AirTrain is a fully automated people mover at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) that opened on February 24, 2003. It operates 24 hours a day on two separate lines, covering a total of three miles (4.8 km). The service charges no fares; it is funded by a fee charged to rental car customers.[2] The system is located outside of the sterile area of each terminal, meaning passengers must exit and re-enter through a security checkpoint when using AirTrain to travel between terminals.
AirTrain operates on two lines—Red Line and Blue Line—both of which run every four minutes. The Red Line travels in a clockwise loop around the central terminal area, which takes about nine minutes to complete. The Blue Line travels in a counterclockwise loop, serving the same stations in reverse order, and also proceeding to West Field Road, the Rental Car Center, and long-term parking, which takes 25 minutes for a round trip.[3]
The AirTrain stations at the International Terminal are located one level above ticketing, at both ends of the main hall. Stations at Terminals 1, 2, and 3 are located on level 5 of the domestic parking garage and can be accessed from mezzanine-level skybridges located near security checkpoints B, D, and F. The Garage A and G stations are accessible from level 7 of each garage.[4] The long-term parking station is connected by a skybridge to level 5 of the long-term parking garage.[5]
The Airport Development Plan from 2016 forecasted that ridership on the two lines would be over capacity in the future (42% and 87% over capacity on the Red and Blue Lines respectively)[7] and recommended upgrades that would increase capacity. Specific upgrades included acquiring 30 additional AirTrain cars, upgrading existing stations to accommodate 4-car trains, and upgrading the maintenance facility to accommodate additional vehicles.[8]
Historyedit
A $15 million infill station was constructed to serve the Grand Hyatt at SFO, a new airport hotel.[9] The hotel opened on October 7, 2019.[10]
AirTrain did not originally provide access to SFO's long-term parking garage and lots; instead, passengers had to take a free airport shuttle bus between the airport terminals and the long-term parking areas. The original end of the track past the Rental Car Center station was only about 600 yards (550 m) away from the airport's long-term parking garage; an extension to the garage began service in May 2021, replacing the shuttle buses.[3] The extension is estimated to eliminate 600,000 miles (970,000 km) previously driven by the shuttle buses each year.[3]
The Harvey Milk Terminal 1 station was closed from July 2021 to April 26, 2023, during reconstruction of the terminal.[11]
^"AirTrain Fact Sheet" (PDF). San Francisco Airports Commission. July 2003. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
^Douglas Greenberg (April 19, 2012). "SFO rental car co's may be mischarging $20 fee". The San Francisco Chronicle.
^ abc"SFO Completes AirTrain Extension to Long-Term Parking | San Francisco International Airport". FlySFO | San Francisco International Airport. May 5, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
^"Getting Around SFO | San Francisco International Airport". FlySFO | San Francisco International Airport. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
^"Long-Term Parking | San Francisco International Airport". FlySFO | San Francisco International Airport. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
^"Bombardier Marks 15th Anniversary of Its World-First Radio-Based, Driverless Rail Control System" (Press release). Bombardier Transportation. MarketWired. March 29, 2018. Archived from the original on January 22, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
^Alternatives Development and Evaluation (PDF). Draft Final Airport Development Plan (Report). San Francisco International Airport. September 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2018.[permanent dead link]
^Recommended Airport Development Plan (PDF). Draft Final Airport Development Plan (Report). San Francisco International Airport. September 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2018.[permanent dead link]
^Sabatini, Joshua (December 2, 2015). "San Francisco selects Hyatt to manage airport hotel". San Francisco Examiner. Archived from the original on December 29, 2018. Retrieved December 28, 2018.
^Yakel, Doug (October 7, 2019). "Hyatt and San Francisco International Airport Proudly Announce Opening of Grand Hyatt at SFO" (Press release). San Francisco International Airport.
^Salazar, James (April 24, 2023). "SFO Harvey Milk Terminal 1 travel option returns this week". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
External linksedit
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