LEONARD GRAY

LAPLACE – Glen Smith, chairman of the Louisiana Airport Authority, made no bones about it – this airport project is the only one worth listening to. Smith, who led the LAA meeting Thursday, declared that a proposal recently put forth by St. Charles Parish Councilman G. “Ram” Ramchandran has no merit or value. “This project will not be forced down the throat of anybody,” Smith added. “Before we even start narrowing down to a site, the public will be involved.” What’s more, Smith continued, the LAA has not begun to look at potential sites for a cargo-based intermodal transportation facility, and it has 12 parishes in which to look. No site-specific study is under way, but the project is years in advance of any other proposal. St. James Parish President Dale Hymel Jr., vice-chairman of the LAA, added, “St. James Parish has not been pre-selected.” He continued that site selection is 18-20 months from even starting. What is planned is a facility linking air, rail, road and water-borne commerce in a manner unparalleled anywhere else in America. While some facilities link air, rail and road, only the LAA concept makes use of the Mississippi River, bisecting America’s largest-tonnage port. South Louisiana, added Jimmy Reno of East Baton Rouge Parish, has “the best location in the U.S., with air, road, rail and water.” Winfield Beyea of URS Corp. presented the findings to date in the risk analysis study, including: The cargo market is attractive, as during the last 10 years, cargo revenues grew more than 55 percent faster than passenger revenue. Air cargo generates a significant economic impact, for example at Atlanta Hartsfield, the economic impact from the cargo business alone is more than New Orleans International Airport’s total economic impact. The growth in cargo has been in so-called “all-cargo” carriers such as FedEx, United Parcel Service and Emery. All cargo rates and prices are falling, due to strong competition. Competition is forcing carriers to greater efficiency. There is an increasing trend toward integrating air transport with surface distribution, as with trucking. Air cargo at Louisiana airports has grown at an annual rate of 5.6 percent since 1990, while passenger traffic has grown only 3.6 percent annually. All of the air cargo growth has been in air cargo carriers, rather than “belly cargo” accompanying passenger carriers. Since 1990 the integrated carriers share of the market has grown from 50 to 77 percent in Louisiana. Any facility created by the LAA must have good access to air, highway and rail and must have available land for modular expansion. Beyea stressed that the concept is centered as a cargo-specific facility and not as a passenger terminal. “I guarantee you, we are not looking at sites,” he said. The LAA was established by the 1992 Louisiana Legislature. In September 1993, URS Greiner was selected to serve as a consultant, and the company presented a preview of its risk analysis study, begun last November and due in June, at Thursday’s meeting. A feasibility study was completed in March 1994, and a risk analysis scoping study was approved by the Federal Aviation Administration in July 2000. This, coupled with a $450,000 FAA grant in August 2000, enabled the project to proceed. “Time is on our side right now,” Beyea concluded. “This project is moving extremely rapidly,” added Smith.