CTroyMathis
21 December 2002, 02:42 PM
Will new airport tram be son of Jetrail?
11/17/2002
By TONY HARTZEL / The Dallas Morning News
Long before the current debate over a Love Field light-rail tunnel began, there was Jetrail.
In the 1970s, Braniff International Airlines opened a $2 million, 3/4-mile gondola system that ferried passengers from outlying parking lots to the main terminal.
Jetrail did not connect to other parts of town, as a Love Field tunnel would. But it became the grandfather of all airport people-mover systems.
"At the time, this had not been tried before," said John Myers, a local rail historian and author. "This was a very new idea."
That idea has since been adopted nationwide, including at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, which built a different type of people-mover system for its 1974 opening. D/FW is replacing that system with an $846 million system set to open in 2005.
About 30 years ago, when Love Field passengers would enter the airport's main entrance, the Jetrail terminal stood to the right.
A total of 10 cars clambered along the monorail, 17 feet above ground. It took four minutes to go from the parking lot to the terminal. Top speed was 15 mph.
The main selling point for Jetrail was that it allowed Love Field passengers to avoid traffic congestion at the terminal building entrance. Baggage also could be checked before climbing aboard.
"The Jetrail makes it possible to avoid all this and to approach the terminal like a gentleman – calmly, coolly, unruffled and relaxed," a newspaper article written about the Jetrail opening states. "This, alone, is worth $2 million."
Riding the Jetrail was an adventure for Mr. Myers, who as an LTV employee helped build the original people-mover at D/FW.
The history of the Jetrail in some ways mirrors the history of Braniff.
When Jetrail opened, according to newspaper accounts, airline officials acknowledged questions about spending $2 million for a people-mover when D/FW Airport already was on the drawing board.
Jetrail faded out shortly after D/FW opened in 1974. Braniff moved to D/FW and left the Jetrail behind. It was dismantled in 1978.
The airline's demise soon followed, with its first bankruptcy in the early 1980s. Several other attempts to get the airline off the ground also failed.
The next rail connection to Love Field will be more sophisticated than a short gondola system, but the debate continues on exactly what it will look like. Dallas leaders so far have stated a preference for a $160 million tunnel to carry trains under the airport to a terminal-area station. The City Council could vote on its preference next week.
DART officials have said they don't have the money for the tunnel, and they have proposed a surface rail spur from a planned rail station on Inwood Road. The transit agency must make a decision by year's end.
11/17/2002
By TONY HARTZEL / The Dallas Morning News
Long before the current debate over a Love Field light-rail tunnel began, there was Jetrail.
In the 1970s, Braniff International Airlines opened a $2 million, 3/4-mile gondola system that ferried passengers from outlying parking lots to the main terminal.
Jetrail did not connect to other parts of town, as a Love Field tunnel would. But it became the grandfather of all airport people-mover systems.
"At the time, this had not been tried before," said John Myers, a local rail historian and author. "This was a very new idea."
That idea has since been adopted nationwide, including at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, which built a different type of people-mover system for its 1974 opening. D/FW is replacing that system with an $846 million system set to open in 2005.
About 30 years ago, when Love Field passengers would enter the airport's main entrance, the Jetrail terminal stood to the right.
A total of 10 cars clambered along the monorail, 17 feet above ground. It took four minutes to go from the parking lot to the terminal. Top speed was 15 mph.
The main selling point for Jetrail was that it allowed Love Field passengers to avoid traffic congestion at the terminal building entrance. Baggage also could be checked before climbing aboard.
"The Jetrail makes it possible to avoid all this and to approach the terminal like a gentleman – calmly, coolly, unruffled and relaxed," a newspaper article written about the Jetrail opening states. "This, alone, is worth $2 million."
Riding the Jetrail was an adventure for Mr. Myers, who as an LTV employee helped build the original people-mover at D/FW.
The history of the Jetrail in some ways mirrors the history of Braniff.
When Jetrail opened, according to newspaper accounts, airline officials acknowledged questions about spending $2 million for a people-mover when D/FW Airport already was on the drawing board.
Jetrail faded out shortly after D/FW opened in 1974. Braniff moved to D/FW and left the Jetrail behind. It was dismantled in 1978.
The airline's demise soon followed, with its first bankruptcy in the early 1980s. Several other attempts to get the airline off the ground also failed.
The next rail connection to Love Field will be more sophisticated than a short gondola system, but the debate continues on exactly what it will look like. Dallas leaders so far have stated a preference for a $160 million tunnel to carry trains under the airport to a terminal-area station. The City Council could vote on its preference next week.
DART officials have said they don't have the money for the tunnel, and they have proposed a surface rail spur from a planned rail station on Inwood Road. The transit agency must make a decision by year's end.