Flying Just for Rich People?
Aug 4th, 2008 at 7:04 am by Susie
To far too many of us, this will make seeing our family members much more difficult:
Deregulation of the airline industry 30 years ago made air travel affordable to most Americans. Rising airfares threaten to again make flying a service for the affluent.
Airfares have risen this summer more than any year in the past quarter century, new studies by airfare experts show. The studies, done by Travelocity, FareCompare.com and Harrell Associates at USA TODAY's request, show that domestic fares this summer are up 12% to 15%, and on some routes, more than 200%.
"Consumers are already shell-shocked by higher prices, but their wallets are going to be hit harder than ever before on their next vacation or business trip," says Rick Seaney, CEO of FareCompare.com, which tracks airfares for consumers.
I guess I have two minds about this - the relative discomfort of the price of airline tickets impacts us considerably. Almost all of our family is on the West Coast, and this will reduce flights to visit.
On the other hand, the change that may come from this could be a big improvement for all long-distance transportation in this country. If flying becomes too expensive, then other options - trains and buses - become more attractive, and there’s greater incentive with more marketplace for those options to improve their infrastructure and facilities. If long-distance transportation takes longer, then perhaps business policy will change in regards to vacation time to reflect that because the marketplace demands it. And if the cost of flying is increasing so quickly, then businesses can quit sending people all over the country for work that can frankly be done without a trip.
Yes, there are some segments that will get hit very, very hard by high airline prices. But other segments are going to get a boost in an opportunity to provide a new option for a demand.
And yet my girlfriend and I are flying from Detroit to Myrtle beach for $70 round trip tomorrow and coming back next tuesday….$17.00 a leg, plus taxes. So deals are certainly out there!
What PSoTD said.
There is an awful lot of unnecessary air travel, both business and personal, with huge carbon footprints that result. “Successful” people, or those hoping to be, spend altogether too much of their time in airports, getting to them or getting back from them, or sitting in airplane, moving or otherwise. It’s part of a generally wasteful culture and economy. The necessary economic adjustments will be painful in many cases, but in the long run will make for a better society.
Good. Trains work pretty well for the rest of the world and you can do work on the way there, making your bosso less frantic. With the increased travel time, businesses will be pressured into longer vacations. The rest will do us all some good.
longer vacations? hahahahahahahahahahahaha.
Everything is becoming too expensive. Air travel, housing, medical insurance, food, etc. The best thing to do is stay home, stay healthy, eat simple, inexpensive food and lead a simple life. Who sets the prices for all these things? Humans, us, we do and it goes to show you, with the corruption of most world governments and politicians, all the homelessness in the world, the poverty in the world, hunger and illness in the world, priests with little boys, politicians who are crooked. Us humans are really not that great at all. It seems so many of us lie, cheat, steal are selfish, lazy and do not know how to really run the world. Take this planet, chuck it into the sun and all these problems cease to exist and then the universe will be a nice, quiet place without all of us screwing it up.