Table Of Contents - Chicago Transit Authority

CTA Express Airport Train Service Business Plan
partnership for all involved parties, CTA might be required to provide financial incentives for partners
distributing premium airport train tickets. Based on benchmarking of partnerships formed by other
air rail links, incentives might include ticket discounts from five to 15 percent.
• Commercial revenue sources - It is expected that non-operating activities will account for a small
portion of total premium airport train revenues. Based on case studies of airport rail express links,
non-fare revenue of the service can potentially account for up to five percent of the total annual
ticket revenue. The largest portion of the non-fare revenue is typically derived from the advertising
contacts, including downtown station billboards, train wrapping, on-board television screens,
promotional information on back of the tickets sold at the station and other materials.
• Pre-launch advertising strategy and budget - As part of the pre-launch advertising strategy it is
important to take full advantage of opportunities for free advertising through media: television, radio,
and local newspaper updates. Other important strategies include (1) utilizing a wide variety of
channels for the initial advertising effort; (2) developing a consistent message for the premium
airport train; (3) extending the geographic reach of pre-launch advertising beyond the Chicago area;
(4) developing partnership promotions; and (5) providing introductory discounts for selected
corporations and government organizations.
• Areas for further testing and research - CTA may consider the following areas for further
analysis: (1) cost-benefit analysis of full-service baggage check-in offered at the premium airport
train station in downtown Chicago; (2) cost-benefit analysis and detailed customer demand forecast
of the downtown shuttle to the premium airport train downtown station; and (3) in-depth price level
testing for various stages of development. The price level testing should use average ticket price per
passenger after factoring in offered discounts and promotions.
A more detailed discussion of the Marketing Plan is provided in Section 7 of Appendix E of this report.
4.2 COMPETITIVE POSITION
4.2.1 Service Differentiators
The airport service differentiates itself from other modes of airport travel in a number of ways:
• Reliable – Perhaps most importantly, both the Direct and Express Services would provide time
reliability that is not available with automobile journeys. This becomes significant when passengers
are trying to arrive in time for flight departures, business meetings, conferences, etc.
• Direct – Allows airport passengers to avoid competition with non-airport destined passengers for
seats and space.
• Comfortable – Railcars will be outfitted with dedicated space for baggage, an individual seat for
each passenger, and other amenities such as power outlets for laptop computers.
• Less Expensive – The Direct Service will be less expensive than nearly all other travel options. For
an individual, the Express Service will be priced far less than taxis and comparably to express buses.
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