OPTIMAL USE OF VEHICULAR SYSTEMS IN THE DESIGN OF AIRPORT TERMINALS

A cost-effectiveness analysis of airport terminal design is presented which focuses on the degree to which vehicular systems for transferring passengers to aircraft should substitute for constructed facilities. The implications of the stochastic demand for gate positions on costs and economies of scale are examined. For current costs, it is shown that the pure strategy of using vehicles is about 20 to 40% more expensive than the construction alternative. Consideration of the marginal costs of meeting peak passenger flows indicates, however, that a mixed strategy is optimal. Total costs can be reduced by about 15% by using vehicular systems to substitute for about 30% of the gate positions at a large airport. Recent experience in Europe and North America corroborates this finding.

• Corporate Authors:

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  Department of Civil Engineering, 77 Massachusetts Avenue
  Cambridge, MA  United States  02139
• Authors:
  • de Neufville, R
  • Moore, H
  • Yaney, J C
• Publication Date: 1972

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Construction; Cost effectiveness; Economies of scale; Gates; Intermodal terminals; Passenger traffic; Passenger vehicles; Strategic planning; Structural design; Traffic flow
• Uncontrolled Terms: Passenger flow
• Old TRIS Terms: Terminal design; Terminal facilitation
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Construction; Economics; Planning and Forecasting; Terminals and Facilities;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00155458
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Aug 31 1977 12:00AM