Why airline service is important

Public infrastructure is a critical component for an economy to work.  Roads and bridges are necessary for agricultural products to get to market. Rivers can be improved with locks and channels for barges. Railroads have been the lifeblood of Illinois since Lincoln’s time but airports, particularly airline travel, have been critical to attract new businesses and people to a city. Unfortunately, the level of airline service at Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport (ALCA) has never been lower.

As the airport servicing Sangamon County, ALCA primarily had flights to Chicago and St. Louis outside of IllinoisAir service in the 1970s and early 1980s. Springfield was well served by passenger rail companies through the 1950s so growing airline service wasn’t seen as a necessity. Now, in 2024, passenger rail does help but major employers and people outside of our area look to airline service as a major factor in deciding to start or expand operations here.

ALCA does have service but its at 2 PM and 8 PM to Chicago ORD, an airport 3 hours away. This is a good option to have but most business travelers prefer morning flights to make connections to other cities rather than afternoons.  Springfield lost it’s flights to Dallas-Fort Worth due to changes in American Airline’s decision to emphasize routes in the southwestern United States. The airline has found that unprofitable and is looking to new strategies. Our county must work to bring those flights back as other cities will be doing so as well.

The Sangamon County Board is the best governmental organization to coordinate the work necessary to do this. The board appoints half of the ALCA board, sits on the economic development council and coordinates with the City of Springfield on many issues facing our area. The ALCA is prevented from spending its funds to attract flights by FAA regulations. This must be done with other civic and private groups like the County Board. That’s why I am running.

I have been involved in a number of development projects in the private sector since 2010 as an engineer and project manager. These projects were successful because we worked with many stakeholders devised a plan to meet an achievable, defined goal. The goal here is to expand airline service to benefit our communities here in Sangamon County.

Posted on 24 Jun 2024, 17:01 - Category: Campaign Platform