Airports with no public transport.

[stadler]

Olsztyn in Poland is a great example of where a lot of money has been spent for little outcome.
Fairly small airport in the absolute middle of nowhere (almost as close to Warsaw as its namesake city), but has flights to the UK, Germany as well as domestic and charter sun destination flights.
They spent £25 million pound refurbishing a train line and building a branch extension to the airport for the airport's big expansion in 2016.
For five trains per week. Five.
Not sure how that go approval under any sensible cost-benefit calculation.
(Edit: I just checked and there's actually an almost hourly bus service 6am-6pm Monday to Friday to a nearby local village. So not a good example for this thread!).

I believe that it is currently six trains a week in each direction but i agree it is very poor. It seems a waste of money for such a limited service.

Olsztyn is an interesting one as it basically has two railway stations on two separate lines. It had Szymany Lotinsko station right outside the airport terminal building which gets one train a day in each direction on only six days a week. Then it also has Szymany station a fifteen minute walk from the airport which gets a slightly better two trains per day in each direction on seven days a week. Both stations have Olsztyn services.

Currently the station outside the airport terminal (Szymany Lotinsko) gets one train a day in each direction on six days a week:

05:35 Olsztyn to Szymany Lotinsko 06:32 - TH & SU
08:42 Olsztyn to Szymany Lotinsko 09:44 - SA
13:49 Olsztyn to Szymany Lotinsko 14:47 - WE
16:47 Olsztyn to Szymany Lotinsko 17:46 - MO & FR

08:40 Szymany Lotinsko to Olsztyn 09:38 - TH & SU
13:10 Szymany Lotinsko to Olsztyn 14:07 - SA
17:53 Szymany Lotinsko to Olsztyn 18:55 - WE
19:03 Szymany Lotinsko to Olsztyn 20:10 - MO & FR

These do connect with some flights but not all. There are dozens of flights with no connecting train service. So i have no idea how they decided this timetable. It is a very odd timetable.

Currently the station a fifteen minute walk from the terminal (Szymany) gets two trains a day in each direction on all seven days a week:

12:38 Olsztyn to Szymany 13:34 - Daily
16:10 Olsztyn to Szymany 17:08 - Daily

14:50 Szymany to Olsztyn 15:47 - Daily
19:40 Szymany to Olsztyn 20:37 - Daily

So sometimes it can work out better to walk fifteen minutes to Szymany station and take a train from there. At least these trains run at the same time and on all seven days a week.

 

[TravelDream]

I believe that it is currently six trains a week in each direction but i agree it is very poor. It seems a waste of money for such a limited service.

These do connect with some flights but not all. There are dozens of flights with no connecting train service. So i have no idea how they decided this timetable. It is a very odd timetable.

You're right, it's six now. It was five when I visited last year I believe.

It's an incredibly odd timetable. A train met our arrival, but not departure then.

And the trains don't wait if the flight is delayed of course (as ours was).

To me, it was the cost. It had an incredible amount of investment (incl. significant EU funding) when there has been very little return value.

 

[route101]

I did use the bus to Bournemouth Airport once but no service at the weekend and Taxi required.

Ohrid and Tivat no transport, taxi only option and overcharged !

 

[stadler]

Orlando Sanford is another one worth mentioning. This airport is the second major airport in Orlando and also has long distance flights to states all over the USA and also countries in the Caribbean region. It has no public transport at all. I find this especially appalling as Orlando is a very popular tourist destination with all the theme parks and many will use this airport instead.

The only way to get out of Orlando Sanford airport by public transport is to walk 45 minutes to a bus stop and then take a combination of three buses (34 then 103 then 102) to Orlando city centre.

Orlando Melbourne is another similar one just like above. This airport is the third major airport in Orlando and actually has quite a lot of transatlantic flights to and from the UK and some other Mainland European countries. It does have public transport but only within the local town. There are no connections to Orlando despite how close it is. I find this especially appalling not only as Orlando is a popular tourist destination but also because it even gets transatlantic flights. There is not even an easy method to get to Orlando by walking somewhere else.

If you really want to take public transport from Orlando Melbourne then you would have to take a bus from the airport terminal to Melbourne town centre (21/29/30) then take another bus from Melbourne to Viera (29) then take another bus from Viera to Titusville (1) then take another bus from Titusville to Cape Canaveral Cemetery (5) and then you have to walk for 90 minutes. You then walk from Cape Canaveral Cemetery to Oak Hill which takes 90 minutes. Then you have to take a bus from Oak Hill to New Smyrna Beach (41) then take another bus from New Smyrna Beach to Port Orange (40) than take another bus from Port Orange to Daytona Beach (4/7/12/17B) then take another bus from Daytona Beach to Deland (60) then take another bus from Deland to Debary (31) and then you have to walk for 90 minutes. You then walk from Debary to Saint Josephs which takes 60 minutes. Then you have to take a bus from Saint Josephs to Sanford (46W) then take another bus from Sanford to Seminole (34) then take another bus from Seminole to Fern Park (103) then take another bus from Fern Park to Orlando (102) and you are there. So a grand total of 13 buses and 150 minutes (an hour and a half) of walking if you want to avoid a taxi. If your flight arrives at around 06:00 or 07:00 in the morning then you can just about do it on the same day and get to Orlando at around 22:00 or 23:00 in the evening. If you have a car or take a taxi it is only a 70 to 90 minute drive. Utterly bonkers that no local bus company thought to introduce a bus.

Also the main large Orlando airport discussed earlier in this thread actually has better public transport than i had thought. The local bus company (Lynx) have a direct bus from Orlando airport to the theme parks (311) running every thirty minutes from early morning to late evening on seven days a week. So it seems like things have improved. There is also a direct bus from Orlando city centre to the theme parks (300) running every thirty minutes from early morning to late evening on seven days a week. Plus you have frequent buses from Orlando airport to Orlando city centre (11 and 51) running every fifteen minutes from early morning to late evening on seven days a week. So there is now quite a good selection of buses linking Orlando airport and Orlando city centre and the theme parks.

Oklahoma City is another airport worth mentioning with no public transport at all. This is quite a major airport serving the largest city in the state and has flights all across the USA to some destinations in Mexico too.

The only way to get out of Oklahoma City airport by public transport is to walk 45 minutes from the airport terminal to a bus stop and then take a bus (12) in to Oklahoma City city centre from there.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

While theoretically Nairobi has buses, they are intended for staff and don't stop particularly near the terminal, nor do they run to a timetable (or even really a fixed route) so is perhaps half points. There is a railway station a few KMs away as well, but not in or around the airport.

Lilongwe does not have public buses running there, or didn't the last time I was there.

Aqaba only has on-demand shuttles to hotels, which I wouldn't count (more akin to a taxi).

Kabul airport does not have public transport, though the airport is very much in the city centre, so it's not a long walk to the main streets with public transport.

Nairobi has (or had in 2021) a scheduled, fixed route, bus which connects with the suburban trains at Embakasi Village to Nairobi Central Station.


According to the JKIA website these services operate:

Public Bus Services:​

• Kenya Bus Service (KBS): Public buses serve the JKIA to Nairobi route. The KBS Airport Bus operates on Route 34, which connects JKIA with the Nairobi CBD. This is the most affordable option, with fares ranging from KES 50 to KES 100.
• Matatus: Matatus are minibuses that provide informal transport services across Nairobi. While they are a budget option, they can be overcrowded and less comfortable for those with luggage.

Shuttle and Bus Timings:​

• Shuttle services operate depending on hotel schedules and flight timings.
• Public buses run every 30 to 45 minutes between 6:00 AM and 9:00 PM.

 

[atillathehunn]

Nairobi has (or had in 2021) a scheduled, fixed route, bus which connects with the suburban trains at Embakasi Village to Nairobi Central Station.
View attachment 184030

According to the JKIA website these services operate:

Did you ever successfully manage to use it, though? In the last 30 times I come/gone from JKIA I have yet to find it/be able to use it. When I ask staff, they tell me it doesn't run anymore, or only runs from the cargo area. I even cancelled my company driver once on a regional flight thinking I would give it a try - but no luck.
Similarly, matatu are not allowed near the main passenger terminal, at least not in the past few years with recent 'tensions'.

 

[CC 72100]

RDU is still the same!

Update - RDU now has a bus, line 100, which goes to downtown Raleigh, so can come off the list!

 

[jfollows]

Update - RDU now has a bus, line 100, which goes to downtown Raleigh, so can come off the list!

Has it changed since August?

https://gotriangle.org/sites/default/files/brochure/route-100-web.pdf

Most services don’t serve the airport.
I used to live next to Martin Street in Raleigh, so would have used a direct service, but at the time (1998-2000) I just drove my own car. Taxi services were useless because they couldn’t find my home, despite being on a semi-logical grid system.

I did use the bus services when I first arrived, pending delivery of my car, they were cheap but slow, I had to get to part of Research Triangle Park to which the only service was indirect. My partner used the bus to work but it was relatively quick on a radial route N out of Raleigh.

 

[CC 72100]

Has it changed since August?

https://gotriangle.org/sites/default/files/brochure/route-100-web.pdf

Most services don’t serve the airport.
I used to live next to Martin Street in Raleigh, so would have used a direct service, but at the time (1998-2000) I just drove my own car. Taxi services were useless because they couldn’t find my home, despite being on a semi-logical grid system.

I did use the bus services when I first arrived, pending delivery of my car, they were cheap but slow, I had to get to part of Research Triangle Park to which the only service was indirect. My partner used the bus to work but it was relatively quick on a radial route N out of Raleigh.

Well... sort of.

Looks like there is the RDU shuttle which just runs between the airport and the Regional Transit Center from where buses can then go into Raleigh, with the 100 serving the airport when the RDU shuttle has finished for the day.

It's classic American city transit... it exists, but boy is it fiddly and not exactly user-friendly!

 

[jfollows]

Well... sort of.

Looks like there is the RDU shuttle which just runs between the airport and the Regional Transit Center from where buses can then go into Raleigh, with the 100 serving the airport when the RDU shuttle has finished for the day.

It's classic American city transit... it exists, but boy is it fiddly and not exactly user-friendly!

Yes, that was the point in posts #9 & #14 above. I wouldn’t use it had I still lived in Raleigh, once I had my own car anyway.
There was also talk of “light rail” when I lived there, but that came to nothing. Amtrak to Charlotte I used a couple of times.
The whole area is built around the car really. Even with busy roads it was far quicker than other alternatives. And airport parking was easy and, in my case, IBM paid for it anyway.

 

[frodshamfella]

I flew with Easyjet during Covid from Liverpool to Bournemouth. When I arrived at Bournemouth Airport there seemed to be no public transport available., just a very sporadic bus. I took a cab , and had a lovely day out in Bournemouth.

I wonder if there is any public transport to Hurn now?

 

[stadler]

I flew with Easyjet during Covid from Liverpool to Bournemouth. When I arrived at Bournemouth Airport there seemed to be no public transport available., just a very sporadic bus. I took a cab , and had a lovely day out in Bournemouth.

I wonder if there is any public transport to Hurn now?

Bournemouth Airport has a very limited route 737 service. This consists of two buses per day from Bournemouth city centre to Bourenmouth airport all in the morning and three buses per day from Bournemouth airport to Bournemouth city centre all in the afternoon. It is an extremely limited service. The route 737 bus service is useless as it does not even connect with any flights and seems to be mostly timed for airport workers.

Last time i used Bournemouth airport i walked from the airport to Parley Cross which took about 45 minutes. I am a fast walker but a slower walker would probably take 60 minutes. From there i was able to pick up the 13 or 13A bus to get in to Bournemouth city centre. This bus runs every twenty minutes and is the only option.

 

[Chiltern006]

Biggin Hill doesn’t have anything dedicated, but then again the clientele using BQH are not the ones for public transport!

 

[Watershed]

Biggin Hill doesn’t have anything dedicated, but then again the clientele using BQH are not the ones for public transport!

Not dedicated, but it has 5 different bus routes connecting it to Catford, Catford Bridge, Bromley South, Bromley North and Orpington stations as well as the tram at New Addington. A pretty decent service by any airport's standards - rather better than similarly located Elstree Airfield to the north of London, whose closest bus stop is about a mile away. Being within the Greater London boundary makes a huge difference in terms of service provision due to TfL subsidies.

 

[route101]

I flew with Easyjet during Covid from Liverpool to Bournemouth. When I arrived at Bournemouth Airport there seemed to be no public transport available., just a very sporadic bus. I took a cab , and had a lovely day out in Bournemouth.

I wonder if there is any public transport to Hurn now?

I used the 737 bus a few years ago, was lucky the bus time was suitable for the flight. The last time I took a cab.