Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals (2010)

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Development of Goals and Objectives A crucial first step in the development of an offsite terminal and transportation link is for the project sponsor to define the project’s goals and objectives. If some of the recommendations in this document are counter to the goals and objectives for a specific offsite terminal project, the project sponsor should make decisions that are appropriate for the project. It is important for the project sponsor to define the purpose of the offsite terminal within its operating environment, what it hopes to accomplish, and the resources it is willing to make avail- able. Clear goals and objectives will help to shape the project, facilitate its development among various departments that may have different objectives within the sponsoring organization, and provide the project sponsor with guidelines for measuring success once the offsite terminal and transportation link are operational. Motivation for an Offsite Terminal During the project planning and development process, individuals involved with the project must understand the motivation behind establishing the offsite terminal. There are many reasons why the project sponsor may consider introducing an offsite terminal and transportation link, including the following reasons. • Mitigation measure: – Congested conditions on airport roads and terminal curbs, within the region and within airport-impacted communities, due to low-occupancy-vehicle trips generated by airport users and – Environmental impacts. • Space constraints: – Parking, – Airport roads and terminal curbs, and – Terminal Area. • Financial: – Cost of development on-airport versus off-airport. • Customer Service: – Provide airport users with excellent high-occupancy transportation options to the airport, – Easy access to airport, – Competition with other airports, and – Serving a specific customer group. 3 C H A P T E R 2 Rationale for an Offsite Terminal

• Political: – Move airport impacts away from the airport-impacted area and – Provide a service to constituents of the offsite-terminal market area. • Use of Available Property: – Specific parcel and – Intermodal center or joint-use development. Once the project sponsor has established the reasons for considering an offsite terminal and transportation link, expected results of the project and how to achieve these results must be con- sidered to ensure the alignment of objectives within the sponsoring organization. Developing Goals and Objectives The planning and development of an airport offsite terminal and transportation link will involve participation and teamwork from individuals with expertise in many disciplines includ- ing facilities planning, transportation planning, finance, business development, risk manage- ment, environmental, operations, property and facilities management, engineering, legal, and public safety. Since individuals working in different disciplines offer varying perspectives on what constitutes success, it is important to establish clear goals and objectives. Clearly defined goals and objectives will maximize the effectiveness of all who contribute to the project. Scenarios can be developed where the potential positive and negative outcomes of decisions related to project planning, development and operations are revealed. Comparisons among sce- narios will expose potential tradeoffs to be made among different project parameters that allow the project sponsor to achieve project goals within the context of the overall goals and objectives of the sponsoring organization. For example, scenario analysis can be used to understand the rela- tionship among cost, timing, scale of the project, level of service, and customer service. This type of analysis will provide direction on whether to go forward with a project, how to prioritize proj- ect elements, how to refine the project, and how to develop milestones. Some ideas to explore include, but are not limited to, • Ensuring the targeted accomplishments are realistic within the overall budgetary and operational goals of the organization; • Consideration of alternatives that may offer similar results; • Impact of project costs (capital and operating) on the overall financial plan of the organization; • Maximum amount of staffing and financial resources available for the project; • Exit strategy or alternative plan if the project doesn’t meet goals; • Potential consequences if project doesn’t meet goals; • Potential risks to the sponsoring organization; • The sponsoring organization’s risk tolerance for the project; • Where the project will be managed and maintained within the organization; • Project sponsors’ ability to undertake the project; • Project timeline in context of targeted accomplishments; • Project benefits; • Environmental impacts of project; • Political impacts of project; • Operational impacts of project; and • Public acceptance of the project – airport users and community surrounding offsite terminal. The previous topics can be narrowed to determine whether realistic goals and objectives can be developed for the project within the context of the sponsoring organization. To do this, impacts and relationships in the following categories must be considered. 4 Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals

• Financial implications: – Impact of profit, breakeven, loss on  Sponsoring organization and  Level of service of offsite terminal and transportation link; – Revenue diversion; – Capital costs; – Operating costs; – Loss of on-airport revenue due to fewer parking exits; and – Passenger fares  Impact on ridership levels,  Relationship to other access/egress modes,  Political,  Customer service, and  Operational impacts. • Ridership objectives: – Maximize ridership, minimum ridership threshold, or optimize given other considerations. • Relationship to on-airport development: – Reducing, postponing, or eliminating the need for specific on-airport development projects; – Mitigation measure allowing airport development; and – Reducing available funding for priority on-airport projects. • On-airport operational impacts: – Alleviates or prevents undesirable levels of customer service or inefficient operations for  Roadway congestion,  Terminal curb congestion,  Automobile parking supply, and  Crowded terminals; and – Negative impact on operations, such as additional curb space for transportation link. • Reduce off-airport impacts—airport-impacted areas and within the region: – Low-occupancy-vehicle trips, – Vehicle-miles traveled, – Air-quality impacts/vehicle emissions, and – Fuel consumption. • Competition with area airports: – Potential for offsite terminal/transportation link making airport more competitive. • Customer Service: – Level of service, transportation link; – Relationship of service frequency and hours of operation to flight schedule; and – Customers  Air passengers,  Airport employees,  Meeters/greeters, and  A specific customer group, such as pleasure travelers or passengers being picked up and dropped off in a private automobile. • Partnering: – Will partnerships with the public or private sector result in a better/faster/easier/more cost effective/more politically feasible project? The above categories may not include all of the factors that are important to the sponsoring organization. The list is exhaustive enough to demonstrate that there are many reasons to Rationale for an Offsite Terminal 5

consider offering an offsite terminal and transportation link and subsequently measuring its success. The project proponent must decide what it wants to accomplish, recognizing there will be tradeoffs. For example, it may not be realistic to both maximize ridership and maxi- mize revenue. During project planning and development, it is advisable to continuously compare specific elements of the project with the project goals and objectives to ensure the project is on track. Project elements or goals and objectives may need to be redefined during the process. 6 Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals