Jet Blue’s CEO sees benefits of high-speed rail

In last week’s response to Charles Lane’s “Fast track to nowhere” on the Washington Post’s politics blog, I took issue with Lane’s slapdash transportation policy analysis. Particularly, his fuzzy thinking about the modal relationship between passenger airlines and passenger rail:

“It’s a bit odd that the president wants simultaneous investment in air transport and high-speed rail, since they are competing modes of travel.

I argued that air and rail should be complementary, with shorter-distance travel (around 500 miles and less) handled primarily by passenger trains, freeing up airport capacity for longer distance trips where airplane’s superior top speeds can provide a significant savings in total, door-to-door trip time.

Well, an article in the Boston Business Journal quotes David Barger, Jet Blue’s CEO, making much the same case:

Asked after his address whether the Obama administration’s focus on high-speed rail would hurt JetBlue, Barger said better rail service between cities like Boston and New York, both of which are important to the airline, actually would be beneficial.

The airspace around New York is full, Barger said, with too much of it “wasted” on planes carrying only a few dozen passengers. “I think high-speed rail would be very, very helpful.”

Barger also spoke about being eager to expand Jet Blue service Rhode Island’s T.F. Green airport, which has just added a rail connection. When you remove the political baggage that pundits attach to projects—based on which politician is supporting what—policy becomes a lot less binary.

Because whatever Barger’s own political leanings, he’s also responsible for a business that moves people. And that means looking for mobility solutions in whatever form it presents itself.