TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Rays' Success Softens Dip In Passengers From TIA

Tribune photo by JIM REED

An electronic sign at Tampa International Airport announces Game 1 of the World Series. The Rays' success this year helped keep passengers coming through the airport.

ADVERTISEMENT

By TED JACKOVICS

tjackovics@tampatrib.com

Published: November 15, 2008

TAMPA - Fewer passengers flew from Tampa International Airport in October than the year before, but the decline was not as steep as in August and September - thanks in part to the Tampa Bay Rays' extended season.

"It definitely shows that we did get a surge in passengers as a result of the Tampa Bay Rays going all the way to the World Series," airport director Louis Miller said.

The number of departing passengers in October dropped 6.4 percent to 675,907, compared with a 12.3 percent decline in September and a 9.3 drop in August, the airport reported Friday.

Airport officials track departing passengers and say Tampa International draws an equal amount of arriving passengers each year.

Airport officials nationwide are struggling with revenue declines from declining passenger counts, attributed to the poor economy and airline flight cuts to cope with fuel costs.

However, Tampa's airport finances remain sound, helped by various strategies including energy conservation and budgeting for expansion only when growth needs dictate.

An Orlando International Airport report predicts that its number of departing passengers will decline by nearly 1 million between now and 2010 and that numbers will not improve until 2012, the Orlando Sentinel reported this week.

Orlando's airport served 18.2 million departing passengers in the past fiscal year, compared with 9.4 million at Tampa.

Reporter Ted Jackovics can be reached at (813) 259-7817.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT