High-speed rail travel and rail travel overall continue to attract enthusiasts in this country, despite a lack of support in Congress for major rail networks or even more regional rail projects.
At the Nov. 20 Connecting America Through Travel (CATT) conference in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the U.S. Travel Association, rail was once again on the agenda, even though a large focus of the event was on investing in airport and air traffic infrastructure to avoid the extreme congestion predicted for major U.S. airports in the next decade.
Ed Rendell, the former governor of Pennsylvania, told conference attendees of his experience on Japan's Maglev train, which can hit speeds well over 300 miles per hour.
He imagined what the economic benefits would be of a train that could go from New York to Washington in a little over an hour or connect New York and Philadelphia in the time it currently takes for a commuter rail service to make the journey from the suburbs into New York.
Participants also noted the success of European and Asian trains that connect airports with city centers, something that few if any U.S. cities have managed to duplicate.
But the most quantitative benefits of rail travel were showcased in a new survey, "A New Partnership: Rail Transit and Convention Growth," unveiled at the CATT conference detailing the economic benefits for cities that have good rail connections.
According the study, which was jointly released by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and the U.S. Travel Association, hotels in cities with direct rail access from downtown to airport terminals get nearly 11 percent more revenue per room than hotels in cities without a rail airport connection.
"Clearly investment in local rail systems not only benefits residents, but drives significant economic growth in the travel and hospitality industries," said Michael Melaniphy, APTA's president and CEO. "For our nation's great cities to be more competitive and command higher hotel room rates, we must seize the opportunity to invest in our local rail systems and interconnect these high-demand airports to our American cities' world-class amenities."
APTA's study, "A New Partnership: Rail Transit and Convention Growth," shows that higher revenue per room translates to a potential $313 million in revenue per year for cities that have direct rail access to airport terminals.
Such "rail" cities also commanded 16 percent higher revenue per room than hotels in non-rail cities.
According to the study, hotel properties located within a quarter mile of a rail station performed even better than those outside of that radius. These hotel properties averaged a nearly 50 percent higher daily room rate and a 12.5 percent higher occupancy rate.
"Rail" cities cited in the report included Atlanta, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Minneapolis, Portland, and San Francisco. Hotel performance in these six cities was compared to hotel performance in convention cities that lacked a direct rail connection to the airport terminal, such as Las Vegas, New Orleans, Orlando, Sacramento and Tampa.
The difference between hotels in "rail" cities and those without rail also was reflected in the performance of luxury and upscale hotel properties, which are frequently preferred by business travelers and convention attendees.
According to the study, luxury hotels in "rail" cities can command a 12.4 percent higher average daily room rate compared to those in a non-rail city, and also have a 5.7 percent higher occupancy rate.
"Looking forward, it is essential that America add balance to our overall intercity passenger travel options," said Melaniphy. "Highway and airports alone will not have the capacity or the dexterity to serve the growing travel markets of the future.
"Development of higher performing intercity passenger rail corridors will be critical to America's future. There already are success stories all over the world. International visitors know how to use these systems. Destinations become stronger. Travel and tourism become still more robust."
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