Saturday, Dec. 30, 2017 | 2 a.m.
View more of the Sun's opinion section
View more of the Sun's opinion section
Regarding the Dec. 14 story headlined “Airports losing money as ride-hailing services thrive,” I recently retired after 40 years in the aviation business, so I may be reasonably qualified to comment.
The writer, Amy Zipkin from the New York Times News Service, notes that $4 billion is raised annually from parking and transportation fees. But she avoids mentioning the total income airports receive from all sources. I can think of airline fees, fuel taxes, airport facility fees added to every ticket and security fees. This last item may go to the Transportation Safety Administration, in all fairness, but it relieves the airport of the obligation and cost of providing some of the security needs.
Then there is the subject of capital improvements. I believe that the airline community begged Randy Walker (former airport director) to not build Terminal 3, as it was unnecessary. Why? Because the airlines have had to pay for it. Add this to airports’ revenue. The $4 billion figure could be a minor part of the whole?
The very well written article illuminates the governmental bias against ride-hailing companies. Look how the taxi companies did everything in their power to stop them in Las Vegas.
If memory serves me correctly, local governments passed regulations restricting, controlling and fee/taxing the ride hailing industry, only to be advised by their own counsel that it was illegal, since the state Legislature had pre-empted that authority. God forbid that that any business not be regulated and taxed!
As an anecdote, ask anyone who has lived in Summerlin since before Uber and Lyft started operating here what it was like to order a taxi. It normally would take an hour (or more) and sometimes just be a no-show. The cab companies only wanted to serve the airport, Strip and the Las Vegas Convention Center. For which I don’t blame them, but folks in the suburbs were basically bereft of service. Then came Uber and Lyft. Great, prompt service. I fail to understand why governmental bodies object to a service that benefits its citizens as opposed to their pet industry that has failed us.
