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Airport News, "Bangor, Maine airport getting left out by airlines"
Monday, October 11, 1999
Bangor airport getting left out by airlines
By Associated Press
BANGOR, Maine (AP) Bangor International Airport and rural Maine are getting
left behind as airlines concentrate their flights in larger or growing hubs
such as Boston or Manchester, N.H., according to one of Maine's congressmen.
''In many places, competition has led to reduced prices and improved
service,'' U.S. Rep. John Baldacci said at a U.S. House aviation
subcommittee field hearing in Bangor on Monday. ''However, many other cities
have suffered from irregular or inadequate service.''
Baldacci, a member of the subcommittee, testified that Bangor has not been
served well by deregulation of the airline industry and the airport has
experienced an erosion of service over the past year.
This month, Continental Express will end its service to Newark, N.J., and
Delta Airlines ended service in March.
Continental blamed air traffic control problems in Newark as the reason for
the cancelation. But Baldacci questioned that Monday, saying airlines were
''cherry picking'' the most profitable routes and using the air traffic
control problems as an excuse.
He said airlines are ignoring the smaller markets because they don't make as
much money.
''This is unacceptable in a system that is powered largely by public
investments in infrastructure and personnel,'' Baldacci said.
Baldacci said it is important that the panel explore ways to ensure that
airlines recognize the importance of using regional jet service, as opposed
to noisy, uncomfortable propeller planes.
Passengers in northern Maine are forced to drive to Portland, Manchester or
Boston to get better fares and connections, he said.
''It becomes a vicious cycle whereby passengers seek out better travel
alternatives, the airline further restricts service and more passengers are
forced to go elsewhere,'' Baldacci said.
Bangor loses about 120,000 passengers annually from its own market to
Portland, Boston and Manchester, according to BIA manager Bob Ziegelaar.
Bangor-area travelers are being forced to deal with shoddy as well as
diminished service, Ziegelaar said.
''It does not seem to make any difference that the small market traveler
must make do with a small, less appealing and far less costly aircraft,'' he
said. ''The price a rural passenger must pay is typically well above what a
big city traveler pays on a large jet.''
Boston's Logan Airport dominates the region's domestic passenger traffic
market with about 27 million travelers annually, Portland handles 1.3
million and Bangor 426,000. Manchester expects to move 2.6 million
passengers this year.
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, warned that without better service, Bangor
could become less attractive to businesses.
''Those areas without air access or with access that is restricted with
prohibitive cost of travel, infrequent flights, or smaller, slower planes
are at a distinct disadvantage compared to those areas of the country that
enjoy accessible, convenient and economic air service,'' she said.
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