Travelers Encounter Longer Intercity Travel Schedules, BTS Finds

Contact BTS 24-03 Dave Smallen 202-366-5568

Monday, October 27, 2003 - People traveling between many major cities encountered air, rail and bus schedules requiring more travel time in 2002 than in 1995, according to new findings by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).

BTS studied 261 city-pair markets and found that:

• Since 1995, scheduled travel times for direct intercity air, bus and rail service without an enroute transfer measurably lengthened in most major-market city pairs.
• Long-haul rail city-pairs affected by service changes and short-haul air city pairs had the highest incidence of lengthened scheduled travel times.
• Two categories of trips became quicker: intercity bus markets with an en route transfer to a different bus, and rail city-pairs served by Amtrak's Acela Express.

These data are based on schedules published by commercial transportation carriers, not on actual travel times.

From 1995 to 2002, scheduled travel time lengthened for direct service in 68 percent of air markets, 61 percent of rail markets and 52 percent of bus markets.

Scheduled travel times grew in 62 percent of rail markets where transfers are needed but only in 40 percent of bus markets that involved transfers. Overall, 46 percent of bus markets had longer schedules in 2002 than in 1995.

A variety of factors contribute to changes in the scheduled time for travel and more than one factor may come into play for the same mode depending on the city-pair. For example, in bus markets with an enroute transfer, scheduled trip times decreased as greater intercity bus network frequencies resulted in shortened transfer times.

For rail, the most significant schedule lengthening took place where service was changed to a more time-consuming route or where direct transfers between trains were broken, resulting in some cases in a nearly 24-hour transfer time where only a short wait was previously required. Other factors resulting in longer schedule times were introduction of mail and express package handling at intermediate stations and congestion or changes in track conditions on routes shared with freight trains. Technology and infrastructure improvements related to the introduction of the Acela Express helped decrease intercity rail scheduled time in the Northeast Corridor.

The largest percentage increases in airline trip times came in the shorter distance city-pairs that were studied.

Several intercity passenger industry trends may affect scheduled travel time trends in the coming year. Amtrak has eliminated much of its express package handling, which could reduce trip time schedules on some long-distance routes. Some airlines have spread out flight arrival and departure times at their hubs to improve efficiency. This could reduce congestion levels and the resulting time aircraft spend taxiing and waiting to land. The emergence of several new niche intercity bus carriers that offer express services on certain routes may create competitive pressure among all carriers to provide faster schedules.

The largest increases in scheduled travel time were:

• Air: Pittsburgh-Washington Dulles, 27 percent; and Los Angeles-San Diego, 22 percent.
• Rail: Los Angeles-Salt Lake City, 129 percent; and Minneapolis-St. Louis, 105 percent.
• Bus: Pittsburgh-Atlanta, 18 percent; New York-Charlotte, N.C., and Los Angeles-Las Vegas, 14 percent.

The biggest decreases in scheduled travel time were:

• Air: Atlanta-Washington Dulles, 12 percent; and Atlanta-New York JFK, 7 percent.
• Rail: Newark, N.J.-Boston, 23 percent; and New York-Boston, 19 percent.
• Bus: Pittsburgh-Baltimore, 29 percent; Detroit-Denver and Atlanta-Tampa, Fla., 22 percent.

More information can be found at www.bts.gov in BTS Issue Brief Number 7, "Many Intercity Travelers Face Longer Travel Schedules."