Billions of dollars are being pumped into the city’s port and airports to prepare for the success that lies ahead
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the second-biggest state in the US, covering an area of more than 260,000
sq miles, Texas needs to be well connected. Fortunately, its network
of roads, railways, ports and airports is perhaps among the finest in
the world.
Business leaders are confident that now is the time to invest large
sums of money in the state’s transport network. Their optimism
towards a robust economic future for Texas points towards huge potential
increases in traffic, both on a business and a leisure basis.
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New facilities:
Houston’s attraction to companies as a headquarters location rests
on its highly-developed international infrastructure links
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The
Port of Houston,
which has been instrumental in the city’s development as a centre
of international trade, is looking to significantly enhance its facilities
in order to continue to serve the local business community.
The port is a 25-mile complex of diversified private and public facilities
located just a few hours sailing time from the Gulf of Mexico. One of
the world’s top 10 business ports, it leads the nation in foreign
maritime trade and is second in total tonnage. More than 7,000 vessels
call at the port every year.
The port authorities are looking to develop the massive Bayport Terminal
project, in south-east Harris County some 30 miles from downtown Houston,
which will bolster the facility’s container handling capacity.
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Thomas Kornegay, executive
director of the Port of Houston Authority, believes the project is vital
for the success of the port, a major employer in the area, provi-ding
nearly 205,000 jobs and generating some $7.7 billion for the economy.
Funding for the early phases of the Bayport project, using bond proceeds
and cash earnings, will provide a further 28,580 jobs, plus road improvements
and environmental benefits. Crucially, it will ensure Houston’s
position as a
major maritime gateway for years to come, he says.
Mr Kornegay believes the port offers a number of competitive advantages
for shipping firms, including reasonable tariff rates and high productivity.
It is also willing to help out its customers during troublesome times.
The Port of Houston this year froze tariffs charged on cargo shipments
for the first time in two decades in response to the September 11 attacks
and their effect on commerce. Fees are usually increased by two or three
per cent annually.
“Recognising
that we must all play a role in helping to stabilise this current situation,
the Port of Houston is holding its published tariffs at current levels,”
says Mr Kornegay.
As a result, these external factors are not expected to halt the progress
of large-scale improvements in the ports sector nor elsewhere in the
transport system.
A commitment to invest billions of dollars in the airports is testament
to the above-average growth that Texas has witnessed in recent years
and expects to see in the future.
The Houston Airport System (HAS) – which controls the three main
airports around the Houston area and served more than 44 million passengers
in 2000 – is a prime example.
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The
airport system includes three distinct facilities: William P Hobby Airport
(Hobby) and George Bush
Intercontinental Airport (Intercontinental), which both provide
commercial passenger services, plus Ellington Field, which is used for
general aviation, military and cargo flights. Ellington Field hosted
Russian president Vladimir Putin when he made his high profile visit
to Texas in November.
Investments in Intercontinental alone – to upgrade and extend runways,
terminals and other facilities – are in excess of $3 billion for
the next four years, making it one of the largest programmes over that
period in the US.
HAS director Richard Vacar
believes this illustrates the enormous growth expected in air traffic
in the coming years. “There are a lot of big programmes out there
in the US, but not many happening that fast,” he says.
Intercontinental
– already one of the country’s busiest airports – provides
both international and domestic services. Its dominant carrier, Continental
Airlines, utilises the airport as a major connection hub in its system.
Mr Vacar says Intercontinental alone has the potential to carry out
well over one million flights a year. He believes the airports of Houston
– led by Intercontinental – will play a vital role in the
future of national US air travel.
“We are in a very good competitive position. We are an underdeveloped
hub compared with a lot of the other hubs around the US, but we have
the ability to go to eight runways here.”
He believes Hobby – currently undergoing a separate $500 million
expansion – will be ready to handle the extra growth in traffic.
It primarily serves the local population, with Southwest Airlines as
its dominant carrier.
HAS’s strong financial performance in recent years, and its solid
operations since September 11, have encouraged industry watchers, with
flights operating close to full capacity.
Mr
Vacar believes the demand for interior airports, such as those in Houston,
are going to prove even more popular in the coming years.
“Interior hubs are going to grow faster, in terms of market share,
than the coastal hubs whose capacity is constrained. In the old days
you needed to go there because aircraft range was really limited. This
is not a problem anymore. We’re not capacity constrained and we’ve
got aircraft that can get there.”
Mr Vacar also says he wants to alter the image of the city’s main
airports, away from the oil-town look to something more modern and universally
appealing. He says the set of projects under way will achieve this within
the next couple of years.
“One of the criticisms of Houston has been that the drive into
town is not all that attractive,” admits Mr Vacar. “Well,
at least at the airport it’s going to be pretty good, and there
is an effort with the Greater Houston Partnership to improve the aesthetics
of all the roadways into the city and the roadways in and out of Hobby.
That will happen over the next 10 years, but the airports will be at
the leading edge.”
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