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Directory of Burlington Vermont
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Home :
Travel and Transportation :
public transportation
Public Transportation
There are 155 Travel and Transportation links for you to choose from!
Benway's Transportation
is Burlington's first and largest car service.
The most recognized name in transportation in the Champlain Valley.
... Benway's is open 24 Hours a Day, 7 Days a Week, 365 Days a Year and
Fully staffed with professional drivers and modern equipment.
Benways Transportation is your total transportation service provider.
Whether it's across town or across New England we're there for you.
... Benways provides complete local and out of town transportation service. Our slogan is -
"We Transport Anywhere"
and we mean it! New York, New England, Canada and
beyond, we will get you there when you need to be there.
We'll pickup and deliver your package for you, any time day or night.
Benways provides prompt, immediate service for your important delivery.
If it can't wait - We're there for you!
We offer group rates for pre-planned activities.
Great for conferences, rides, parties and other events.
popular
Click here to read more.
Chittenden County Transportation Authority
is the Burlington Area Bus service with an Airport Route, Essex Route, Lake Side Routes, North Avenue Route, Shelburn Route, Williston Route, and Winooski Route. (city public buses times schedule)
popular
Click here to read more.
AAA Taxi of Vermont
is based out of Burlington International Airport and the greater Burlington area of Vermont. AAA taxi specializes, but is not limited to, airport transportation arrangements. Reservations are gladly accepted.
(taxi cab rides)
Amtrak has stopped staffing stations in Essex Junction, Rutland,
St. Albans and White River Junction with ticket agents due to budget constraints. Six jobs were eliminated.
Anyone who wishes to buy an Amtrak ticket or wants information must call Amtrak, seek help aboard a train, or use travel agents.
Caretakers will briefly open stations around the immediate hours that trains arrive and depart. All this means that Finch is looking for alternatives, since his services in Essex Junction are no longer needed.
... Amtrak operates two trains in Vermont. The Ethan Allen Express serves the western part of the state, between Rutland and New York. The Vermonter offers daily service between St. Albans and Washington.
Anywhere-Everywhere Taxi association
-- Everywhere Taxi and Anywhere Taxi have combined resources. There are now more vehicles. Drivers are experienced in traveling Vermont roads and chauffeuring. Vehicles are maintained and cleaned on a regular basis. There is 24 hour reservations and customer service both via e-mail and toll-free calls. As always, there will be assistance with whatever rides you need.
(taxi cab rides)
Click here to read more.
At a time when many airports are losing passengers,
the Burlington International Airport landed its busiest year on record in 2002.
The traffic numbers are reassuring to airport officials hoping to embark on a million expansion in the spring. Still, changes in the volatile airline industry could affect the project's timing and design.
A record number of passengers, 550,420, boarded planes at the airport throughout the year, passing the 550,000 mark that officials had set as a target.
Record numbers in the last month of the year helped the airport set a record, Airport Director J.J. Hamilton said. In December 46,128 passengers boarded flights out of Burlington.
... The number of people using the airport is critical as the bonds issued to finance the project are to be repaid by a combination of parking garage revenues and a fee on each airline ticket out of the airport.
Upheaval in the airline industry has given airport officials reason to worry.
Burlington International Airport officials are trying to get
expansion plans back off the ground, but that depends on how voters sway on Election Day.
BTV is soaring ahead in growth, despite the fact that business at airports around the nation is still down by 10 percent.
The airport's expansion plans were delayed by a year because of September 11th affects on the aviation industry.
But the airport sprung back quickly, and now the issue is how to accommodate all the new travelers that are coming through the terminal.
That's where Burlington voters are needed. Mayor Peter Clavelle says voters need to know that the million is not coming out of their pockets.
... And not from property taxes, which means the people using this airport will be paying for its addition.
The money will come entirely from passenger facility charges, and parking garage fees, and since business is up, that shouldn't be a problem.
Burlington's new million multi-modal transit center
on the waterfront is supposed to begin construction within a few weeks. But in response to growing questions the city council wants more information before giving the final go-ahead.
The city council's transportation committee invited public comment at a meeting at the Public Works department Tuesday morning -- and got a nearly unanimous negative response.
"We're thinking about past solutions," Zander Ponzo told the panel. Several people questioned why the city would tear down the existing brick building (housing Mesa International, which the city has bought out of its lease, and Waterfront Video) and replace it with what critics say amounts to a bus station -- without any of the "modes" that were supposed to come with it. For instance, the commuter train that served the adjacent Union Station was cancelled earlier this year. Hardly anyone expects it will resume any time soon.
Click here to read more.
Burlington's...multi-modal public transportation center
the downtown waterfront has received its permits, which means construction can begin -- most likely next year. There have been questions and controversy surrounding the proposal. ... The center will become the main terminal for the CCTA bus system. The Cherry street terminal will be moved, although buses will still cover the downtown area. Dan Bradley of the Burlington Public Works Dept, who oversees the project, says, "One of the goals of the facility is also to strengthen the connection with the downtown." The transit center will connect with the Lake Champlain ferry as well as a growing volume of bicycle and pedestrian traffic. It will also serve the Champlain Flyer commuter train, although the future of passenger rail is up in the air. One problem is that the train may be gone by the time the multi-modal center is built by the end of 2003. The legislature has threatened to pull the train's state funding due to continuing low ridership.
Click here to read more.
Burlington's...multi-modal public transportation center
on the downtown waterfront has received its permits, which means construction can begin -- most likely next year. There have been questions and controversy surrounding the proposal.
... The center will become the main terminal for the CCTA bus system. The Cherry street terminal will be moved, although buses will still cover the downtown area.
Dan Bradley of the Burlington Public Works Dept, who oversees the project, says, "One of the goals of the facility is also to strengthen the connection with the downtown." The transit center will connect with the Lake Champlain ferry as well as a growing volume of bicycle and pedestrian traffic. It will also serve the Champlain Flyer commuter train, although the future of passenger rail is up in the air.
One problem is that the train may be gone by the time the multi-modal center is built by the end of 2003. The legislature has threatened to pull the train's state funding due to continuing low ridership.
Click here to read more.
Burlington-D.C. Flights To Resume This Weekend
BURLINGTON, Vt. -- Flights between Burlington and Washington, D.C., are scheduled to resume this weekend, transporting passengers to the nation's capitol for the first time since Sept. 11.
Two flights are scheduled each day, departing Burlington International Airport and arriving at Reagan National.
Increased security will prevent passengers from leaving their seats during the last 30 minutes of each flight.
"During the boarding process, passengers will have their own private police officer to watch over them," Burlington International director of aviation J.J. Hamilton said. "Also during the boarding process, airport operations personnel will be at the airplace in the event any person or vehicle tries to approach that airplane."
Hamilton said that the airport is again ready to consider expanding baggage claim and parking areas to accommodate the expanding -- end --
Burlington-Essex train up for discussion
A Burlington-to-Essex commuter train and associated improvements could cost million to set up and about .9 million annually to run, a consultant studying the plan said.
A countywide transportation planning board will vote Wednesday whether to add the train and associated improvements to its long-range plan. ... Train stations would probably be built near Winooski's Barlow Street, near Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center, behind the A&P Shopping Center in Essex Junction, close to the Five Corners in Essex Junction and at IBM.
The Burlington-to-Essex commuter train in the eyes of transportation planners would become the next phase of a passenger train network in Chittenden County and beyond.
The Champlain Flyer, which runs between Charlotte and Burlington, began operating in December 2000. If the train to Essex Junction is finished, a train commuter could ride from Charlotte to IBM.
Bus rides between Rutland Vermont and Burlington Vermont
are provided by Vermont Transit buses. You will probably need to change bus in White river Junction, Vermont. You will also stop momentarily in Montpelier, Vermont.
Click here to read more.
Buses won't be rolling into the Cherry Street station
much longer.
The City of Burlington has found a new location on Battery Street for its transportation needs.
The city council last night voted to spend 1.3 million dollars to buy the waterfront property and Mayor Peter Clavelle says the location is the perfect choice.
"At this location all modes, including rail, come together," he said. "This also will allow people to get to Burlington's waterfront without bringing their automobile."
But not everyone is happy about it.
Betty Campbell rides the buses three times a day, six days per week.
"They should keep it right here for people to take the buses, especially the elderly people that can't get around too good. It's a lot closer to town, too."
The mayor says this is a win-win for the Queen City.
"I think there's a net gain or else I wouldn't be supporting this project."
And he says it's much needed.
"This is a great city for a lot of reasons but transportation's not one of them."
Click here to read more.
Champlain Flyer doing okay
Getting around Vermont in 2001 featured stuck ferries and bike ferries, tightened airport security, bridges being opened and closed, derailed trains, commuter trains and road projects. ... The Champlain Flyer is a 13-mile railroad link between Burlington's waterfront and Charlotte. The Flyer celebrated its one-year anniversary Dec. 4. During the year, the Flyer cost more money than planned and had fewer riders than predicted five years ago. But the commuter rail also was credited with taking some traffic off busy U.S. 7 and restoring the railbed for freight.
Development on the Burlington waterfront
has been controversial as a matter of history, and that's the case with the city's planned million multi-modal transportation center slated to go up this fall. Although it gained all of its permits and was never appealed, the project keeps running into opposition. This weekend opponents launched a petition drive calling for a special election to let the voters decide.
Project opponent Lee Burch assessed the mood in her hill section neighborhood: "I honestly would say three-quarters are against it, and a quarter are for it," she told Channel 3, after collecting around two-dozen names. She and several other critics of the waterfront location plan to spend the coming days canvassing neighborhoods, looking for more signatures. She says not enough people have followed the project, even though it's been discussed several times at city council meetings.
Click here to read more.
Everywhere Taxi of Vermont
is a A transportation service based out of Vermont's largest city, Burlington, Vermont. Try us for airport service- to and from colleges, ski areas...anywhere in Vermont and even in surrounding areas. We'll take you anywhere you need to go. Set up a reservation ahead of time. Have your ride waiting for you at the designated time and date. Include us when you make your vacation plans to Vermont. If you are flying into Burlington International Airport, hire us to be waiting to greet you when you arrive. If you aren't familiar with the roads in Vermont, and do not like to deal with road maps or ask for directions then we will make getting to your destination much simpler for you!
(taxi cab rides)
Click here to read more.
FAQ: Commuting by train between Montpelier and Burlington Vermont?
There are no passenger trains that goes through Burlington, Vermont -- only freight trains. The best you can do is to take Amtrak's "Vermonter" to Essex Junction.
Then you can ride the local CCTA Essex Junction buses about 7.3 miles into Burlington.
But, since you'll end up riding the bus anyways, I recommend considering the CCTA - GMTA Link Express.
(rail Service)
Click here to read more.
FAQ: How do I get a train to Burlington, Vermont?
There are no passenger trains that goes through Burlington, Vermont -- only freight trains. The best you can do is to take Amtrak's "Vermonter" to Essex Junction. The Vermonter runs daily between Washington, DC and St. Albans, in Northern Vermont. Your journey north on the Vermonter runs through New York City to Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, the center of Vermont (including White River Junction, Randolph, Montpelier, and Waterbury.
Then you can ride the local CCTA Essex Junction buses about 7.3 miles into Burlington. (Laguardia Rail Service)
Click here to read more.
FAQ: Is there a train to burlington vermont?
There are no passenger trains that goes through Burlington, Vermont -- only freight trains. The best you can do is to take Amtrak's "Vermonter" to Essex Junction. The Vermonter runs daily between Washington, DC and St. Albans, in Northern Vermont. Your journey north on the Vermonter runs through New York City (NYC) to Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, the center of Vermont (including White River Junction, Randolph, Montpelier, and Waterbury.
Then you can ride the local CCTA Essex Junction buses about 7.3 miles into Burlington.
P.S. The train no longer goes to montreal, due to low ridership and low track quality. (Laguardia Rail Service)
Click here to read more.
Heritage Flight
of Burlington, Vermont, Stowe, Vermont and offers comprehensive aviation services.
We provide air charter, aircraft maintenance, fueling and
related ground support services, flight instruction, aircraft
sales and rentals. We are staffed by a team of experienced professionals dedicated to providing high quality Aviation
Services. Since 1984, Heritage Flight has set the standard
both in the air and on the ground.
Click here to read more.
High Winds Make Rough Ferry Ride
High winds were making for more than just a bad hair day Tuesday as gusts up to 40 mph hit area roads and Lake Champlain. The high winds made for a slow commute across the lake for many people who depend on the ferry. Lake Champlain Transportation Officials said high winds kept the boats going at a slow pace. Some passengers had to wait for up to an hour. "Everyone was just sitting in their car. I think it was just too cold to get out," passenger Gail Hanson said. The ferry had to shut down once last year because of high winds and ice. -- end --
High-Speed Rail Would Connect To Montreal
BURLINGTON, Vt. -- A proposed high-speed rail service linking Boston and Montreal would pass through Burlington, officials said. The route would start in Boston, cross through New Hampshire and into White River Junction, Vt. It would then wind through the rest of Vermont and cross the Canadian border into Montreal.
The entire route is 325 miles, the approximate equivalent of a five-and-a-half-hour drive by car.
Vermont transit buses currently provide the only public transportation link between Burlington and Montreal.
"The bus is not as comfortable," bus passenger Cindy Cunningham said. "With high speed, something from Boston to Montreal -- that will get you there without worrying about weather and traffic. That's a great idea, great idea."
Click here to read more.
Lake Champlain Ferries
offers three convenient and spectacular ferry crossings between Vermont and New York, along with a variety of excursion cruises. Read about Lake Champlain's exciting history. Lake Champlain Transportation operates these ferries going between the Burlington Waterfront and Fort Kent, New York.
Click here to read more.
Mayor Peter Clavelle's decision to abandon plans for a new
bus station on the downtown waterfront has gained him praise from critics of the project. But the cancellation still leaves more questions than answers.
The appearance of a petition drive over the weekend proved to be the last straw. Admitting that the opposition was growing, Clavelle pulled the plug on the city's planned million multi-modal transportation center to be built on Battery street. He did so reluctantly.
"We not only had a plan but we had a design, we had permits and had funding in place," he told reporters. "And at the eleventh hour it became clear that the public support for that plan was not as broad and enthusiastic as we would have hoped."
... The city already has spent over million on purchasing the building and on design fees for the now defunct multi-modal transportation center. But with that much money spent and the city still owning the building, the mayor is determined to resurrect some kind of public transportation project.
Click here to read more.
Morf has added "Vermont Charter and Limousine
Robar began purchasing limousines under the name Vermont Charter and Limousine (the company still advertises under that name as well as Apollo Limousine) in 1988. "We couldn't make any money in the taxi business," he says. "The city of Burlington sets the rates, so the taxis didn't do much more than pay rent on the building."
... The drinking age was 18 when Robar began acquiring limousines. "Limos were a fad back then," he says. "They were out every night." When the drinking age changed to 21, limousine demand decreased; thus, limousine companies lowered fares to compete with their cab company counterparts. Robar, however, decided to buy new limousines, enabling him to charge more money instead of less and do business with a different echelon of society. ... Morf Transportation's rates vary. Taxis average an hour; vans, which can hold up to 14 passengers, and sedans average per hour; and limousines usually run an hour. Robar says the company ensures that its limousines and sedans are never more than 2 years old.
Click here to read more.
Morf Transportation...does business as Benway's Taxi,
provides limousine and sedan service through Apollo Limousine, and van and minibus service through Morf Transit. "We're one-stop shopping," says the 46-year-old president, whose sister, brother, and sister- in-law are employed as dispatchers and whose mother does "cash-ups." (Since all drivers are commission-rated, an accounting practice, known as cash-ups, balances out how much each employee is paid per shift.)
... Just over a year into owning his first business, Robar was encouraged by a friend to buy Benway's, which was up for sale after more than 20 years in operation. The friend suggested that Benway's would be a logical buy for Robar because he was already fixing and painting cars. "He said, 'You can buy it for a song. You've already got your own mechanics and tow trucks. It'll be a good match for you,' " ... The challenges were steep, but Robar acknowledges that he did benefit from the Benway's name.
Click here to read more.
Most of US Airways' 40 Vermont employees will lose their jobs
or be transferred to other hubs this month as part of the airline's shift from Boeing 737s to regional jets here, the airline said Tuesday.
US Airways filed for bankruptcy protection in August, and has let 14,000 employees go since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks that led to big cuts in air travel, US Airways spokesman David Castelveter said in Virginia.
Of the 40 ticket counter representatives and outside agents at Burlington International Airport, one will take a pay cut to work at Mainline Express service, a US Airways division. About a dozen will be transferred to other US Airways locations, and the rest will lose their jobs, Castelveter said.
... The cuts are a part of the airline's shift from Boeing 737s to regional jets in Vermont, announced a month ago, Castelveter said. Regional jets are less expensive to operate, and will help the company cut cost by the more than .2 billion it needs to obtain federal loans.
Nearly a year after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, long-awaited
security changes took effect Tuesday at the Burlington airport.
All passengers were screened by employees of the federal government.
The switch was reportedly smooth with travelers hardly being impacted.
In the Burlington airport's south concourse, federal screeners took over at 5 a.m. By late afternoon the nation's No. 2 transportation official arrived to look things over.
As few as five private screeners worked one checkpoint before the federal government stepped in. On Tuesday, nearly 20 federal workers and trainers were at the checkpoint. By late September, the Transportation Security Administration could have 95 workers in Burlington.
Federal workers will receive better pay as well, officials said. Starting salaries are nearly ,000 a year, about ,000 more than local private contractors paid.
New bag-checking rules not expected to cause delays at Burlington airport
At Burlington International Airport, new baggage checking rules are not likely to result in delays at check-in counters, Airport Director J.J. Hamilton said.
Random searching of bags and passengers in the months since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks has meant slow-moving lines at airport check-in counters.
The new rules require each checked bag to be searched or matched to passengers who board the flight.
Bag matching is not new and should not add to delays at check-in counters, Hamilton said. The airlines have used bag-matching systems on international flights and are equipped to do so now.
Delays only happen when the passenger who checked a bag does not board the flight. In that case, the passenger's baggage must be removed from the cargo hold, possibly
delaying a flight.
Hamilton sees that as the exception.
New commuter train
Lawmakers refused Thursday to authorize the three-month trial run of a commuter train between St. Albans and Essex Junction.
The decision by the Joint Fiscal Committee does not kill the project altogether. The Dean administration is free to ask the full Legislature to authorize the train when lawmakers return to Montpelier in January. But the planned Jan. 15 launch of the train, which primarily would benefit workers at the IBM factory in Essex Junction, will not happen.
The money was to have been diverted from a track repair previously planned for the northeastern corner of the state that the agency decided did no Need to be done after all.
New Year's Eve (is) the busiest night of the year
for Burlington's cabbies. The city's taxis will transport about double the number of fares from a standard weekend night. That means more money and more headaches. Cab drivers say they just go with the flow, try to be nice to everybody, attempt to get a destination before the passengers pass out, and lock their doors when driving through downtown Burlington.
... The colder and wetter the weather, the more desperate revelers are for taxis as the night wears on, said Bushey, who has owned Yellow Cab for a year and a half and been in the business for more than two decades. Passengers will grab at an unlocked taxi's doors and pile in, even if the driver is on his way to a scheduled pick up.
Rain predicted for tonight promises to make this New Year's Eve more hectic than usual, said Bushey, who worked from 7 a.m. last Dec. 31 to 8 a.m. on New Year's Day. Dispatchers answer 11 phone lines in the small, smoky office.
Bushey will have every one of his 22 cabs on the street tonight.
One year after the terrorist attacks, travelers are taking new
security measures in stride.
Eric Bokelberg, an airline passenger at Burlington: "Everybody recognizes that it's important as far as making sure that the things that happened on Sept. 11th - don't happen again."
Since last year - the new Transportation Security Administration has assumed control at the nation's airports. But the new director of security at the Burlington Airport admits - many of these screeners are the same employees that worked for private companies before the government took over.
"Their function here is to ensure that no dangerous items enter an aircraft" Now though - there is more scrutiny. Bags are opened, passengers are frequently asked to remove their shoes - and there's an overall sense of seriousness surrounding security on airplanes.
Click here to read more.
Passengers' bags are being screened for explosives
at Vermont's largest airport.
The Transportaton Security Administration has started running the screeners at Burlington International Airport.
Federal law requires all airports across the country to begin screening all passenger luggage by the end of the month.
Right now, the bags at the Burlington airport are selected for screening based on several criteria, including how a person bought
a ticket.
There also are some random checks.
Because of the new screening, experts are recommending that passengers take greater care in packing, including not wrapping any
holiday packages.
Monday, 12/23/02
Click here to read more.
Quik Cab
is a small, but very capable transportation service. We have been in business approximately 5 years. We, along with our associates have over 10 years experience.
We are licensed by the city of Burlington, Vermont. We are also licensed by the Burlington International Airport.
Our minivans are equipped for small groups, cumbersome luggage and provide plenty of passenger room for those traveling with lots of luggage. If you are not familiar with Vermont highways and secondary roads, we will get you to your destination without the hassle of asking for directions or refolding road maps.
If you are staying in Vermont on vacation and need to catch a flight, call Quik Cab taxi service. We will be waiting for you at the time you request a ride to the airport.
Click here to read more.
Spirit of Ethan Allen III ran aground off Juniper Island
Friday, standing 224 passenger and crew for three-and-a-half hours on Lake Champlain.
No one aboard was hurt in the accident and the boat suffered little or no damage. However, the Coast Guard has started investigating why the vessel hit a shoal near a warning buoy just southeast of the island.
Most of the passengers, many of them first-year Middlebury College students on an orientation outing, treated the stranding as an adventure, but some passengers grumbled about a lack of information while they were stuck.
... The Spirit ran aground because the warning buoy marking shallow water near Juniper Island had moved out of place, said Gwendy Lauritzen, director of sales and marketing for Lake Champlain Shoreline Cruises, which operates the Spirit.
However, the Coast Guard said the buoy was exactly where it should have been. It had been checked before and after the grounding, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Jesse Deery. "The buoy was on station."
Taxi cab rates within Burlington will rise 9.2 percent
August 1st. The increases are tied by city ordinance to the annual rise or fall in the National Intra-City Transportation Rates compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The fare increases apply only to cab rides that begin and end in Burlington. Rides between the city and Burlington International Airport in South Burlington, for example, will not be affected.
The large change this year is tied to large fare increases in New York City, as well as to high fuel costs, said Daniel Ginsberg, an economist with the labor statistics office in Washington, D.C.
"When large cities raise their fares," Ginsberg said, "it has an effect nationally on the index."
He said the index is based on public transportation rates across the country and reflects fares for buses, commuter trains, van pools, as well as taxis.
One local cab-company owner welcomed the rate increase but said it was insufficient.
The Champlain Flyer
On 4 December 2000, Burlington, Vermont (population about 40,000) became the smallest U.S. city with commuter rail service. The Champlain Flyer linked Burlington with the village of Charlotte, about twelve miles away, with an intermediate stop at Shelburne. This service was funded by the state of Vermont, and was operated by the Vermont Railway System, using the former Rutland Railroad tracks. It was originally conceived as alternative transportation during construction work on US route 7, the main highway running south from Burlington.
As of summer 2001, when I visited Burlington, a single train (a locomotive and two coaches) shuttled back and forth once an hour, with four round trips in the morning and five in the afternoon on weekdays (no midday service). The train ran every two hours through the day on weekends. The fare was .00, paid on the honor system by putting cash in a box at the front of each coach.
Click here to read more.
The Federal Aviation Administration has signed a million contract
to hire more security for 13 airports in New England, including Burlington International Airport.
Armed and unarmed security forces from MVM Inc. in McLean, Va., will patrol radar stations and control towers 24 hours a day, seven days a week, said Marina Carter of
MVM's public-relations firm. Crew members will work in 12-hour shifts, said Carter, who did not know how many workers will be assigned to Burlington.
The number of people boarding planes at Burlington
International Airport continued to climb in October, with the airport on track to break last year's record high number of passengers.
In October, 52,134 passengers took flights out of the region's local airport, compared with 43,314 the year before, an increase of 20.4 percent.
Last October the travel industry was still reeling from the effects of terrorist attacks on airliners on Sept. 11. Travel out of Burlington suffered for eight months after the attacks as the economy continued to struggle.
The numbers at the Burlington airport began to turn around in June. For the year through October, the overall number of passengers is up 3.2 percent over last year.
The increase comes while corporate travel has yet to rebound and financially embattled airlines are cutting back schedules to trim expenses.
Airport Director J.J. Hamilton said the airport continues to draw passengers from the region who used to travel to Manchester, N.H., or Albany, N.Y., for lower airfare....
The tiny airport in Shelburne is a unique piece of aviation
history that has inspired countless people to take up flying, a roomful of supporters told the town Selectboard on Tuesday night.
The board, supporters urged, should write to state aviation officials to express how valuable a resource Shelburne Airport is to the town. After listening to nearly an hour of glowing remarks about the airport, the five-member board unanimously approved writing the letter.
Airport owner Ray Magee needed official Shelburne approval of his airfield because he's asking the state to change his permit to allow flying lessons and mechanical repairs at the site. Magee has offered both since he bought the airstrip in 1977, but he learned this summer that Shelburne Airport's permit prohibits the activities.
The state Transportation Board needs a letter of support from town officials to begin the process of changing the airport's permit.
The winners in Tuesday's elections were not just the victorious
candidates. In Burlington, voters approved a multi-million dollar expansion at Vermont's largest airport.
Not even a national downturn in air travel following the September 11th terror attacks has stopped the increase of air travel in and out of Burlington. The airport expansion approved by Burlington voters on Tuesday will handle the growing traffic.
... Burlington voters showed overwhelming support. The .8 million revenue bond passed by almost seventy percent of the vote. The parking garage and terminal expansions are intended not only to accommodate, but accelerate Vermont's economic growth. Already it's beginning to happen. This year for the first time Burlington International has exceeded one million passenger boardings and arrivals.
Currently, rental cars are the leading revenue source for the 100-car garage. The expansion will add 950 more parking spaces for travelers -- and more revenue. The project itself will add jobs in the short-term.
Click here to read more.
Tourism does okay dispite September 11th
The impact of terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 in New York City and near Washington, D.C., reverberated throughout the Vermont economy. With the fall foliage season about to peak, inn-keepers, restaurateurs and attractions' owners feared the worst. Fall foliage is big business in Vermont. The state estimates that leaf-peeping accounts for more than a quarter of annual visits to the state. The natural spectacle draws 4 million tourists and brings .1 billion into the state. The travel industry hoped that Vermont's location within driving distance of major metropolitan areas would help as those afraid to fly decided to travel by car instead. Perhaps Vermont's image as a peaceful, rural sanctuary would save the day.
The theories proved true and Mother Nature helped out with mild weather and brilliant colors. After the initial drop in business, most businesses saw traffic return to near normal.
Travel jitters caused by the war with Iraq and SARS
kept travelers away from the Burlington International Airport in April.
The number of passengers boarding flights here fell 10 percent, the largest drop in a single month since the months immediately following terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. In April, 42,282 passengers flew out of Burlington versus 46,957 for the same month the year before.
April is typically a busy month at the airport because school spring vacations a popular time for travel. Airport Director J.J. Hamilton attributed the drop to several factors.
Fear of SARS and the war might have caused travelers to stay home, Hamilton said. Cuts in airline service to Burlington might also have had an affect, he said.
Several airlines cut flights and reduced the size of planes serving Burlington, including American Airlines and U.S. Airways. As a result fewer seats were available for travel.
One soft month does not make a trend, Hamilton said. He expects the airlines to add flights over the summer,
Two towns cut funding for buses
Essex and Winooski will likely contribute less money to the Chittenden County Transportation Authority than the bus service requested, raising the prospect of reduced service in those communities.
In Essex's proposed budget, which voters will act upon next week, CCTA would receive about ,000 less than the ,727 the authority is requesting from the town, said Maryann Danahy, a spokeswoman for CCTA.
Winooski's proposed budget includes ,619 for CCTA, the same as last year but about ,000 less than the transit authority requested, said City Manager Gerry Myers.
CCTA depends on property taxes raised in the communities it serves for 30 percent of its overall budget, which amounts to .9 million for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The communities that pay into CCTA are Burlington, South Burlington, Shelburne, Winooski and Essex. They are under a binding agreement to pay an assessment to the transit authority each year. They can pay less than CCTA asks, but such a move likely results in reduced bus service.
Vermont Transit Lines route 62
has provided a dependable bus service throughout the Northeast.
We provide an affordable network of transportation services which link the major cities of New England with Boston, Montreal and New York City.
Route 62 goes from Montreal to Boston's Logan Airport, with stops in Vermont at Burlington, Montpelier, White River Junction (Jct), In New Hampshire these buses stop at Concord, Manchester, and Nashua. They also stop at Lowell and Boston Massachusetts.
With the CCTA now running 6 times daily, Vermont Transit has abandoned its Waterbury stop.
Click here to read more.
Vermont Transit Lines route 67
provides an affordable network of buses which link the major cities of New England with Boston, Montreal and New York City.
Route 67 goes from Montreal to Hartford, Connecticut, with stops in Vermont at Burlington, Montpelier, White River Junction (Jct), Bellows Falls, and Brattleboro. They also stop at Northampton and Springfield, Massachusetts.
From Hartford, CT, you can continue by GreyHound.com to New York city (NYC), stopping in New Haven CT, and New rochelle NY.
With the CCTA now running 6 times daily, Vermont Transit has abandoned its Waterbury stop.
Click here to read more.
While most people might be thinking about how many shopping days
until Christmas, security officials at the nation's airports are also in a holiday rush, counting down the days before December 31st. "At the present we're reconstructing the ticket counter space to accommodate the explosive trace detection machines," said Nigel Spackman of the Transportation Security Administration, the new federal agency in charge of airport security.
Those machines must be in place, and checking all checked baggage by year's end. Spackman told Channel 3 Burlington will meet the deadline. "It is quite a major project because there's an awful lot of cabling involved and power sources that need to be reconfigured," he said.
Twelve machines in all will be placed behind the ticket counters, but the move comes at the crucial holiday travel period and the challenge is keeping traffic moving. Right now, the Continental ticket counter is the only one with a machine.
Click here to read more.
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