Table Of Contents - Chicago Transit Authority

2.4.2 CTA
CTA Express Airport Train Service Business Plan
The airport service is a premium service targeted at a specific market of customers. It is an extension of
CTA’s core mission to support mobility. The project helps CTA provide additional customer choices and
new services without necessarily increasing operating subsidies. By attracting new customers to transit
services CTA could also benefit from additional local service trips and revenues from its airport train
customers. The service leverages existing CTA resources and assets and can potentially create new
revenue streams or offset costs carried by local services. The airport service can enhance CTA’s role in
the community and its image of innovation and leadership, adding to its brand equity.
2.4.3 Other Stakeholders
A range of other stakeholders stand to benefit from the project. Table 3 identifies key stakeholders and
potential benefits.
Table 3: Stakeholder Benefits
Stakeholder Potential Benefits
Downtown Property Owners Opportunities to market direct connection to airports.
Hotel and Tourism Industry More options for travelers.
Downtown Businesses Direct, reliable, fast connections to both airports.
Residents Time and cost savings for air travel.
Airport Employees Additional commuting option.
Airports
Airlines
Highway Travelers
2.5 BUSINESS MODEL
Additional groundside transportation capacity.
Additional access to the Airport.
Joint marketing opportunities.
More frequent, reliable flight crew transport.
Reduced travel congestion due to airport traveler use of
the train.
The overall airport service business model should be pursued by a concession agreement with the private
sector that allows CTA to deliver a differentiated service without overextending its resources. Demand
for convenient and reliable transportation between Chicago’s downtown and its two airports, coupled with
market-based pricing, allows CTA to capture a portion of the value created from enhanced services.
Properly executing this business model requires the following key elements:
• A quick start-up to take advantage of investment in the downtown station and to grow market
awareness.
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