.

5.

6.

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The enterprise becomes the local services productive arrangement secondary radiator Viracopos airport intends to quadruple its activities over the next 10 years. For that, it is considered a primary developer of a local services productive arrangement. The airport environmental impact assessment advocates sustainability as the master key for this new era. The PLC intends to radiate a local services sustainable productive arrangement as it might gain from synergy with the airport, the highway network and the surrounding communities. The enterprise ﬂexes the expansion The speed of change in production technologies can lead to the obsolescence of some logistics sectors. The areas deﬁned in the PLC for the development of logistics, industrial and services activities needs, over time, to be changed both in terms of the area occupied and in the nature of its activities. The PLC, in order to maintain its cohesive logistics hub function, should be administered in such a way that it is able to accommodate those changes in the production processes, both existing and new, which might seek the condominium. The enterprise invests in research and development The PLC is, in area, one of the largest logistics platforms in the world. It is the only one, so far, that incorporated environmental sustainability into its design as a business variable. For its innovative character, the PLC will incorporate a Center of Research, Development and Innovation to establish a continuous production of knowledge and technologies and, the training of the professionals that work in the venture. The Center will be responsible for evaluating routine performance and for proposing future guidelines that preserve the business characteristics and allow the incorporation of new complementary activities. The enterprise is socially responsible The PLC will share with the surrounding communities a policy of improving regional environmental services, in order to cement the importance of environmental quality. The enterprise is environmentally sustainable The PLC has adopted sustainability as a basis for the development of activities. PLC’s commitment to the environment will be responsible for minimizing the release of greenhouse gases, as well as ecological, water and energy footprints of the condominium.

5 CONCLUSION Sustainability is not a major issue on all the logistics platforms studied. Most of them establish construction procedures and maintenance rules to minimize energy consumption; some are concerned primarily with water consumption. All these actions are primarily related to money saving. PLAZA, situated in a desert region, saves rainwater and rehabilitated only their side of the Aragon river riparian region. The only sustainable building is where the PLAZA administration stays. Interporto Campano built a nearby shopping center – the Volcano Buono – totally sustainable, although the stones came from the Vesuvio outskirts – the volcano malo. The administration considered that this building compensate all environmental impacts produced by the Interporto activities. The Campinas Logistics Platform entrepreneur decided to organize logistics activities and the complementary activities – industrial, business, services, management – in such a way that urban, regional and international logistics will be served sustainability and will be social and economically proﬁtable. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS To the company H2MK for ﬁnancially supporting the academic research. Our deep gratitude to Kenton James Keys for revising the paper.

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REFERENCES [1] Lima, O.F. Jr., Avaliação de Desempenho de Redes de Transportes nas Operações Logísticas do Setor de Serviços. Tese (Livre Docência), UNICAMP: Campinas, 2004. [2] Martins, T.T., Considerações sobre Implantação de uma Plataforma Logística no Estado do Rio de Janeiro. Tese (Mestrado), Puc-Rio: Rio de Janeiro, 2006. [3] Duarte, P.C., Desenvolvimento de um mapa estratégico para apoiar a implantação de uma plataforma logística. Dissertação de Doutorado. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Engenharia de Produção, UFRGS: Porto Alegre, 2004. [4] Cappa, J., Análise Econômica do Aeroporto Internacional de Viracopos como Instrumento de Logística de Operações Industriais, 2008. [5] Pedrinha, A.J., Carga aérea no Brasil: características gerais do mercado e fatores influentes, Rio de Janeiro: UFRJ-COPPE (Dissertação de Mestrado), 2000. [6] Seuring, S., Muller, M., Reiner, G. & Kotzab, H., Is there a right research design for your supply chain study?, Research Methodologies in Supply Chain Management, eds H. Kotzab, S. Seuring, M. Muller & G. Reiner, Physica – Verlag: Germany, pp. 1–12, 2000. [7] Seuring, S., Muller, M., Westhaus, M. & Morana, R., Conducting a literature review – the example of sustainability in supply chain. Research Methodologies in Supply Chain Management, eds H. Kotzab, S. Seuring, M. Muller, & G. Reiner, Physica – Verlag, Germany, pp. 91–106, 2000. [8] Colin, J., Les evolutions de la logistique en Europe: vers la polarisation des espaces. I Seminário Internacional: Logística, Transportes e Desenvolvimento, Ceará, pp. 52–92, 1996. [9] Apatjev, I.B. & Levin, C.B., The Logistic Systems of Transport. Horhcthyuckhe tpahcnoptho: Moscou, p. 304, 2003. [10] EUROPLATAFORMS EEIG, Logistics Centres Directions for Use. Disponível em: www. unece.org, Capturado em 16/10/2009, 2004. [11] Dubke, A.F., Ferreira, F.R.N. & Pizzolato, N.D., Plataformas Logísticas: características e tendências para o Brasil. XXIV ENEGEP. [12] Ballis, A. & Mavrotas, G., Freight village design using the multicriteria method Promothee. Operational Research. An International Journal, 7(2), 2007. [13] WCED – World Commission on Environment and Development, Our Common Future, Oxford University Press: Oxford, ISBN 0-19-282080-X, 1987. [14] Manzini, E. & Vezzoli, C., Design for Environmental Sustainability, edn 1, Springer, ISBN-10: 1848001622/ISBN-13: 978-1848001626, 2008. [15] Frosch, R.A. & Gallopoulos, N., Strategies for manufacturing. Scientific American 261(3), pp. 144–152, 1989. [16] Erkman, S., Francis, C. & Ramesh, R., Industrial Ecology: An Agenda for the Long-term Evolution of the Industrial System, Institute for Communication and Analysis of Science and Technology (ICAST): Switzerland Geneva, 2001. [17] Chertow, M.R., Industrial symbiosis: literature and taxonomy. Annual Review of Energy and the Environment, 25, pp. 313–37, 2000. [18] Peck, J.S.W., Industrial Ecology: From Theories To Practice. Peck & Associates: Ontario, Canada, 2000. [19] Pereira, A.S., Lima, J.C.F. & Rutkowski, E.W., Industrial ecology, production and environment: a discussion about interconnectivity of production. 1st International Workshop: Advances in Cleaner Production, São Paulo, SP, 2007. Proceedings of the 1st International Workshop on Advances in Cleaner Production, Editora UNIP: São Paulo, SP, pp. 137–137, 2007.

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[20] Lowe, E.A., Eco-industrial Park Handbook for Asian Developing Countries. A Report to Asian Development Bank, Environment Department, Indigo Development: Oakland, CA, 2001. [21] Grann, H., The industrial symbiosis at Kalundborg, Denmark. The Industrial Green Game, National Academy Press: Washington, DC, pp. 117–123, 1997. [22] Veiga, L.B.E. & Magrini, A.D., Eco industrial park development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Paracambi EIP. 1st International Workshop: Advances in Cleaner Production, São Paulo/SP, 2007. Proceedings of the 1st International Workshop on Advances in Cleaner Production, Editora UNIP: São Paulo, SP, 2007. [23] European Commission, Intermodality and Transport of Goods, Brussels, 1997. [24] Rodrigues, A.D., Plataforma Logística: Competitividade e Futuro. Revista Conjuntura Econômica Goiana, p. 65, 2004. [25] Collin, J., Les evolutions de la logistique en Europe: vers la polarisation des espaces. I Seminário Internacional: Logística, Transportes e Desenvolvimento, Ceará, pp. 52–92, 1996. [26] EUROPLATAFORMS EEIG, Logistics Centres Directions for Use. Disponível em: www.unece.org, Capturado em 16/10/2009, 2004. [27] Boudouin, D., Logística-Território-Desenvolvimento: O caso europeu. I Seminário Internacional: Logística, Transportes e Desenvolvimento, Ceará, p. 105, 1996. [28] Taniguchi, E. & Van der Heijden, R., An evaluation methodology for city logistics. Transport Reviews 20, pp. 65–90, 2000. [29] Rosa, D., Plataforma logístico-cooperativa: integração horizontal das cadeias de abastecimento. Associação Nacional de Pesquisa e Ensino em transportes: Rio de Janeiro, 2004. [30] Duarte, P., Modelo para o desenvolvimento de plataforma logística em um terminal. Um estudo de caso na estação aduaneira do interior – Itajaí/SC, Dissertação de mestrado, UFSC, 1999. [31] Bacovis, M.M.C., II Congresso de Pesquisa e Inovação da Rede Norte Nordeste de Educação Tecnológica João Pessoa – PB – 2007. Estudo comparativo das plataformas logísticas européias x brasileiras, Unidade de Ensino Descentralizado de Manaus/CEFET-AM, 2007. [32] PLAZA, Logistics Platform of Zaragoza. http://www.plazalogistica.com/index.aspx, accessed 4/17/2009. [33] INTERPORTO CAMPANO, http://www.interportocampano.it/, accessed 4/18/2009. [34] EUROCENTER, www.eurocentre.fr/home/europe, Toulouse, accessed 7/28/2009. [35] THE GUTERVERKEHRSZENTREN (GVZ) – Bremen, Germany, www.bremen.de/info/gvz/ gvzfset.html, accessed 7/28/2009. [36] Dutra, N., et al., As plataformas logísticas e suas relações com operadores logísticos – Cenários e Tendências. Anais do XV Congresso da ANPET, Rio de Janeiro, 1999. [37] Grifﬁths, J., Airport management issues. Management Development Review, MCB University Press, 0962-2519, 7(2), pp. 16–21, 1994. [38] Dubke, A.F., Ferreira, F.R.N. & Pizzolato, N.D., Plataformas Logísticas: características e tendências para o Brasil. XXIV ENEGEP, 2006. [39] PLATAFORMA LOGISTICA MULTIMODAL DE GOIAS, www.plataformalogistica.go.gov. br, accessed 4/28/2009. [40] INFRAERO – Empresa Brasileira de Infra-Estrutura Aeroportuária, O aeroporto industrial em Campinas. Encontro de Administração, Comércio Exterior, Logística e Serviços, PUC Campinas-CEA: Campinas (SP), p. 13e, 2006.

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REGIONAL AIRPORT: STUDY ON ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL PROFITABILITY S. AMOROSO & L. CARUSO Department of Transport Engineering, University of Palermo, Italy.

ABSTRACT Using Geomatics and GIS technologies, the aim of this study is the recovery of a regional economy focused on the areas that are marginalized and depressed, or with an emerging tourist industry, to reach explanatory variables of the airport impact on the regional economy. This analysis is conducted on the basis of geographical data and socio-economic features that characterized the area taken into account. Keywords: air transport, airport, economic profitability, regional development, social cost, social benefits.

1 INTRODUCTION Next to the main activities relating to international air trafﬁc, which absorb large ﬂows of trafﬁc and offer primary and supplementary services, today airport is identiﬁed by their irreplaceable role in modern economic life, especially in the connections between places that, for geographical reasons or otherwise, have the characteristics of difﬁcult accessibility by other modes of transport and levels of demand not so high as to justify international and/or intercontinental air services. The functionality of these services also depends on policy choices in terms of airport facilities and their distribution in the territory compared to the docks and the trafﬁc volumes that interest them. In this respect, the analysis must be conducted according to geographical data and socio-economic features of the area taken into account, in particular, on a regional scale, the recovery in the economy of the region, and the depressed or marginalized areas emerging from tourism. The choice of location of the airports must be made within the framework of general guidelines at the national level via the joint-state region, given that planning at the regional level, by itself, is not able to consider and assess the many aspects of the problem territories that may exceed those that are exclusively regional. Air services outlined, included among those listed services in the short to medium range, may allow, without signiﬁcant ﬁnancial commitments and without complex infrastructure, the presence of air transport in urban, industrial and tourist centers, away from major airports and in large agglomerations that have a small airport. The best prospects we have, however, are in relations to trafﬁc to and between islands, given the slowness of shipping and the need for social and economic relations that should be frequent and fast. Besides, in addition to public interest, the social aim is more easily achieved employing the links between southern Italy and the marginal locations than the industrial and economic centers, thus facilitating the objectives of revitalizing areas socially and economically less developed. Thus, the airport is seen as a service to the territory, similar to that of a hospital, a school or a cultural center. It is necessary, even in the case of a regional airport, to provide the area of inﬂuence and activities that allow the best and most appropriate use and development according to national and regional planning. Hence, the need to identify a methodology that allows explanatory variables of the airport to impact on the regional economy is to be reached.

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2 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE AIRPORT AND TERRITORY Airports, according to the classiﬁcation proposed by the European Commission, can be divided into four categories: 1. 2. 3. 4.

large airports, characterized by trafﬁc higher than 10,000,000 annual passengers; national airports, with trafﬁc between 5,000,000 and 10,000,000 annual passengers; major regional airports, with trafﬁc between 1,000,000 and 5,000,000 annual passengers; small regional airports, with less trafﬁc, up to 1,000,000 annual passengers.

The presence of an airport in a region can be an important strategic asset in solving problems of economic and territorial growth, it is endogenous and exogenous in nature, contributing to the supply chain, of new business, and leading to signiﬁcant increase in employment. The interdependence between the airport and the land is expressed through a relationship that can be described as ‘complex and synergistic’. An airport is, in fact, able to enhance and strengthen the economy of the region in which it is located and to encourage competitiveness. Furthermore, it becomes an effective marketing tool, as far as it ensures an improvement of transport efﬁciency and increased attractiveness of the area concerned. The economic impact of an airport is determined by it being at once both an economic activity in itself and as a support facility to the regional economy, capable of supporting businesses and populations of the surrounding area, and a vehicle that increases the effective ‘international accessibility of the area’. This is especially true now that we see the development of services and low cost airlines, which tend to settle primarily in regional airports, where cheaper management is made possible, and with a less expensive airport infrastructure and limited congestion. The presence of an airport can improve the proliferation of tourist activities. Improved access to an airport is an important factor and can result in the production of tourist services with advanced methods that can support signiﬁcant events including those of sports, culture and congress [1]. Importantly, the interaction between the surrounding area and the airport has to take into account the main negative externalities (emissions and noise) produced by the infrastructure. Integration between the airport and the surrounding area has long been a thorny issue as a result of the dependence of the airports on national and state policies, essentially alien, or at least not very receptive to the needs of speciﬁc areas; the absence of an adequate communication with the entities more rooted in local context has meant that for a long time airports have been independent and not very coherent with the urban and regional environment. Recently there was a change in trend, characterized by a greater involvement of the strategies for airport development in the urban planning policies. Ultimately it can be said that modern and efﬁcient airports with high-quality services and facilities integrated with the surrounding area are the preconditions for economic development, tourism and social regeneration of their host regions. An airport usually serves the population and supports the activities of its surrounding area identiﬁed in the literature as the ‘catchment area’. In detail, the catchment area of an airport can be deﬁned as the geographical area from which it draws passengers, or the geographical area that contains the potential users and passengers of an airport. The catchment area (or area of attraction) can distinguish between ‘primary areas’ and ‘secondary areas’, in particular related to airports which operate with low-cost airlines, whose extension is speciﬁcally related to the type of service offered [2]. With reference to only the primary area of attraction, and considering various international experiences in the ﬁeld studies, it is possible to consider some important factors on which it depends, in particular:

• •

resident population, annual average income and average family income,

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• •

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level of employment, ﬁelds of work.

Basically, many studies simply require knowledge of the potential attractiveness of an airport, or whether and how an airport is seen as a possible alternative. This is the case of the preliminary analysis of feasibility studies and, especially, studies of strategic planning. In this respect it is important to refer to the catchment area and the area of inﬂuence of an airport. The ﬁrst is the union of all the areas whose residents, who travel by air, choose the airport in question. The area of inﬂuence of an airport is the union of all the areas whose residents, who travel by air, view the airport under consideration as a possible alternative choice, assuming the signiﬁcance of potential users in question. The airport generates economic value on two fronts: 1.

2.

As an economic activity in itself: it is the product of the concentration of investments and the provision of services related to air trafﬁc management, administrative management and accounting of the airport; As a support facility to the regional economy, as it can provide businesses and the public with a means of quick and reliable transportation to develop business, trade and offer services that can enhance the accessibility of national, international and intercontinental area.

The vicinity of an airport capable of allowing connections to the whole European system can be a stimulus to the residential choice of location for people who are forced to travel a lot for work and whose activities are particularly skilled. An airport is able to develop and strengthen the economy of the region in which it is located and to increase their competitiveness, thus creating a virtuous circle between airport and territory: the ﬁrst is an important resource for the second, but at the same time second should be able to make necessary lifeblood to the ﬁrst [3]. 3 THE SOCIAL PROFITABILITY OF A REGIONAL AIRPORT The problem of assessing the economic impact of the development of a regional airport on the area served by it can be addressed through a measuring instrument that goes beyond simple economic viability, and takes into account certain social aspects of the item in environment (in the widest sense) of such an infrastructure. If at the micro level the concept of economic viability is the difference between accounting costs and revenues, reﬂecting quite accurately the situation is not the same at the macro level, where they cannot ignore social factors such as political, cultural and ecological ones. In general, an activity can produce different types of effects (direct and indirect), whose analysis deserves particular attention in a choice of allocating resources that go beyond simple economic accounting. The philosophy of social proﬁtability lies in a global problem that requires taking into account all relevant factors, including those that are considered difﬁcult or even not measurable. It’s clear that every social phenomenon must be considered and judged in relation to the overall development of the communities in which it operates. This means that each case is considered different from others and therefore requires a different solution, for example, the analysis of the social viability of an airport should be dealt with in different ways depending on whether the airport is located in the United States or Italy. One of the reasons why we need an assessment tool, other than economic viability, is the new way of seeing the relationship between air transport systems and the environment, taking in account a

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view to the longer term, even the resistance that its environment opposes against any activity that threatens the balance. In order to deﬁne the components of social proﬁtability in a sufﬁciently general way, you can deﬁne all the social risks of damage or injury, other than purely economic, caused in the present or the future society from a political or economic point of view. Similarly you can deﬁne all the social beneﬁts from a certain choice of the same type. In analogy with the concept of economic viability, social proﬁtability is expressed as the difference between social costs and beneﬁts. In stressing the difference between the concept of proﬁtability and social cost-beneﬁt analysis, while the latter is primarily a tool for a decision linked to the signiﬁcant elements which may occur in the near future, the concept of social proﬁtability is an ignored problem of discounting the future cash ﬂows, since it is essentially there to consider and evaluate factors that occurred during a period in the past. For example, while the choice of the location of an airport is a typical problem of the cost-beneﬁt analysis, a classic example of social proﬁtability is that the merits or demerits of the continued operation of an airline are economically deﬁcient. The usefulness of social proﬁtability and cost beneﬁts are to offer a weight capable of giving a comprehensive view of the problems to those responsible for decisions, even if they can depart at the end from the choices recommended by the technicians. 4 SOCIAL BENEFITS The regional airport is here understood as the infrastructure at the service of middle range, which determines a level of trafﬁc that is from 1 to 5 million passengers per year. The analysis of social beneﬁts related to a facility of this type is to be conducted under the triple point of view, for:

• • •

individual users, enterprises and groups, the region.

The beneﬁts at the individual level can be considered as having some major impact and can be translated into practical terms in time savings, reduction of discomfort which, in turn, to the user, mean increases in productivity and efﬁciency and greater ease of movement. But one should point out that the beneﬁts that an individual derives from the use of air transport which, however, are the main reasons of choosing the aircraft as a means of transport available only if they pay the going price. It follows that they are not social, but are an integral part of the service offered. Regarding secondary impacts, namely those that refer to groups and businesses, it is appropriate to distinguish between groups and companies that use the system of air transport and groups and businesses that gravitate in the airport area. In the ﬁrst case, several studies on the type of user for short–medium haul showed that occupational exposure was widely prevalent as the reasons for travel, which, mainly in relation to the double advantage that the company does in fact achieve a better organization, especially at higher levels, both in terms of geographical expansion and opening of new markets. A rationale for strong growth in travel is that relating to tourism, especially in regions that have strong attractions in terms of landscape, archaeological, historical and cultural monuments in general. The second case, in reality, is the tertiary impacts between the effects of new infrastructure on the surrounding area and more generally on the region in which they were designed. As with any

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economic activity, the study of the impact of an airport on the region served by it must, to achieve a signiﬁcant degree of validity, be viewed in the context of regional policy and objectives which it seeks. Among the tertiary impacts, the location of businesses in the vicinity of the airport, to be considered as a pole of development, and the subsequent creation of new jobs are the main effects to be considered in relation to the implementation of the airport. But while it is fairly easy to identify the different types of jobs created (closely related to the air transport system, or related services gravitating around the airport and businesses attracted to the hub airport, or related to the increase regional economic activity), much more difﬁcult is the choice of a criterion that allows the quantitative assessment in relation to the characteristics, needs and objectives of each region. In any case, it should be noted that the airport is not an element in the economic and social growth of a region together with several others, such as the level of the global transport system, the cost of land, tax breaks and ﬁnancial availability, labor costs and transport of raw materials and ﬁnished products. The airport produces services intermediaries and in this sense the work is closely related to the level of global economic region. It is only in the second line that it serves as a stimulator at a regional level. In this incentive it should be recalled that the airport is but one among many possible choices. Hence the need to consider including the question of opportunity cost between the various initiatives proposed incentive. Among the tertiary impacts, the complementary roles that take place at an airport should be included in additional to air services, which is the ﬁrst vocation of these facilities. We refer not only to services but also gravitating over to the function of the reception center for tourists, the meeting point for businessmen, not to mention the strategic importance that should be recognized [4]. 4.1 Externalities In the case of air operations, when it comes to social costs it refers almost exclusively to the phenomena of noise and air pollution. These phenomena, if they have taken on a particularly acute signiﬁcance for aviation airports typical type A and B, are much less felt in the case of services to airports that are type C and D, since the emission of noise and gas pollutants of the means employed in this ﬁeld are well below the more restrictive standard, it follows that the cost elements associated with them are considered negligible. The philosophy of the concept of social proﬁtability requires that the public, as a social cost as they are, are without doubt, a burden to taxpayers. Although this is not a social cost itself, it is mentioned in this paragraph as the concept of opportunity cost, already introduced. This concept is intimately linked to that of choice, because its function is crucial to assess the inputs and outputs of any business. In the case of a regional airport, the ‘input’ is essentially made of occupied area, energy, raw materials, financial contributions, while the ‘output’ can be identified in income, jobs, new industries and general economic growth of the region concerned. The concept of cost-opportunity makes it possible to determine, in our particular case, if a choice different from that of the airport would not be possible to obtain outputs of greater value, for the same inputs needed, with the ultimate goal of maximizing the value added of the latter. It is therefore desirable to ﬁrst ascertain the greater or lesser availability of inputs, resulting in second place, to what extent the economic growth created by the airport is consistent with the overall policies at both national and regional levels.

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From this point of view it is important to consider whether the ‘output’ is certain to meet the needs of the region so as to make the best use of its availability and ﬁt smoothly into its economic policy, while taking into account the present context. 5 REGIONAL AIRPORT: THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL ASPECTS Based on the above, the study of economic and social viability of a regional airport can be summarized according to logical operating components (Fig. 1).

Figure 1: Logical scheme of work.

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As already mentioned, the ﬁrst step is the analysis of environmental constraints in the sense that each phenomenon should be studied in relation to the overall development of the communities in which it must ﬁt. In this vision the characteristic of the regional population (birth and mortality rate, rate of emigration and immigration, distribution of population according to different criteria and in particular social status and sector of activity) should be considered. Also, the characteristics of regional industrial structure (evolution of industrial production, determination of the industries whose growth rate is above average, the type of industries that best meet the needs of the region, development of a hierarchy in favor of the priority areas) and the characteristics of regional policy (policy passed, current policy in terms of objectives, airport policy choice, etc.). After performing the analysis of external conditions, attention should be turned to those that are the special characteristics of the airport, in particular, the inter-relationship between the airport infrastructure and its hinterland should be considered, with the consequent delimitation of its basin user based on the distribution of areas and geo-economic context in which the infrastructure is inserted, the possible situation of competition with other airports, the possible existence of regulatory and legal difﬁculties, on the right of trafﬁc or technical limitations. The effects on users of air transport, those who have deﬁned the primary impacts, are the subject of the second step in the methodology adopted for the study of economic and social returns. Bearing in mind the considerations made previously, in this regard, it is worthwhile to note here that the analysis must consider the various aspects. Use of air travelers, such as the degree of satisfaction on the service, the social condition of the user, the business sector, the motivation of movements, frequency of travel to certain destinations, and so on. The main purposes of this analysis are determining the propensity to choose the aircraft as a means of transport depending on the business sector, and also, possibly, the formulation of the hierarchy of enterprises according to the degree of utilization of the air transport system. In the logical scheme of the proposed work, the third stage concerns the analysis of secondary impacts, which are identiﬁed, as indicated above, with the advantages gained by business users of air transport in relation to the creation of a hub airport. In this context it is appropriate to make a reconnaissance of companies whose organization has been improved thanks to the air transport system, and those where the market and, consequently, the turnover has been extended for the same reason. The fourth step to consider is that relating to the impacts determined from tertiary and you can highlight the location of industries in the area over gravitating and creation of jobs. In this framework, a budget should be made between positive and negative aspects related to the airport facility, with particular reference to the reﬂections on industrial and will also proceed to the division of business attracted from sectors of activity, the evaluation of these dependencies by air transport system, and the manner in which the ﬁrms themselves ﬁt into the regional economic framework. As for the jobs linked to the airport, they should be made a subdivision on the criteria already used for professional groups, and ﬁnally to a breakdown as assessed according to needs and availability in the region [5]. A reference to the changes that the airport can bring to the radius of action of the city and, in general, the level of regional life, should not be neglected in this phase. The ﬁfth and ﬁnal step in the study of economic and social viability of a regional airport, concerns the social costs. In this respect we should carefully analyze its impact on the environment, for example, in terms of noise and air pollution. Also to determine the resources required for the performance, and assess the outputs achieved by verifying the results of conformity with the principles and objectives of regional policy.

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6 THE SITUATION IN SICILY Air transport may be the mode of transport most appropriate to solve the problem of Sicily and the remoteness of its production centers from the main European markets. The insularity and the position of marginality in Sicily compared to major Italian and European (and in general, international) air transport are essential for the growth of the island. Even in the ﬁeld of aviation there are deﬁciencies in infrastructure and the allocations are below the national average. There is a little integration of airport facilities with other transport networks [6]. Air travel is certainly preferable to other methods of transportation for distances exceeding 800 km, in cost/time, especially when referring to the southern regions of Italy, where it is convenient to use air travel even for routes shorter than this, above all, for the poor conditions of the alternative infrastructures such as roads and railways. The distribution on the territory of the regional transport system acquires a primary importance, particularly in relation to the tourism sector, both in relation to the achievement of the intended purpose by the tourist and relative to the movement that this will make on the spot. There are currently ﬁve airports operating in the Sicily region: Palermo Punta Raisi, Catania Fontanarossa, Birgi Trapani, Pantelleria and Lampedusa. Only the port of Catania can be inserted between the airports, with annual trafﬁc exceeding 5 million, while the other 4, including Palermo Punta Raisi, which has an annual trafﬁc of about 4.5 million passengers, are to be considered regional, including the two existing categories in the European classiﬁcation (Fig. 2). The airport

Figure 2: Sicilian Airport and passengers transported (ENAC, 2008).

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Figure 3: Trapani Birgi destinations.

Figure 4: Number of passengers carried per month (ENAC, 2006).

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of Palermo close to the values that characterize the intermediate National, shows an area of inﬂuence than that of Catania. This is a division into two parts of Sicily, with a slightly larger portion for the airport in Catania [7]. Trapani Birgi (Fig. 3) has a limited service, most of which relate to some low-cost airlines. Pantelleria and Lampedusa have two airports basically related to tourism, and then primarily to seasonality (Fig. 4). For these airports, there is a subsidy by the state for these ﬂights that in addition to being a tourist service for tourists, are the only fast mode of transport for the locals who decide to travel from their island. These public service obligations, which allow airlines to make a power reduction on the ticket price for residents, aim to ﬁll, at least in part, the social discount because of the insularity of Lampedusa and Pantelleria through an air service characterized by a low cost.

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]

REFERENCES Dobruszkes, F., Compagnies low cost européennes et aéroports secondaires: quelles dépendances pour quel développement régional?, Les cahiers scientiﬁques du transports, n. 47, 2003. Lupi, M. (a cura di), Linee guida per la programmazione dello sviluppo degli aeroporti regionali, Franco Angeli: Milano, 2007. Sinatra, A. (a cura di), Aeroporti e sviluppo regionale: Rassegna di studi, Guerini e Associati: Milano, 2001. Graham, B. & Guyer, C., The role of regional airports and air services in the United Kingdom. Journal of Transport Geography, 8, pp. 249–262, 2000. Giordano R., Il ruolo del trasporto aereo per uno sviluppo territoriale diffuso, Franco Angeli: Milano, 1990. Giblin, J.C., Les aéroports régionaux à la veille de la décentralisation, Hérodote, n. 114, La Découverte, 3° trim., 2004. ENAC (Ente Nazionale per l’Aviazione Civile), Annuario statistico 2008, Roma, 2009.

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ASSESSMENT OF AIR POLLUTION FROM TEHRAN-MEHRABAD AIRPORT, IRAN G. BADALIANS GHOLIKANDI1, M. LASHKARI2, H.R. ORUMIEH3, H.R. TASHAOUIE4 & S. HADDADI5 1Power and Water University of Technology (PWUT), Tehran, Iran. 2Tehran Water and Wastewater Company (TWWC), Tehran, Iran. 3Pars Arianab, Consulting Engineers, Esfahan, Iran. 4Faculty of Hygienic Engineering, University of Esfahan, Iran. 5Faculty of Environment, University of Tehran/WRI, Tehran, Iran.

ABSTRACT Development of airports has brought about substantial socioeconomic, environmental and welfare beneﬁts for the sustainable development of countries. Nevertheless, environmental impacts of aircraft emissions and their control should not be underestimated. In recent years, the growing air trafﬁc has led to increment of air pollution in this sector of transportation which is expected to affect local and global air quality. Due to high importance of this subject, numerous studies have been conducted in this ﬁeld; however, these studies have focused mostly on the effects of this kind of pollution on the upper atmospheric layers and few have taken the earth’s layer and urban areas into account. This article aims to assess the rate of gas and particulate emission during airplanes’ landing/take off cycle and the effects of atmospheric currents on their distribution and spreading in the TehranMehrabad Airport, Iran. Two pollutant clusters are subjected in this study; cluster one including particulates less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) and cluster two including gas pollutants such as SO2, CO2, N2O, NOX and CO. Distribution rate of the ﬁrst cluster pollutant is estimated using First Order Approximation Method (FAO) published by Federal Aviation Administration and Smoke Number (SN) of each engine. The amount of the latter cluster is calculated using method stated by Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP). Therefore, approximate rate of pollution distribution in the local area is calculated separately for each cluster, considering the approximate annual number of landings and take-offs and the types of aircrafts in Tehran-Mehrabad Airport. Finally, automobile equivalent of fuel consumption by each aircraft in an ordinary day is estimated. Keywords: air pollution, gas emissions, landing/take off cycle, Mehrabad Airport, PM2.5.

1 INTRODUCTION Access to air services has reduced the time and costs of transporting goods and passengers which allows wider access to markets, and thus contributing to long-term economic development [1]. Air transport plays a key role in the promotion of trade, tourism and economic growth, and long-term sustainable growth of a country [2]. It is now accepted as a fundamental pillar of our global society, indispensable to our daily lives as medicine and telecommunications, and essential for social progress and economic prosperity [3]. On the other side, like most human activities, air transport has an impact on the environment. The industry fully recognizes its responsibility in this regard and is determined to accelerate action aimed at mitigating its environmental impact – preserving and enhancing its economic and social beneﬁts at the same time. For example:

• • • • •

Aircraft entering today’s ﬂeets are 20 decibels (dB) quieter than comparable aircraft 40 years ago. This corresponds to a reduction in noise annoyance of 75%. A further 50% reduction in noise during take-off and landing (−10 dB) is expected by 2020. Aircrafts entering today’s ﬂeets are 70% more fuel-efﬁcient than they were 40 years ago. This corresponds to a reduction of 75% in noise annoyance due to fuel-efﬁciency?. Research programs aim to achieve a further 50% fuel saving and an 80% reduction in oxides of nitrogen by 2020. Enhancements in air trafﬁc management have the potential to reduce fuel burn by 6–12%, while operational improvements can bring an additional 2–6% fuel saving [3, 4].

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The size of the world’s ﬂeet has increased constantly over the past decades and is expected to do so in the future. In the last decade air trafﬁc has increased dramatically: 47% between 1991 and 2000 [5]. Global passenger air travel, as measured in revenue passenger-km (RPK), is projected to grow by about 5% per year between 1990 and 2015, whereas total aviation fuel use is projected to increase by 3% per year, over the same period, and aircraft efﬁciency is simultaneously improved [6]. Airbus has predicted that worldwide air travel would nearly triple during the next 20 years reaching 9 trillion RPKs by 2023 with an annual growth rate of 5.3% at average. This growth rate means that in 20 years time, air travel would be growing by about 390 billion RPKs each year [1]. These increases likely lead to increases in environmental impacts too. Unlike most transportation modes, aircraft travel long distances at a variety of altitudes, generating emissions that have the potential to impact air quality in the local, regional and global environments [7]. In spite of substantial improvements in engine technology, aircraft operations result in the emission of gaseous and particle efﬂuents, including carbon dioxide, water, hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulphur, soot, etc. [2]. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that emission of volatile organic carbon (VOC) by airports, i.e. aircrafts and ground support equipments in 1999 has increased by more than 80% as compared to 1970. Moreover, nitrogen oxide (NOX) emission has doubled during that same period of time. Airport emissions now make up about 2% of total non-road emissions [5]. In recent years, several studies assessed atmospheric impacts of these emissions, however, mostly focused on the impacts on the upper atmospheric layers and fewer have taken the earth’s layer and urban areas into account. Environmental impacts of aircrafts’ gaseous and particulate emissions addressed to in previous studies are global climate change, noise and community impacts, local air quality in the vicinity of airports, damage to stratospheric ozone layer, acid rain, and perhaps radiative forcing. Emissions of NOX, CO, HCS and particles are relevant to local air quality issues and CO2, H2O, NOX, SOX and particles are of most concern in terms of climate perturbation [7–10]. In addition to aircraft emissions, other emissions emanating from the airport environment occur during the handling of aircraft. Ground support equipment (GSE) encompasses all vehicles and machinery needed to service the aircraft on the ground between arrival and departure events [11]. In competitive markets when there have been multiple choices for airport placement with the same price and number of travel (beneﬁts), selection is made based on availability to save and time and cost [12]. Mehrabad Airport is situated in an appropriate location from this point of view as the rapidly growing population and development of Tehran City have placed the airport inside the urban area. Therefore access to the airport is possible at low costs, although it may cause special environmental impacts that should not be underestimated. By contrast, trafﬁc volume makes difﬁcult availability to the airport and lowers its popularity. Then, many airport carriers prefer a 20–30 mile distance between airport and city. Taking into account the volume of passenger trafﬁc and jobs, the best decision can be made. To resolve these problems, the second Tehran airport (Imam Khomeini International Airport), located in the southwestern of the city, was established [12]. As mentioned previously, several studies have assessed airport emissions. Schürmann and coworkers investigated the impact of NOX, CO and VOC emissions on the air quality of Zurich airport. Results showed CO concentrations in the vicinity of the terminals were found to be highly dependent on aircraft movement, whereas NO concentrations were dominated by emissions from ground support vehicles [11]. The impact of aircraft emissions was quantiﬁed on regional air quality of HartsﬁeldJackson Atlanta International Airport, in other study [5]. An air dispersion model, ADMS-Urban, was used to estimate temporal and spatial contributions to NOX concentrations from aircraft and

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trafﬁc around Heathrow airport in West London [13]. In Iran, no study has been conducted on local air pollution from the aviation sector, nevertheless air pollution is the biggest environmental problem of Iran, especially in the capital city of Tehran. This is the ﬁrst time that emissions from aircrafts in Iran are subjected as a case study. To mitigate environmental impacts, local authorities are required to undertake the contribution of various sources of air pollution, such as airports. 2 MATERIAL AND METHODS 2.1 Study area Mehrabad Airport (THR) is an airport in Tehran, Iran, situated on 35° 41′ 23″ N longitude and 51° 18′ 57″ E latitude [14]. It was the primary airport of Tehran located on west of this city but in recent years has been replaced by Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKA) – located at a further distance from the city – in all of its international ﬂights except ﬂights to Saudi Arabia [15]. Flights can only be carried out under VFR (Instrument Meteorological Conditions) or IFR (Instrument Flight Rules). Switch of international ﬂights to IKA was ﬁnished in 2004 and has gradual starting with ﬂights to countries bordering the Persian Gulf. All international ﬂights have now been moved to IKA except ﬂights to Saudi Arabia [16]. 2.2 Methods In this research the effect of two pollutant clusters, including particulates less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) and gas pollutants such as SO2, CO2, N2O, NOX and CO, on the local area are assessed. PM2.5 is estimated using First Order Approximation Method (FAO) proposed by Federal Aviation Administration in which distribution rate is function of Smoke Number (SN) and fuel ﬂow [17, 18]: EI = 0.6 × (SN)1.8 × (FF)

(1)

where EI = emission index: mg of PM emitted per second per engine type; SN = smoke number, the dimensionless term quantifying smoke emissions; FF = fuel ﬂow rate in kg/s. To measure smoke level, smoke particles are trapped in a ﬁlter as mass of exhaust per unit area of ﬁlter and then it is compared to standard ﬁlters. The reference emissions landing and take-off (LTO) cycle consists of four modal phases approach, taxi/idle, take-off and climb which respectively, correspond to 4, 26, 0.7, and 2.2 min of time-in-mode, and 30, 7, 100 and 85% of rated thrust [7]. For most aircrafts SN is only measured for the take-off mode. SN for other modes can be estimated using following equations [5]. SNClimb-out = 0.86 × SNTake-off

(2)

SNApproach = 0.51 × SNTake-off

(3)

SNIdle = 0.41 × SNTake-off

(4)

Gas emissions are estimated using their distribution rate during every LTO cycle. International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has published rates of pollutants distribution and fuel consumption for various aircraft engines (Table1). These data have been used to estimate fuel consumption and gaseous pollutants from Mehrabad Airport ﬂeet, as stated in eqns (5) and (6) [19]. LTO Emissions = Number of LTO2 × Emission factorLTO

(5)

LTO Consumption = Number of LTO2 × Fuel consumption per LTO

(6)

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Table 1: Pollutants distribution and fuel consumption rates as kg per LTO cycle (kg/LTO). Fleet A300 A310 B747 B737 B727 B707 TU-154 Fokker Others

CO2

N2O

NOX

CO

SO2

Fuel

5,450 4,760 11,370 2,460 4,610 5,890 5,960 2,390 2,880

0.2 0.2 0.4 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.1

25.86 19.46 49.52 9.12 11.97 10.96 12 5.57 10.66

14.8 28.3 79.78 8 27.16 92.37 82.88 13.84 10.22

1.72 1.51 3.6 0.78 1.46 1.86 1.89 0.76 0.91

1,720 1,510 3,600 780 1,460 1,860 1,890 760 910

Others, 15%

A300, 9% A310, 4% B747, 7% B737, 3% B727, 8%

FOKKER, 27%

B707, 5%

TU-154, 22%

Figure 1: LTO percentage of Mehrabad Airport ﬂeets. Table 2: Mehrabad airport emissions and fuel consumptions during LTO cycles. Unit ton/year kg/day

CO2

N2O

NOX

CO

SO2

Fuel

506,264 1,387,024.7

17.71 48.52

1,550.373 4,247.6

4,244.163 11,627.84

160.369 439.367

160,369 439,367

3 RESULTS Almost 110,000 LTO cycles occurs every year in Mehrabad Airport. Figure 1 shows share of each ﬂeet. Formulas and methods mentioned above were applied to estimate aircraft emissions. Calculations revealed an annual distribution of 160 tons for PM2.5 and 506,000 tons in case of CO2 in the airport area. In these LTO cycles, fuel is consumed at the rate of 160 tons per year leading to total annual emissions of 506,264, 18, 1,550, 4,244 and 160 tones of CO2, N2O, NOX, CO and SO2, respectively, as delineated in Table 2 (SN applied for particulate estimations have been demonstrated in Fig. 2). The approximate average aviation spirit consumption is 2,100 liters per LTO resulting in annual burning of 230 million liters fuel in the airport. Total emissions by air trafﬁc in the airport were

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Figure 2: Smoke number in different ﬂight modes [20].

Figure 3: Pollution rate of municipal district no. 9 of Tehran [20].

calculated using number of LTO cycles and aircraft ﬂeets. Assuming the fuel consumption of an automobile about 7 liter per day, annual automobile equivalent of fuel burned in this airport is about 90,000. Because of the airport being located near Tehran city, passengers get stuck in Tehran trafﬁc jam increasing the trafﬁc and related air pollution. So beside aircraft emissions, pollutions by cars delivering passengers to the airport need to be taken into consideration as well; annual numbers of 4.5 million passengers travel from this airport. These pollution sources locate in wind direction ﬂowing amount of pollution toward the city. Figure 3 illustrates the 10 day average of CO, the most important aircraft pollutant, in the municipal district no. 9 of Tehran in which ground transportation is considered as a signiﬁcant cause of

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pollution as well. As shown, the prevailing wind directs large part of pollution toward the city. In 2007–2008, 1.5 million trips were made daily, 1.25 million of which pertained to residents and 250,000 to non-residents [21]. According to statistics issued by Urban Planning and Research Center of Teheran in 2005, 70 tons of particle matter, 2 tons of lead, 3,560 tons of CO, 1,260 tons of non-methane volatile organic matters, 285 tons of SOX, and 452 tons of NOX are annually released to Tehran air. Among various pollution sources, cars are responsible for 75% of particulates, 95% of CO and 60% of NOX, whilst industries are associated with 75% of organic matter, 55% of SO2 and 46% of green house gases [22]. Comparison between pollutants released to Tehran air and those emitted by Mehrabad airport demonstrates the importance of airport pollution which is even more than total air pollutants in Tehran. 4 CONCLUSION This paper presents the estimation of aircraft emissions, PM2.5 and gases pollutants, in Mehrabad Airport. Results demonstrate annually distribution rate of 160 tons of PM2.5 and nearly 506,000 tons of CO2 in vicinity of the airport. Furthermore, traveling by the aircraft causes the ﬂow of automobiles taking passengers to this place which is an additional cause of trafﬁc and air pollution. This indicates the indirect role of airport in producing air pollution. Moreover, Mehrabad airport is located in the west of the city where the prevailing wind directs aircraft emissions and other related pollution toward the city which, considering the potential for development of Imam Khomeini airport, stresses the importance of trafﬁc reduction in the vicinity of this airport. Not paying attention to these effects would bring about irremediable environmental damage. In addition, it is necessary to understand better the effects of pollution on the health of children and other vulnerable members of society. REFERENCES [1] ICAO/ATG, Maximizing Civil Aviation Economic Contribution, Challenges and Potential, Montreal, Canada, 2005. [2] Civil Aviation Administration, Draft National Aviation Policy, 2007. [3] ATAG, The Economic and Social Benefits of Air Transport, Air Transport Action Group, 2005. [4] ATAG, The Economic and Social Benefits of Air Transport, Air Transport Action Group, 2008. [5] Unal, A., et al., Airport related emissions and impacts on air quality: application to the Atlanta International Airport. Atmospheric Environment, 39(32), pp. 5787–5798, 2005. [6] IPPC, How are aviation emissions projected to grow in the future? http://www.grida.no/ climate/ipcc/aviation/005.htm, 2003. [7] ICAO, Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP). Airport Air Quality Guidance Manual, 2007. Working Paper, Seventh Meeting. [8] Peace, H., et al., Identifying the contribution of different airport related sources to local urban air quality. Environmental Modelling & Software, 21, pp. 532–538, 2006. [9] Rogers, H.L., et al., The impacts of aviation on the atmosphere. The Aeronautical Journal, 104(1064), pp. 521–546, 2002. [10] Miller, B., Aircraft Emissions Reductions through Improved Operational Performance. Thesis for Master of Science in Technology and Policy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2001. [11] IMK-IFU, F.K.G., The Impact of NOX, CO and VOC Emissions on the Air Quality of Zurich Airport. Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research, Atmospheric Environmental Research, 2005.

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[12] Gillen, D., Airport Economic, Policy and Management: The European Union, University of British Columbia, 2006. [13] Farias, F. & ApSimon, H., Relative contributions from trafﬁc and aircraft NOx emissions to exposure in West London. Environmental Modelling & Software, 21(4), pp. 477–485. 2006. [14] THR/OIII, M.I.A., http://www.convertunits.com/distance/airport/THR. [15] wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mehrabad_Airport. [16] wapedia, http://wapedia.mobi/en/Mehrabad_International_Airport. [17] FAA, Fuel Venting and Exhaust Emission Requirements for Turbine Engine Powered Airplanes, Advisory Circular, 2003. [18] Wayson, R.L., et al., Derivation of a First Order Approximation of Particulate Matter from Aircraft, Federal Aviation Administration, Paper # 69970. [19] Allyn, D., IPCC-National Greenhouse Gas Inventory Process (NGGIP). Methods for assessing Aviation Emissions, ICAO Colloquium on Aviation Emission with Exhibition, 2007. [20] Ebrahimi, M., Jahangirian, A., Mehrabad Airport Air Impact Assessment for Regional Air Quality, Islamic Azad University: Mashhad, Iran, 2007. [21] Mojabi, S.M., Role of Pollutant Sources in Tehran, Iran Daily, Tehran Urban Planning and Studies, 2009. [22] TUPC, Scientific study of Tehran air pollution, Naft e Pars, 2005.

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Regional Airports

ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS OF AIRPORT NODES: A METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH M.N. POSTORINO Department of Computer Science, Mathematics, Electronics and Transports, Mediterranean University of Reggio Calabria, Italy.

ABSTRACT Airports are a local source of environmental impacts that should be estimated and evaluated in order to promote the right development of these transport nodes. The aim of this paper is to present a methodological approach to identify the environmental impacts produced by an airport node, particularly atmospheric pollution produced not only by aircraft but also by land vehicles for handling operations and airport connections, given the airport multifunction role as well as its interchange multimodal function. The identiﬁed methodology is formed by several steps; the most relevant ones address the estimation of the air transport demand (linked to the number of aircraft movements) and the car mode share to go in and out of the airport. The proposed methodology is useful in order to establish standard procedures to identify the airport environmental impact footprint for a sustainable development of the air transport within the larger transport system. Keywords: air transport demand module, airport catchment area module, airport nodes, carbon footprint, environmental impact assessment, ground movement module, transport function.

1 INTRODUCTION Transport systems generally represent one of the most important pollution sources, mainly in terms of noise, atmospheric pollution and land consumption. Furthermore, often they depend on non-renewable energy resources. With particular reference to the air transport system, an airport produces many environmental impacts that not only reduce the wellness degree of the communities living close to the airport area, but also represent a limit to the growth of the air trafﬁc if any effective measure is taken to reduce them [1, 2]. On the one hand, the local communities obtain the main beneﬁts from their nearby airport and its growth, on the other hand, they suffer from environmental negative impacts produced by it. For this reason, both at international (ICAO) and local (e.g. UE, European Aviation Safety Agency – EASA, Federal Aviation Administration – FAA, and so on) levels, the main government associations ﬁx goals, priorities and duties of the several actors involved in the air transport system in order to guarantee the sustainable development of the air transport industry at global level and the well-being of local communities as well. Generally, an airport is a local source of impacts that can be grouped into two macro-classes: impacts produced by the infrastructure and impacts produced by the transport function (Fig. 1). The ﬁrst one depends on the airport’s overall characteristics and includes: visual impacts, groundwater impacts and produced waste, among the many others that can be identiﬁed starting from an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) analysis [3]. The second one is linked to the transport features and their effects, the most important being noise and atmospheric pollution, particularly at local level [4, 5]. Actually, noise during the landing/take-off operations or along the aircraft approach path is one of the most discussed impacts on the population living in the airport area. Generally, people are more sensitive to noise impacts as they produce immediate effects, e.g. the interruption of the current activities due to the aircraft passage, the disturbance of silence needed to carry out some work activities or to guarantee suitable conditions (for example, schools, hospitals, residence areas and so on); ﬁnally, they also depend on the individual response to the environmental problems.

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…

…

Atmospheric pollution

IMPACTS

Visual impacts

……

Waste Ground water impacts

INFRASTRUCTURE

……

Figure 1: Impacts produced by an airport node. For this reason, more attention has been devoted to the reduction of noise, particularly in terms of aircraft technological improvements (e.g. Aircraft Noise Certiﬁcation as ﬁxed by the Annex 16, ICAO [6]) and/or constraints at airports (e.g. reduction of the movements during some day periods, following the EU Directive 2002/49/EC [7]). Atmospheric impacts are generally considered less relevant due to several improvements, in terms of fuel burn, that offer more efﬁcient and less pollutant aircraft. The most important aircraft emissions are carbon dioxide (CO2), water vapor (H2O) in terms of condensation trails and nitrogen oxides (NOx). Anyway, as estimated by the Air Transport Action Group [8] new aircrafts are 70% more fuelefﬁcient than they were 40 years ago, carbon monoxide emissions have been reduced by 50%, unburned hydrocarbon and smoke have been cut by 90%. Many research programs are currently in progress in order to realize at least 50% fuel and CO2 savings, as well as 80% reduction in NOx, by 2020. In the light of a more environmental friendly development, research efforts have been made to test alternative fuels for aviation, particularly new generation of sustainable biofuels. The use of biofuels in commercial ﬂights can meet the requirements of the Kyoto Protocol and then contribute to the sustainable transport development, but it requires an effort by all the involved actors to accelerate the commercialization and implementation of aviation biofuels. Aircraft emissions can be estimated at cruising altitudes and at ground (or local) level, during landing/take-off operations and taxiing. For the latter, the percentage of aircraft-related emissions is generally small as regards the total amount generated by ground airport activities and land trafﬁc around airports. Although the several aspects (e.g. social, environmental, monetary) of aircraft impacts at airports have been studied in the literature (as in [9–12]), to the best of my knowledge there are no researches trying to establish a comprehensive approach to identify the ‘airport carbon footprint’ due not only to aircraft-related operations but also to land airport activities (e.g. handling) and surface connecting transport modes. In the light of the sustainable mobility development and to reduce the greenhouse emissions, it is desirable that the overall impacts produced by an airport node, particularly CO2 emissions, are estimated and above all suitably managed in order to be less than prescriptive environmental constraints. Then, the goal of this paper is to deﬁne a methodological approach to identify the impacts produced by the airport transport function (particularly atmospheric pollution produced by aircraft and land vehicles going in and out of the airport as well as land vehicles for handling operations) in order to

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ascertain the contribution of each pollutant sources to the airport carbon footprint. The paper is structured as following: the proposed methodology is described in Section 2, while the next sections (3 and 4) depict the several modules in detail. Section 5 summarizes the impact contributions together with a simpliﬁed application to a test case. Finally, the main conclusions are reported in Section 6. 2 A GENERAL OVERVIEW OF THE PROPOSED APPROACH The airport carbon footprint depends not only on the transport function, but also on other airport-related activities (e.g. conditioning sources for airport workplaces). Anyway, in this paper only the emissions linked to the transport function will be considered in the following, due to their social relevance. Figure 2 summarizes the several modules of the methodology, consisting of some main steps. The ﬁrst step is aimed at identifying the airport (origin and/or destination) catchment area, in order to determine the potential air demand at the airport itself and the percentage of users choosing among the different ground transport modes to go in and out of the airport. The airport catchment area depends on many factors such as airport geographical position, land connecting transport system, socio-economic characteristics of potential users and existence of competing airports. This step is strongly linked to the following one, concerning the air transport demand estimate; in turn, this stage is linked to the estimate of the number of movements at a given airport, and then the related environmental ground effects that depends on the expected air transport demand. Both passengers and goods should be considered, but goods volumes are almost negligible with respect to passenger volumes. Air demand estimate and airport catchment area are strongly related, as, depending on the approach, the catchment area identiﬁes the potential demand for the airport. The demand on the several ground transport modes to go in and out of the airport, in turn, depends on the overall air transport demand. In fact, air travelers use one of the available land modes (e.g. car, train, buses and others) to go in and out of the airport; demand on each mode depends on the overall air demand level and the estimated ground mode share. The third step deals with the estimate of the aircraft (or movements) number to support the computed air transport demand in order to estimate the impacts produced by aircraft at ground level; this number depends on the aircraft average load factor. Furthermore, depending on the number of movements, the number of land vehicles operating within the airside can also be computed as well as their impacts. Then, for each step, impacts due to surface connecting modes, land vehicles operating within the airside and aircraft can be estimated, thus giving the ‘airport carbon footprint’ due to transport activities; the estimated overall impact can be compared with the prescriptive environmental constraints.

Airport catchment area

Land mode choice

Impacts

AIRPORT

Air transport demand

Handling vehicles

Impacts

Aircraft

Impacts

Environmental Impacts

Prescriptive constraints

Figure 2: The general procedure to identify the airport carbon footprint due to transport activities.

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The procedure is particularly useful to test the developing capabilities of airports, mainly regional airports giving the role they are called to play (e.g. alternative nodes with respect to congested main airports, economical engine of decentralized regions, and so on). In fact, the estimate of the different contribution to the carbon footprint can be used to identify the best managing strategies when the pollutant values are greater than the prescriptive environmental constraints, thus promoting an environmental friendly development of the airport satisfying the concept of transport sustainability. As an example, airport developing strategies can be veriﬁed a priori in terms of carbon footprint produced by each component. If the car share prediction to go in and out of the airport is signiﬁcant, and then the environmental effects are signiﬁcant as well, a suitable policy is to improve airport connections to public transport networks (e.g. rail or buses) to reduce car share by encouraging users to choose public transport systems. This can be particularly useful in EU, where many projects promoting the accessibility of some regions (and transport terminals as well) are in progress and some others are encouraged by the European Commission to develop the Trans European Network-Transport, TEN-T [13]. Then, airports can be inserted as nodes in the public transport European network and linked to the surrounding areas, thus improving their accessibility. For example, larger airports (like Paris Charles de Gaulle or Frankfurt) already have direct links with high-speed rail services, but developing regional airports could plan their connections as well, not only to better link the airport to the surrounding areas but also to promote a sustainable development by reducing the airport carbon footprint. The following sections will describe in detail the several modules of the proposed procedure. 3 THE AIRPORT CATCHMENT AREA AND AIR DEMAND MODULES The airport catchment area can be deﬁned with reference to land extension or user demand. In terms of land extension (or geographic point of view) it represents the area generating (attracting) users at an airport; in other words, it can be deﬁned as the area where potential air travelers for a given airport start or end their overall air trip. In terms of user demand, the airport catchment area can be deﬁned as the number of air travelers using a given airport. Actually, both points of view give ﬁnal results as the number of users at a given airport starting/ ending their air trip in an airport surrounding area. The main difference is that the ﬁrst deﬁnition involves the identiﬁcation of an area where air travelers are contained, while the second one involves the computation of airport choice probabilities for each identiﬁed Transportation Analysis Zones (TAZ), deﬁned as ‘a geographic area that identiﬁes land uses and associated trips that is used for making land use projections and performing trafﬁc modeling’ [14]. Figure 3 describes the main elements of the airport catchment area module. The identiﬁcation of the catchment area in geographical terms, generally corresponds to the deﬁnition of some accessibility measures to identify a territory extension, within a preﬁxed travel time (or distance), where it is reasonable to locate origins and/or destinations of airport users. Computation of accessibility measures often requires the use of surface transport networks in order to estimate an impedance function that represents the separation between pairs of activity centers in a given area (see, for example, [15]). In order of complexity, accessibility measures can be distinguished in isochronic, gravity-based and utility-based measures, deﬁned respectively as Ai = ∑ j =1,..., J B j a j

Aim = ∑ j a j g(Cijm )

Ain = ln ⎡ ∑ j =1,...., J ( n ) exp(V j ( n ) )⎤ ⎣ ⎦

where Ai, Aim and Ain are accessibility in i, respectively, to the potential destinations j, to the potential destinations j by mode m and for user n; aj is the number of activities in j or attractiveness of destination j; Bj is Boolean variable: 1 if j is within a given travel distance (or time), 0 otherwise; Cijm is

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Surface transport network

Accessibility measures

Isochronic measure Gravity-based measure Utility-based measure

Transportation Analysis Zones

Land use at each TAZ

Geographic catchment area for airport i

Air Transport Demand Module

Air travel demand by surface airport access/egress mode

Carbon impact contribution

Users by car (truck) at time T

Figure 3: Airport catchment area module.

generalized travel cost between i and j by mode m; g(Cijm) is the impedance function between i and j by mode m, e.g. of the form: −2 g(Cijm ) = Cijm

g(Cijm ) = exp(q ⋅ Cijm ), q < 0

and Vj(n) is utility of destination j, J(n) being the set of alternatives j available to user n. Speciﬁcally, the ﬁrst two measures can be used to identify a geographical catchment area for an airport. Note that both origin and destination catchment areas can be identiﬁed, as they are generally different (e.g. available surface modes to connect the airport are different and so are the catchment areas at origin and destination airports). The estimate of the generalized travel cost (usually a combination of time, monetary costs and some other quantities representing the travel disutility) requires the use of regional transportation planning models, based on TAZ land partition and transport network representation that, in turn, are also necessary to employ a trip demand model. Population living in the airport catchment area are potential users of that airport and then the percentage of them using car to go in and out of the airport can be estimated by using stage demand models, as in the ‘air transport demand’ module (Fig. 4), the inputs being the network representation and the TAZ land partition. The goal of the air transport demand module, in this case, is not simply the estimate of the air demand at an airport at time T, but particularly the estimate of the air traveler percentage using the several available surface airport connecting modes. As described in Fig. 4, both time series and stage models can be used to obtain this result, particularly stage models need to estimate the percentage of users that go in and out of the airport by surface transport modes. As known, time series models [16, 17] try to explain the trend of an event (such as the passenger volumes at an airport during a time period) on the basis of its realized past values and they have been

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Socio-economic characteristics for a prefixed airport catchment area

Activity system

Time series models

Air travel demand at airport i Stage models

Socio-economic characteristics per TAZ

Air travel demand at time T with characteristics K1,…,Kn

Air travel demand by surface airport access/egress mode

Stage models Transport supply for available mode

Users by car (truck) at time T

Transport system (surface and air modes)

Carbon impact contribution

Figure 4: Air transport demand module. widely used to obtain air demand estimates at an airport (see, among the others, [18–22]). Simplest models are of the following form: dit = b0 + bT yit + uit

(1)

uit = rui ,t −1 + eit

(2)

where demand at an airport i at time t, dit, is a function of n explanatory variables yit. bT are the unknown model parameters, b0 the model constant, uit a random term, eit a White Noise random residual and r the autocorrelation parameter taking into account the time dependence among the variables. When a geographical catchment area has been identiﬁed for a given airport, time series models (1) and (2) can be applied at that airport; explanatory variables (e.g. population or income) refer to the identiﬁed catchment area. Stage models, mainly used together with a discrete choice approach, are of the following form: do (s, k1 , k2 ,..., kn ) = no ∏ c p(kc )

(3)

where do(K1, K2, …, Kn) is the travel demand with origin in TAZ o, traveling for trip purpose s (e.g. leisure or business) and characterized by the choice dimensions K1, K2, …, Kn (as trip destination, departure time, travel mode, origin and/or destination airport if the mode is aircraft, and so on); no is the number of potential travelers in the origin zone o; p(Kc) are the choice percentages referred to the Kc choice dimension; several random utility models as Logit, Nested-Logit, Cross-Nested Logit models and so on (see for example Train [23] for an overview), can be used to estimate p(Kc). Suitably speciﬁed, model (3) gives the air demand at airport i by explicitly deﬁning the choice of an airport among some competitive others, thus estimating the catchment area in terms of user demand. If the choice percentage of surface mode m to/from airport i is also computed, air travel demand by airport surface connecting mode m, dim, can be estimated, particularly users by cars (or truck if users are goods). The choice sequence in model (3) is not known a priori and then the estimate of dim is not trivial as the user choice process referring to the air mode can be complex (air choices have been widely studied in the literature, see, for example, [24–30]). In fact, air travelers make many choices

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concerning, among the others, the origin and/or destination airports, their surface connecting modes, the air services at airports, and so on. Actually, several choices are strongly linked to each other and it is not easy to identify a hierarchical relationship, if any, among them; furthermore, if a hierarchy exists it is also erratic from user to user according to the context. Following Fig. 4, dim is obtained as a result of a suitably speciﬁed model (3), if only stage models are used; on the contrary, it is obtained as a combination of time series and stage models if both are used to compute, respectively, the air travel demand at airport i, di, and then the choice percentage of surface mode m given airport i, p(m/i), in order to obtain dim as the product between di and p(m/i). 4 THE GROUND MOVEMENT MODULE Land vehicles and aircraft move within the airside to accomplish many activities. Land vehicles are involved in handling operations such as refueling, cleaning, catering, baggage transfer and so on (there are service vehicles to transfer staff and crew members as well), and they move among aprons following the aircraft schedule needs. Number and traveled distances of handling vehicles depend on the characteristics of the airport and its airside, thus producing pollutant emissions directly linked to these aspects as well as to their technological characteristics. Aircraft on ground produce pollutant emissions resulting directly from aircraft ﬂights and include emissions associated with taxiing and the use of auxiliary power units (APUs) at gates. Figure 5 describes the elements forming the ground movement module, by considering the air user demand at the origin airport.

Size of criticallike aircraft

Expected average (breakeven) load factor

Handling vehicles per aircraft

Number of movements in time interval T

Handling vehicle scheduling

Carbon impact contribution

Airport user demand at time interval T Carbon impact contribution

Main a ircraft ground-based activities On-board activities (as air conditioning)

Taxiing

Take-off

Landing

Technological characteristics of critical-like aircraft

Figure 5: Ground movement module.

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As known, the characteristics of an airport are designed and evaluated according to the ‘critical aircraft’ [31], i.e. the aircraft type that is expected to use the airport more frequently. Ground-based emissions at the airport can then be estimated in accordance with the critical aircraft. Following Fig. 5, the air user demand at the examined airport during time T, can be converted into number of aircraft (or more speciﬁcally movements) by using the expected average load factor (or alternatively the expected breakeven load factor if efﬁciency considerations are taken into account as well) for the critical aircraft. Handling vehicle operations depend on the number of movements, the ﬂight scheduling, the airside size and conﬁguration. Handling-based emissions then depend not only on the above factors, but also on the characteristics of the vehicles themselves (age, type of fuel, fuel efﬁciency and so on). By contrast, the overall aircraft ground-based emissions are a function of the number of movements, according to the characteristics of the critical aircraft on average. Emissions due to landing and take-off operations refer to the ﬁrst and last stages respectively, i.e. in the neighborhood of the airport. Furthermore, aircraft on ground produce additional emissions mainly due to taxiing and the use of APUs [32]. Taxiing at an airport is a function of its conﬁguration, then the amount of taxi/idle varies signiﬁcantly from airport to airport; generally, longer distances from runway(s) to aprons mean a greater fuel use and in turn greater emissions. The variance in taxi/idle time produces variability of aircraft emissions during airport operations, thus suggesting the use of models linking the aircraft technological characteristics (in terms of fuel efﬁciency) to the airport size and/or conﬁguration. Furthermore, many factors can contribute to the reduction of taxiing-based aircraft emissions, as the use of high-speed taxiways, last-minute start-up, realignment of taxiways, improvements at the gate area, and taxiing in with minimal engines running. The other signiﬁcant source of emissions comes from the use of APUs. APUs are engine-driven generators, generally present in the aircraft tail, providing the aircraft with necessary energy (e.g. for air conditioning, lights, and so on) during the time it is at the gate. Then, though stationary, the aircraft continues consuming energy and then producing emissions. To conclude this section, a brief consideration about the potential link between aircraft noise mitigation measures and their effect on fuel use. Following some studies [31] there could be situations where application of hushkits could lead to an increase in fuel consumption of up to 5%, though lightweight hushkits may have a negligible effect on fuel use. Anyway, following the approach used in this paper, airport carbon footprint is as important as environmental noise impacts and all the aspects involving an increase in the carbon emissions should be considered. 5 CARBON IMPACT CONTRIBUTIONS AND TEST CASE In environmental terms, transportation efﬁciency can be deﬁned as the fuel needed to transport one person over a distance of 1 km, i.e. the energy required per passenger-km. As regards freight, comparison between aircraft and other transport modes is more complex as there could be differences among different modes (e.g. weight restrictions). The possible restrictions being assumed, in this case transportation efﬁciency can be deﬁned on the basis of energy use per tonne-km. The main goal of planners and analysts of transportation systems is the reduction of the energy required to move the user reference unit, both for ﬁnancial and environmental purposes (e.g. if the required energy decreases, the environmental impacts produced are less). Figure 6 summarizes the carbon impact sources due to aircraft and land vehicles at airports. According to the characteristics of the critical aircraft and/or the (expected) ﬂeet composition, ground-based aircraft emissions can be estimated on the basis of the main operations performed at the airside.

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Critical aircraft (or fleet mix) characteristics

APU, Taxiing, …

Ground-based aircraft emission s Carbon impact footprint

Access/egress traffic flow, handling

Surface-based emissions

Land vehicles (fleet mix) characteristics

Figure 6: Carbon impact footprint due to aircraft and land vehicles. Generally, old aircraft use much more fuel per passenger-km than new aircraft of similar size (as an example, the required energy per passenger-km is within 1.0–3.0 MJ per passenger-km), but airlines tend to optimize the use of their aircraft in order to reduce operational costs. Then, apart from environmental considerations, in any case airlines try to optimize the utilization of an aircraft as much as possible and to reduce fuel consumption. As regards APUs, fuel used by them is only a relatively small part of the overall aircraft fuel consumption (recent estimates evaluate that the amount of APU fuel ranges from 0.8% to 3.5% of the overall aircraft fuel). Anyway, energy required by APUs, can also be obtained by means of suitable ground-based electrical equipment with a signiﬁcant net saving of carbon emissions. On the other side, handling vehicles can produce signiﬁcant carbon emissions, according to the airside and vehicle characteristics, as well as the percentage of users traveling by road individual transport means. Generally, land vehicle emissions depend on both drive conditions and vehicle type. In fact, speed and acceleration, driving on ﬂat or slope surface as well as engine conditions, the presence of elements for containing emissions and operation types are elements that strongly inﬂuence both the type and quantity of carbon emissions. Although land vehicle emissions due to handling can be quite easily estimated, operations and airside conﬁguration being known, estimates of emissions due to road individual vehicles can be more difﬁcult according to the point of view. If only the contribution at airports is considered, just the shares due to trips within the landside should be considered, and they can be computed as same as the emissions due to handling, by considering the (average) characteristics of individual transport means. By contrast, contributions can be referred to the overall trip to/from the airport; in this case, other than the air travel demand by airport connecting road individual mode, at least the traveled mean distances should be known in order to compute the carbon contribution at aggregated level. More in-depth analyses can be performed in terms of road trafﬁc ﬂow to/from the airport, by using road demand assignment models. The proposed general procedure, at a simpliﬁed level, has been used to compute the carbon contributions at the airport of Reggio Calabria (Southern Italy, Fig. 7) on the Messina Strait that separates

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Figure 7: Reggio Calabria Airport (Southern Italy) geographical position. the Sicily isle from continental Italy, speciﬁcally the Calabria region where Reggio Calabria airport is located. The airport geographical catchment area corresponds more or less to the administrative province of Reggio Calabria and the administrative area of the city of Messina, in the Sicily isle. The yearly demand at the airport in the last 2 years has been less then 500,000, because of the current economic situation together with the strong competition of the near by airport of Lamezia Terme (about 140 km away); actually, a part of the geographical catchment areas of Reggio Calabria and Lamezia Terme airports are overlapping and similar in terms of population and income trends. The application refers to the period January–June 2009 (i.e. current situation); the air passenger demand and the number of movements at the airport in this period have been, respectively, 245,943 and 3,669 (ofﬁcial source: www.assaeroporti.it). The surface mode choice percentages have been computed by direct surveys at the airport during three representative weekly periods; more than 78% of air travelers use their cars, about 4% travels by taxi and the remaining by public modes (buses and also ships, as the airport also serves the city of Messina on the other side of the Messina Strait). The airport has its own parking area, but this is small with respect to the user requests and many travelers park outside the landside, in the neighborhood of the airport. The airside conﬁguration is really simple, as the airport has just one runway also serving as taxiway, and an aircraft parking area located near the airport passenger terminal, so passengers move on foot from the terminal to the aircraft, given the very short distances. Handling vehicles too move on very short distances, given the airside size. Aircraft using the airport are A319–A320, B733 and MD80.

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A survey about the actual airport carbon footprint has been made with reference to the average day in the considered period, by using suitable devices to collect data about the carbon concentration in different points of the landside and around (but very near to) the airport area. Following the several steps described in the previous sections, the different carbon impact contributions have been estimated, as well as the overall contribution that has been compared with the measured one. Aircraft ground-based unit emissions have been obtained by ofﬁcial data, as well as average land vehicle emissions. Carbon concentration at a given point has been estimated by considering available pollutant dispersion models (e.g. TRRL [33]; Caline 4 [34]). The comparison between estimated and measured concentrations shows a good approximation (about 11% difference). As regards the carbon impact contribution, more then 62% has been due to road vehicles, about 9% to handling vehicles and the remaining to aircraft-related operations. The overall airport carbon footprint is greatly within the prescriptive range, as the test case refers to a small airport also located in a windy area where pollutants are relatively quickly dispersed. As expected, the application allows the different carbon impact contributions to be estimated, so transport planners and airports can identify the best strategies to promote an airport sustainable development. The procedure has been applied in a simpliﬁed form, by using more statistical, current data than predictive, mathematical models as the ﬁrst goal was to test the overall performance of the procedure. Obviously, the most appealing use is in term of prediction, by suitably specifying all the involved models brieﬂy described in the previous sections. 6 SUMMARY AND MAIN CONCLUSIONS The procedure presented in this paper proposes a comprehensive framework to assess the airport carbon footprint directly linked to the transport function. Impacts produced at an airport are due to not only aircraft but also handling vehicles and private cars used by travelers going in and out of the airport. The main steps have been identiﬁed in order to compute the carbon contribution of the different components and then estimate their share. Such a procedure allows transport planners and airports to compute the carbon contribution due to the different sources and then promote a sustainable airport development by adopting strategies that minimize the larger contributions. An application to a test case, although in simpliﬁed version, has given very promising results thus suggesting the need to adopt a broad point of view when identifying sustainable developing strategies. Apart from the numerical results, that strongly depend on the speciﬁc examined situation, the procedure allows the different carbon impact contributions to be estimated separately and also suggested further developments. In fact, many improvements can still be obtained by best exploring the modeling of some steps, as the relationship among handling vehicles, scheduled aircraft and airside conﬁguration as well as the identiﬁcation of the choice dimension sequence in the demand stage models, mainly for predictive purposes. REFERENCES [1] Upham, P., Thomas, C., Gillingwater, D. & Raper, D., Environmental capacity and airport operations: current issues and future prospects. Journal of Air Transport Management, 9, pp. 145–151, 2003. [2] Goetz, A. R. & Graham, B., Air transport globalization, liberalization and sustainability: post 2001 policy dynamics in the United States and Europe. Journal of Transport Geography, 12, pp. 265–276, 2004. [3] Lenzen, M., Murray, S.A., Kortec, B. & Dey, C.J., Environmental impact assessment including indirect effects. A case study using input–output analysis. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 23, pp. 263–282, 2003.

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[4] Graham, B. & Guyer, C., Environmental sustainability, airport capacity and European air transport liberalization: irreconcilable goals? Journal of Transport Geography, 7, pp. 165–180, 1999. [5] Graham, A., Managing the Airports: An International Prospective, 2nd edn, Elsevier, 2003. [6] International Civil Aviation Organization, Environmental Protection, Annex 16 – Vol I, Aircraft Noise, Montreal, 1993. [7] Directive 2002/49/EC of the European Parliament and the Council of 25 June 2002 relating to the assessment and management of environmental noise. [8] Air Transport Action Group, www.atag.org. [9] Yu, K.N., Cheung, Y.P., Cheung T. & Henry, R.C., Identifying the impact of large urban airports on local air quality by nonparametric regression. Atmospheric Environment, 38, pp. 4501–4507, 2004. [10] Schürmann, G., Schäfer K., Jahn, C., Hoffmann, H., Bauerfeind, M., Fleuti, E. & Rappenglück B., The impact of NOx, CO and VOC emissions on the air quality of Zurich airport. Atmospheric Environment, 41, pp. 103–118, 2007. [11] Unal, A., Hu, Y., Chang, M.E., Odman, M.T. & Russell, A.G., Airport related emissions and impacts on air quality: application to the Atlanta International Airport. Atmospheric Environment, 39, pp. 5787–5798, 2005. [12] Lu, C. & Morrell, P., Determination and applications of environmental costs at different sized airports – aircraft noise and engine emissions. Transportation, 33, pp. 45–61, 2006. [13] European Commission, Multi-annual indicative TEN-T programme (MAP) for the period 2007–2013, COM(2006)245, 25 May 2006. [14] American Planning Association, The language of trafﬁc. http://www.planning. org/ thecommissioner/19952003/spring02.htm, 2005, accessed December 6. [15] Shefﬁ, Y., Urban Transportation Networks: Equilibrium Analysis with Mathematical Programming Methods, Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, 1985. [16] Box, G.E.P. & Jenkins, G.M., Time-series Analysis, Forecasting and Control, Holden-Day: San Francisco, 1970. [17] Judge, G.G., Grifﬁths, W.E., Lutkepohl, H., Hill, R.C. & Lee T.-C., Introduction to the Theory and Practice of Econometrics, 2nd edn, Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1988. [18] Karlaftis, M.G. & Papastavrou, J.D., Demand characteristics for charter air-travel. International Journal of Transport Economics, XXV(3), pp. 19–35, 1998. [19] Hensher D.A., Determining passenger potential for a regional airline hub at Canberra International Airport. Journal of Air Transport Management, 8, pp. 301–311, 2002. [20] Lim, C. & McAleer, M., Time series forecasts of international travel demand for Australia. Tourism Management, 23, pp. 389–396, 2002. [21] Inglada, V. & Rey, B., Spanish air travel and September 11 terrorist attacks: a note. Journal of Air Transport Management, 10, pp. 441–443, 2004. [22] Postorino, M.N., Air demand modelling: overview and application to a developing regional airport (Chapter 4). Developments of Regional Airports: Theoretical Analyses and Case Studies, ed. M.N. Postorino, WIT Press: UK, 2009. [23] Train, K., Discrete Choice Methods with Simulation, Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, MA, 2003. [24] Harvey, G., Airport choice in a multiple airport region. Transportation Research, 21A, pp. 439–449, 1987. [25] Innes, J.D. & Doucet, D.H., Effects of access distance and level of service on airport choice. Journal of Transportation Engineering, 116(4), pp. 507–516, 1990.

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[26] Pels, E., Nijkamp, P. & Rietveld P., Access to and competition between airports: a case study for the San Francisco Bay Area. Transportation Research, 37A, pp. 71–83, 2003. [27] Kroes, E., Lierens A. & Kouwenhoven, M., The airport network and catchment area competition model: a comprehensive airport demand forecasting system using a partially observed database. RAND Europe, Conference reference: ERSA, 2005. [28] Hess, S. & Polak, J.W., Mixed logit modelling of airport choice in multi-airport regions. Journal of Air Transport Management, 11, pp. 59–68, 2005. [29] Suzuki, Y., Modelling and testing the “two-step” decision process of travellers in airport and airline choices. Transportation Research, 43E, pp. 1–20, 2007. [30] Hess, S., Modelling air travel choice behaviour. Developments of Regional Airports: Theoretical Analyses and Case Studies, ed. M.N. Postorino, WIT Press: UK, 2009. [31] Ashford, N. & Wright, P.H., Airport Engineering, 3rd edn, Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1992. [32] Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change, Fourth Assessment Report, http://www.ipcc.ch/ ipccreports/sres/aviation. [33] Hickman, A.J. & Colwill D.M., The estimation of air pollution concentrations from road traffic, TRRL Laboratory, Report 1052, 1982. [34] Benson P.E., CALINE 4. A dispersion model for predicting pollutant concentrations near roadways, FHHWA/CA/TL 84/15, California Department of Transportation, Sacramento (CA), 1986.

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ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN STANDARDS FOR MUSLIMS PRAYER FACILITIES IN AIRPORTS A. MOKHTAR College of Architecture, Art and Design, American University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.

ABSTRACT Increasingly, airports around the world are becoming hubs for the coexistence of different cultures. Therefore, they need to include facilities that can accommodate, as far as possible, the needs of passengers from various backgrounds. Among these are prayer facilities for people of different faiths. This paper focuses on the design and operational requirements for Muslim prayer facilities. Due to the nature of Muslim prayer patterns, airports that expect to serve Muslim passengers need to have prayer facilities of which the design and operating systems are adequate. Such facilities remove the necessity of Muslims having to pray in public areas in airports and performing ablution in public restrooms. If facilities dedicated to Muslim use are unavailable, the performance of these acts in public places may not only render those who perform them unable to concentrate, but also raise the curiosity of others or make them uncomfortable. The paper ﬁrstly describes the need for prayer facilities and the pattern of their use. It then deﬁnes the architectural and operational requirements, including location in the airport, the components of the prayer space and supporting elements such as ablution stations. The paper functions as a reference for designers and operators of airports particularly in areas with large Muslim populations, such as the Middle East, Africa, the Indian subcontinent, the Paciﬁc Rim, Central Asia and Europe. Keywords: ablution space design, airports architecture, Muslim prayer facilities.

1 INTRODUCTION ‘The modern airport, and certainly the airport of the twenty-ﬁrst century, is a huge, complex and noisy theatre. It is a focus of a wide diversity of human activity from travel to leisure, from shopping to health clubs, from plane-spotting to conferences, and from family reunions to Church outings’ [1]. For a sizable proportion of Muslim passengers, prayer is part of this diverse human airport activity. Practicing Muslims pray ﬁve times a day (dawn, mid-day, afternoon, sunset and night); each prayer has a window of time for its performance. With this frequency, a Muslim – when travelling – may need to perform a prayer while in transit, waiting to board a plane, or upon arrival at an airport. Religious rulings allow the combination of two prayer periods to ease the burden during travel. In the past, this enabled many to pray before arriving at or after leaving the airport. However, today’s long distance ﬂights that transpass time zones, lengthy security and baggage queues, and journey times to and from airports make praying at the airport a more feasible option. It is therefore common in Islamic countries to ﬁnd a mosque or prayer facilities within an airport, although the quality and sufﬁciency of such facilities varies. Yet, as the world became better connected, Muslims live and travel in all parts of the world using airports that exist in non-Islamic countries. Some of these airports accommodate the need for practicing Muslims by providing prayer facilities. Similarly, the quality of such facilities varies. The purpose of this paper is to assist designers and operators of airports in providing a better service to a segment of their clients, many of whom may make a decision regarding a travel route based partially on the availability of quality prayer facilities. The paper starts with an overview of some aspects of Muslim prayer practices that affect the design and operation of prayer facilities. It then reviews related reference works. The requirements of prayer facilities as applied to airports are discussed and reference is made to other general requirements. Two case studies, one in an Islamic country and one in a non-Islamic country, are analysed to illustrate design requirements as presented in the paper.

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2 BACKGROUND 2.1 The nature of Muslim prayer A brief overview of some essential concepts relating to the nature of Muslim prayer is given below to indicate the requirements of prayer facility design and operation.

• • • •

Prayer can be performed only by a person who has ablution status. Maintaining and losing such status is deﬁned by religious rulings. Hence, a number of those who perform prayer need to perform ablutions – an activity that requires the use of water. Males and females pray in separate spaces or in separate zones within the same space. It is preferable that they have segregated access to prayer spaces and must have segregated ablution spaces. Females do not pray during menstruation; this means that female prayer and ablution spaces may be relatively smaller. Certain circumstances, mainly relating to sexual activity, require the taking of a shower before prayer. Although these circumstances rarely occur to airport users, some passengers in transit may have had emissions during sleep, which will require them to have a shower before praying.

2.2 Review of related work Although no published reference work has been found relating to the design of prayer facilities at airports, there are several reference works on the design of mosques. Standard reference books on architecture design, such as Architectural Graphic Standards [2], Neufert Architects’ Data [3], and the Metric Handbook [4] provide useful data for some aspects of mosque design. More comprehensive references on mosque design exist, but in the Arabic language [5–7]. These references provide detailed requirements on both the urban planning scale and the architecture design scale. However, the requirements of mosque design differ in many aspects from those of prayer facilities in public buildings such as airports. More specialised references on the latter type of facilities can be found in Refs. [8, 9]. Design standards for ablution spaces which are service spaces within prayer facilities are available in Ref. [10] and summarised in a video available on YouTube [11]. Prayer facilities in airports are distinctive in some aspects, and therefore a study of their design and operational standards is reported in the following sections. 3 FACILITY DESIGN AND OPERATIONAL CONSIDERATIONS 3.1 Number and location of prayer facilities Number and location of prayer facilities are two critical decisions and are affected by the following factors:

•

•

Size and architectural design of the airport: The greater the distance required for travellers to reach the prayer facility, the better the argument for having more than one facility. Linear and along plan airports tend to justify a non-centralised location, whereas radial plan airports justify a central location. Security and operational issues: Passengers should not be required to pass unnecessarily through passport controls or security points to reach the prayer facility. Depending on operational and security procedures, more than one facility may be needed; particularly to serve transit passengers.

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3.2 Separation of gender Males and females pray separately, and it is therefore preferable to have separate, but adjacent, facilities for each gender. If this is not feasible then the same facility can be used by both genders but there should be a clear division in the prayer hall, and separate entrances (see Fig. 4). There should also be separate ablution spaces for each gender. 3.3 Luggage cart parking and important-baggage rack Passengers travel with important documents (e.g. passport and ticket) as well as laptops and other valuables, typically kept in small bags, which cannot be left unattended while performing prayer. Those who pray will typically take these bags into the prayer room with them, but this uses space and may compromise the cleanliness of the room. Prayer actions prevent the carrying of bags on the shoulder, or storage beside the legs. The provision of keyed lockers of sufﬁcient size can address this issue. Alternatively, appropriately sized shelves may be installed in the prayer hall. However, these shelves should be placed where they can be seen by those at prayer, and so will need to be close to the Quibla wall (in the direction of Mecca). If the prayer hall is located where the passengers are expected to have their large pieces of luggage, then a parking area for luggage carts needs to be provided, preferably in a place where the passengers feel secure to leave them. Without this assigned area, luggage carts may be left where they will disrupt the movement of other airport users. 3.4 Restrooms In addition to typical design requirements for restrooms, accommodating some particular requirement for Muslim hygienic practices can be either a must (in airports within the Islamic world) or appreciated efforts (in airports outside the Islamic world). Unless it is unavailable, Muslims use water (not just toilet tissue) for personal cleansing after using the toilet. Therefore, in the Islamic world toilet cubicles typically include a douche installed to the right side of the water closet. That it is on the right side is determined by religious rulings. Mokhtar [9] provides additional details on the requirements for restrooms for Muslims in public buildings. As mentioned above, in the event of recent sexual activity or emissions, religious rulings require a Muslim to shower before praying. Therefore, providing showers in restrooms is recommended, particularly for transient passengers who may sleep for some hours. 3.5 Ablution stations In line with religious rulings, a Muslim may need to perform ablutions before performing prayer. Ablution stations similar to the one shown in Fig. 1 are typically used for that purpose. More design models for ablution stations are available in Ref. [10]. It is much preferred if ablution stations are installed close to the prayer space. In an airport serving large number of Muslims, it is worth investing in making the relationship between the ablution and prayer space similar to that shown in Fig. 2 where clear separation exists between a clean zone (no shoes) and non-clean zone. The ablution area exists inside the clean zone. If a technical or cost issue prevents having an ablution space close to the prayer hall, then the installation of ablution stations connected to a common restroom is recommended. In this case, the designer should consider that the user needs to take off his/her shoes, perform ablutions which make several parts of the body wet, including the feet, dry these parts (particularly the feet), and put on the shoes again so as to be able to reach the prayer hall.

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Figure 1: Example of an ablution station (terminal one, Dubai Airport).

Figure 2: Relationship between spaces in the prayer facility [8].

The designer also should ensure that ablution stations are kept away from urinals and water closet cubicles. As discussed above, the provision of a shower is recommended. This can be installed in the public restroom or inside the ablution space in case it is close to the prayer hall. The latter solution will be appropriate if it is desired to limit the use of the shower to those who intend to perform prayer. In designing the shower cubicle, it is important to consider the privacy issue through the installation of a locked door rather than a curtain.

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3.6 Other issues 3.6.1 Sound system function in the prayer hall Sound systems that alert travellers to the departure and arrival of planes are standard feature in airport spaces. These sound systems, however, can interfere with prayer sessions, particularly during group prayer. Yet those praying, like other passengers, need to be alerted. The problem can be addressed through having a push button system to control the sound system so that at the start of a group prayer the sound system speakers within the prayer hall may be shut off (or reduced in volume) for the typical duration of the prayer (about 10 min). 3.6.2 The provision of female prayer clothes Religious rulings determine the dress code for males and females during prayer. Typical clothes for men usually adhere to the code. However, females who do not normally cover their head or body in a way that fulﬁls prayer requirements need to do so. Therefore the provision of light prayer clothes for females is recommended. Naturally, these need to be cleaned and maintained regularly. 3.6.3 The provision of electronic prayer time calculators As prayer times vary depending on location, Muslims occasionally ﬁnd it difﬁcult when travelling to know the prayer time for the place they are visiting. The provision of an electronic prayer time calculator in the prayer hall is therefore recommended. This shows the prayer time based on the location’s latitude, longitude, and daylight saving time, if used. Some calculators are equipped to make the call for prayer. 4 CASE STUDIES The purpose of the following case studies is to review critically the design of Muslim prayer facilities in two airports, one in the Islamic world (Dubai Airport) and the other outside it (JFK Airport in New York). The purpose is to clarify the concepts presented in the paper. 4.1 Prayer facilities at terminal one, Dubai Airport As may be expected, Dubai Airport serves a large number of Muslim passengers. There are four prayer facilities in Terminal One with other terminals have their own prayer facilities. Each of these four facilities has separate male and female prayer halls and ablution spaces. One facility is located before reaching the limited-access check-in counters in the departure area, and hence serves departing passengers, visitors and employees. Another facility is in the arrival area, but past the customs area, and hence serves arriving passengers, those who wait for them, and employees. The other two facilities are located in the departure hall. Because of the linear design and the length of that hall, two prayer facilities are necessary to reduce the walking distance. Figure 3 shows a sketch for the design of the facility which is located in the departure hall. One of the advantages of this facility is that it has the ablution space close to the prayer hall, and accessible within the prayer facility. The shoe racks are of adequate size to hold small bags, although they are rarely used for this purpose. Coat hangers are available, together with a shelf, to ease the performance of ablutions (see Fig. 1). A dressing mirror is installed beside the entry door. It is worth noting that the restrooms in the departure hall (which is also the transit area) have showers.

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Figure 3: A single-gender Muslim prayer facility at Dubai Airport (not to scale; not exact proportions). 4.2 Prayer facilities at terminal four, JFK Airport, New York The international terminal at JFK Airport in New York is an example of an airport outside the Islamic world that accommodates the prayer needs of practicing Muslims. The Muslim facility – shown in Fig. 4 – is in an airport zone dedicated to the prayer needs of several faiths. The prayer area is located outside the security zone in the departure level, and is not restricted by passport control. As transit passengers have to go through the same procedures as other passengers, the area is also accessible to those passengers. Because the international terminal is connected to other terminals in the airport by the Air Train Shuttle, the area is also accessible to Muslims travelling through other terminals; however, the time and effort required to reach it may be an issue. Unlike Dubai Airport, males and females share the same prayer hall, although a curtain is installed to separate them. There are shoe racks inside the space, placed appropriately near the entrance. There is sufﬁcient space in front of the entrance to park luggage carts, although those at prayer may not feel comfortable leaving their baggage unattended and out of sight while praying. As at the Dubai Airport, there is no facility for locking up important luggage or keeping it on shelves in sight of the person performing prayer. The main problem in the JFK facility is the lack of ablution space; users have to go down to the standard washbasin in the restrooms – one ﬂoor below – to perform ablution. The ablution process is certainly unfamiliar to non-Muslim users of the same facility. In particular the need to clean the feet, which many Muslims perform by raising them into the washbasin causing confusion for non-Muslim users. It may also make the person performing the ablution uncomfortable for causing such confusion. 5 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION As airports became hubs for a variety of activities and accommodate the needs for those of different cultures, the provision of adequate prayer facilities for Muslim passengers becomes increasingly important.

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Figure 4: The dual gender Muslim prayer facility at JFK Airport (not to scale; not exact proportions). This paper provides airport designers and operators with basic information they need to provide this service adequately. The paper focuses on issues relevant to airports in particular, and refers to other sources that address the requirements for prayer facilities in general (which also apply to airports). The paper discusses the location of the prayer facility, the separation of genders, the need for cart parking and luggage racks, special requirements for restrooms, and ablution stations. Two case studies are used to clarify the information. REFERENCES [1] Edwards, B., The Modern Airport Terminal: New Approaches to Airport Architecture, Spon Press: London and New York, p. 260, 2005. [2] Ramsey, C.G. & Sleeper, H.R., American Institute of Architects, Architectural Graphic Standards, Wiley & Sons, Inc.: New Jersey, 2007. [3] Neufert, E., Neufert, P., Baiche, B. & Walliman, N., Neufert Architects’ Data, Blackwell Science Inc.: Oxford, Malden, Ames, Victoria, and Berlin, 2000. [4] Littleﬁeld, D., Metric Handbook – Planning and Design Data, Architectural Press: Oxford, 2008. [5] Directorate-General for Yanbu Project, Planning and design standards for mosque architecture in Madinat Yanbu Al-Sinaiyah. Proceedings of Research on Mosque Architecture, College of Architecture and Planning, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia, vol. 10, pp. 149–180, 1999 (in Arabic). [6] Ibraheem, H., Planning Standards for Mosques, Ministry of City and Village Affairs: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 1979 (in Arabic). [7] Nofel, M., Design criteria for mosque architecture. Proceedings of Research on Mosque Architecture, College of Architecture and Planning, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia, vol. 5, pp. 75–94, 1999 (in Arabic).

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[8] Mokhtar, A., Design issues for Muslims praying spaces in shopping malls. 2A – Architecture & Art, No. 9, pp. 86–87, 2008. [9] Mokhtar, A., Design standards for Muslim prayer facilities within public buildings. ARCC 2009 – Leadership in Architectural Research, Between Academia and the Profession, San Antonio, TX, 15–18 April 2009. [10] Mokhtar, A., Design guidelines for ablution spaces in mosques and Islamic prayer facilities, American University of Sharjah: Sharjah, 2006 (in Arabic and English). [11] Mokhtar, A., Design of ablution spaces – the guide, 2004, documentary video available in two parts on YouTube. Part1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2H9cNDm0w; Part2: http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKtAMJmixZc.

...for scientists by scientists

Development of Regional Airports

How to Make Two-Lane Rural Roads Safer

Theoretical Analyses and Case Studies

Scientific Background and Guide for Practical Application

Edited by: M.N. POSTORINO, University of Reggio Calabria, Italy Great attention is being devoted nowadays to the development of regional airports, both to decrease the congestion at the main hubs and to stimulate the economic development of some decentralised areas. In this context, more actors can play an important role, as airport planners, air companies (including low-cost companies), and users (passengers and/or freight handlers) can affect demand levels at airports through their transportation choices. Furthermore, an efficient use of resources suggests that we consider the role of existing regional airports before building new ones. In the USA, more studies concern the analysis of airport systems (as in the Los Angeles area) in order to verify the role of each airport and the effects on the main congested hub(s). This book gives an overview of the main aspects of the potential development of regional airports, particularly the economic aspects, the role of lowcost companies, demand modelling, the airport, airline and access mode choices, and the relationships between capacity constraints on hubs and the growth of regional airports. Examples from different airports around the world are presented to illustrate the various aspects. ISBN: 978-1-84564-143-6 eISBN: 978-1-84564-385-0 Published 2010 / 192pp £73.00/US$146.00/€98.00

We are now able to supply you with details of new WIT Press titles via E-Mail. To subscribe to this free service, or for information on any of our titles, please contact the Marketing Department, WIT Press, Ashurst Lodge, Ashurst, Southampton, SO40 7AA, UK Tel: +44 (0) 238 029 3223 Fax: +44 (0) 238 029 2853 E-mail: [email protected]

R. LAMM, A. BECK and T. RUSCHER, University of Karlsruhe, Germany, T. MAILAENDER, Mailaender Ingenieur Consult GmbH, Germany and S. CAFISO and G. LA CAVA, University of Catania, Italy In most countries, two-lane rural roads make up about 90 percent of rural networks and account for about 60 percent or more of highway fatalities worldwide – 500,000 people per year. Based on new research and the demands of many design professionals, this book provides an understandable scientific framework for the application of quantitative safety evaluation processes to two-lane rural roads. The methodology described will support the achievement of quantified measures of 1) design consistency, 2) operating speed consistency, and 3) driving dynamic consistency. All three criteria are evaluated in three ranges described as “good”, “fair”, and “poor”. It has been proved that the results of these criteria coincide with the actual accident situation prevailing on two-lane rural roads. By using the “good” ranges, sound alignments in plan and profile, matching the expected driving behaviour of motorists, can be achieved. The safety criteria are then combined into an overall safety module for a simplified general overview of the safety evaluation process. The authors also encourage the coordination of safety concerns with important economic, environmental, and aesthetic considerations. This book will be an invaluable aid to educators, students, consultants, highway engineers, and administrators, as well as scientists in the fields of highway design and traffic safety engineering. ISBN: 978-1-84564-156-6 eISBN: 978-1-84564-257-0 Published 2007 / 144pp / £55.00/ US$110.00/€77.00

...for scientists by scientists

Urban Transport XVII

Fundamentals in Road Design

Urban Transport and the Environment in the 21st Century

W. KUHN, University ofLeipzig, Germany and

Edited by: A. PRATELLI, University of Pisa, Italy and C.A. BREBBIA, Wessex Institute of Technology, UK

Currently there is no single title that addresses the fundamental geometric concepts of urban and rural road design. Traffic behaviour has changed significantly over the last 20 years, requiring newer methods for road design. Starting from the traditional design process this book introduces a 3-dimensional geometric design process for urban and rural road design. It will prove to be a valuable textbook for undergradutae and graduate university students as well as road planning and design practitioners. Interested readers may find this book a valuable resource in conjunction with the previously published book Intelligent Road Design . WIT Transactions on Advances in Transport, Vol 20 ISBN: 978-1-84564-097-2 eISBN: 978-1-84564-336-2 Forthcoming 2011 / apx 350pp apx £115.00/$230.00/€149.00

Over the last sixteen years, the Wessex Institute of Technology has convened annually the International Conference on Urban Transport and the Environment in order to facilitate the sharing of research on a subject of growing importance to cities around the world. Urban transportation systems can enhance or degrade the quality of urban life by their impact on the environment as well as their operation and accessibility. Municipal authorities put a priority on transportation systems that minimize ecological and environmental impacts, are sustainable, and help to improve the socio-economic fabric of the city. At the same time, systems must ensure the safety and security of the public while retaining system efficiency. All of these concerns are addressed by research presented at the conference and contained in this book. Topics covered include: Urban Transport Planning and Management; Transportation Demand Analysis; Traffic Integration and Control; Intelligent Transport Systems; Transport Modelling and Simulation; Land Use and Transport Integration; Public Transport Systems; Environmental and Ecological Aspects;Air and Noise Pollution; Safety and Security; Energy and Transport Fuels; Economic and Social Impact; and Advanced Transport Systems. WIT Transactions on the Built Environment, Vol 116 ISBN: 978-1-84564-520-5 eISBN: 978-1-84564-521-2 Forthcoming 2011 / apx 500pp apx £190.00/US$380.00/€266.00 All prices correct at time of going to press but subject to change. WIT Press books are available through your bookseller or direct from the publisher.

M.K. JHA, Morgan State University, USA

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