Thesis: Linear Linkage

According to the Terminal Area Forecast [TAF] published by the Federal Aviation Administration [FAA], the 29 largest hub airports in the United States enplaned 511.1 million passengers in 2008 and these airports are projected to enplane 871.7 million passengers in 2030. This is a 70.6% increase in a 22 year period or 2.5% growth per year. Although the San Diego International Airport is the smallest major airport in the United States, it is currently ranked as the 26th largest airport based on total enplanement. In 2008, there were 9,231,629 enplaned passengers and this number is expected to grow to 15,689,000 people by 2030.

Site

The San Diego International Airport, also known as Lindbergh Field, is the busiest single-runway commercial service airport in the United States. It is the smallest major airport with only 661 acres and is located about two miles from downtown San Diego. The existing site is constrained on all sides, leaving minimal room for growth. To the north is the Marine Corps Recruit Depot [MCRD]; to the south is Harbor Drive and San Diego Bay; to the east is Interstate 5 and Pacific Highway; and to the west is the Navy Lagoon. The land surrounding the airport is densely developed and has a high monetary value due to its proximity to downtown.

From 2003 to 2006, the San Diego Airport Authority conducted a comprehensive study of possibly relocating the airport to a site better suited for expansion to meet the future needs of the County of San Diego. Potential sites were evaluated and the Marine Corps Air Station [MCAS] in Miramar was selected as the preferred site for relocation despite military objections.

In November 2006, it was listed as a ballot measure (San Diego County Measure A), worded as follows:

“To provide for San Diego’s long-term transportation needs, shall the Airport Authority and government officials work to obtain approximately 3,000 of 23,000 acres at MCAS Miramar by 2020 for a commercial airport, provided necessary traffic and freeway improvements are made, military readiness is maintained without expense to the military for modifying or relocating operations, no local taxes are used on the airport, overall noise impacts are reduced, and necessary Lindbergh Field improvements are completed?”

The measure did not pass with 61.83% voting No and 38.17% voting Yes.

According to the 2008 update of the master plan, the existing airfield has sufficient runway capacity to meet forecasted demands through 2015. It was determined that 10 additional gates would be needed by 2015 and 20 new gates would be needed by 2030.

Objectives

Like almost 2/3 of San Diegans, I prefer the San Diego International Airport to remain where it is instead of relocating it. However, expanding to met the needs of future users while staying in the same location has inherent problems, as discussed previously. I plan to address the problems with the current airport in order to:

• Meet projected needs for 2030 with further plans for growth
• Address congestion issues on North Harbor Drive
• Consider accessibility via public transportation
• Develop terminal building with focus on circulation and efficiency

Master Plan

The main issue that needs to be addressed before going further with this project is the problem of available land. I propose the San Diego Airport Authority acquire the land owned by MCRD. MCRD was one of the bases considered for closure by the Base Closure and Realignment Commission [BRAC] in 2005; although it escaped that fate, the fact that it was considered gives a greater likelihood for closure in the future since the marines that MCRD could always relocate to Camp Pendleton (adjacent to MCAS). By acquiring the MCRD site, there would be an additional 380 acres for the airport to use for expansion.

There are three major phases of development for the project I’m proposing. The first two phases will deal with the issues of expansion to meet the future needs of the airport, while the third phase will address the issue of public transportation to the airport.

Phase I
In the first phase of development, the new terminal building will be constructed to the north of the existing runway and improvements will be made on Barnett Avenue. Relocating the terminal to the north will relieve congestion on North Harbor Drive and will also increase the airport’s accessibility to and from the rest of the city. Two westbound lanes will be added on Barnett Avenue to accommodate the increased traffic from the terminal relocation.

Phase II
In the second phase, the existing terminal buildings will be demolished and a new runway will be constructed in its place, parallel to the existing runway. Improvements will be made to the existing taxiways on the airside and additional parking will also be constructed to support the terminal building on the landside.

Phase III
In the third phase of development, an extension for the Blue Line will be constructed to link the trolley (light rail) system to the new terminal building. This will reduce the vehicular traffic for residents that have access to the trolley and will also help visitors by linking them to the places they are most likely to visit; the Blue Line connects to downtown San Diego as well as to the Hotel Circle area in Mission Valley (via Green Line).

Terminal

The terminal building is situated parallel to the runways and should actually be considered six separate units (terminals) that can operate independently of each other. Because San Diego is an origin or destination airport, there isn’t a need for all of the gates to be located in close proximity to each other since passengers will not be transferring to another flight. Instead, the way the building is organized minimizes the distance passengers have to travel in order to reach their gate.

Sources

Blow, C. (1991). Airport Terminals. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann Ltd.

“Airport Master Plan”. Retrieved September 28, 2010 from San Diego International Airport: http://san.org/sdcraa/airport_initiatives/master_plan/default.aspx

International Air Transport Association (2004). Airport development reference manual, 9th edition. Montreal: International Air Transport Association.

“Terminal Area Forecast”. Retrieved November 28, 2010 from Federal Aviation Administration: http://aspm.faa.gov/main/taf.asp