VI. SFO - Regional Solutions
Most of us have reached the conclusion that smart growth means looking for ways to balance housing and employment throughout the region. Our air transport capacity also needs to be balanced with housing and employment. Today, SFO carries 66% of all air passengers to and from the Bay Area.
Approximate Population of the Bay Area 6,880,000
Approximate Population of S.F. & San Mateo Co. 1,530,000
Regional Population in S.F. & San Mateo Co. 22%
SFO’s share of Bay Area Air Passengers 66%
The projections in the Regional Airport System Plan (RASP) call for SFO to carry more passengers than Oakland and San Jose combined for the foreseeable future with a 55% share retained by the year 2020. This contrasts with the fact that only 22% of the Bay Area population lives in on the Peninsula (San Francisco and San Mateo Counties). If SFO continues to dominate, it will do so by drawing passengers from the North Bay, East Bay and South Bay. This will result in significant increase in traffic on the Bay Area bridges and up the Highway 101 and 280 corridors.
The alternative to having SFO continue to carry the majority of all Bay Area passengers would be to balance the load regionally. Oakland and San Jose have more room for growth and experience far less foggy weather. This is also the time to seriously consider use of an additional airport. The Regional Airport System Plan recommendation is to, "protect future options by indicating a regional interest in civil aviation use of Travis Air Force Base and Moffett Federal Airfield if these facilities become available in the future." The conversion of a federal airfield will only happen if there is a proactive regional effort. Land development around potential sites like Travis will not stop because the Regional Airport Planning Commission has made an indication of interest.
The majority of flights delayed and cancelled at SFO are flights to and from airports on the West Coast. Many of the passengers on these routes are not connecting to other flights and could choose to fly to or from San Jose, Oakland, or a new regional airport. State Law will require SFO to examine an alternative that would link Oakland Airport and SFO to allow for easy connections from airport to airport. If SFO and Oakland can be linked by a transbay tube or a high speed ferry, then travelers could arrive at Oakland to make connections to international departures from SFO.
The RASP also found that the introduction of a high-speed rail within California could reduce SFO flights by 4-7%. Standing alone this reduction seems limited, but as part of an integrated solution this is significant.