PRICING-BASED SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEM OF WEATHER-RELATED AIRPORT AND AIRWAY SYSTEM DELAY

With most of the recent delay in air travel caused by disruptions that limit capacity (versus crew scheduling and operational issues), this paper examines the practicality and effectiveness of using congestion pricing in conditions such as weather-related delays to allocate airspace in a way that reflects the value that the different airlines and airports place on the available capacity at any given time. Using a simple queuing model shows that as each user (aircraft) joins the queue, he adds to the time that subsequent users will have to wait (their cost) until they can make use of the airspace. Congestion pricing can impose the subsequent users' cost on the current user, which will discourage some users from entering the queue because the value to them is less than the cost. The paper analyzes institutions in the electric power industry that use similar short-term price fluctuations to ration power and suggests there is room in the aviation industry to adopt pricing schemes that would help rationalize capacity supply and demand during weather-related disruptions. It shows, too, some of the ways the system might evolve in order to accommodate such demand management techniques.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/10643818
• Corporate Authors:

  Air Traffic Control Association Institute, Incorporated

  2300 Clarendon Boulevard, Suite 711
  Arlington, VA  United States  22201
• Authors:
  • Neels, K
• Publication Date: 2002

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures;
• Pagination: p. 261-284
• Serial:
  • Air Traffic Control Quarterly
  • Volume: 10
  • Issue Number: 3
  • Publisher: Air Traffic Control Association Institute, Incorporated
  • ISSN: 1064-3818

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Airport capacity; Congestion management systems; Congestion pricing; Demand; Value of service pricing; Weather
• Identifier Terms: National Airspace System
• Uncontrolled Terms: Weather related delays
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00932985
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: UC Berkeley Transportation Library
• Files: BTRIS, TRIS
• Created Date: Oct 31 2002 12:00AM