Last year’s rising global passenger trend missed McCarran

By Kyle B. Hansen

Friday, April 1, 2011 | 2:01 a.m.

Passenger traffic at McCarran International Airport has been rising this year, but the severity of last year’s drop is still being measured.

A preliminary report from Airports Council International said Las Vegas’ airport was one of only two among the 30 largest in the world to not see an increase in passengers last year.

Passengers at more than 900 reporting airports worldwide were up 6.3 percent in 2010 compared with the previous year. But the count at McCarran was down 2.6 percent, the report says.

The other airport in the top 30 to see a drop was London’s Heathrow, where the decrease was just 0.2 percent.

McCarran is the 22nd busiest in the world by passenger traffic and the ninth in aircraft movement, but doesn’t make the top 30 in cargo traffic, according to the report.

The airport’s numbers differ slightly from those of the international council, which doesn’t include passengers who use private facilities. McCarran says its passenger count dropped 1.8 percent in 2010, to 39.8 million, but that doesn’t change its world ranking.

The airport has seen decreases in passengers each year since 2007, when it served more than 47.7 million passengers, but 2010’s decrease was the smallest since the recession began, and so far the airport has seen growth this year.

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Las Vegas transportation officials have spent their share of time in Carson City trying to get support for their projects, but it’s not just the deficit-ridden state budget that is giving them headaches.

The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada relies on the federal government for more than 20 percent of its funding, General Manager Jacob Snow said.

“We really couldn’t do business without federal government support. They’re the ones that pay for the majority of the buses; they’re the ones that pay for operating programs; they’re the ones that pay for the roads we drive on.”

But Snow is seeing less money come from Washington because of a possible federal shutdown. That’s more to worry about on top of the state budget problems and the lack of a long-term federal transportation program.

So far, the commission has received $10 million instead of $25 million it expected from the Federal Transit Administration, for example.

The money was expected to pay for a new park and ride lot near St. Rose Parkway and Las Vegas Boulevard; a security system for commission facilities; and new buses, including paratransit vehicles, which serve the disabled.

“We need to replace our entire paratransit fleet,” Snow said. “So we’re going to have to deal with the fact that those are going to be older vehicles that are going to break down when the summer gets here. That’s a big concern for us.”

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Although the Regional Transportation Commission is waiting for funding to replace paratransit vehicles, it is moving forward with a federal grant to serve to disabled residents in an area that has no transportation service.

The commission has partnered with Easter Seals and a local chapter of ITN, which provides transportation services to seniors and vision-impaired adults.

ITN operates in Henderson and hopes to expand to the entire valley within five years.

Thanks to a federal New Freedom grant, the commission will pay for rides for qualified disabled residents of Anthem and Seven Hills.

Those areas aren’t eligible for the commission’s paratransit service because transit agencies are required to provide service to areas that are also covered by traditional bus service.