High Point airport shuttle ridership doubles
By Larry Thomas -- Furniture Today, June 20, 2005
High Point — The free shuttle service between downtown High Point and the Greensboro airport again proved popular with High Point marketgoers, as ridership during the April market was more than double that of the April 2004 market.
Figures compiled by the International Home Furnishings Market Authority showed there were 6,517 airport shuttle boardings at this April's market, compared with 3,298 in April 2004. There were less than 3,000 boardings in October 2003, the first time the airport shuttle was free.
"It just keeps growing," said Tammy Covington, the Market Authority's director of operations. "It was especially busy in the early morning and early afternoon."
The airport shuttle was operated by a quasi-government entity called the Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation, or PART. However, during some periods of peak demand, McLaurin Parking Co., the Raleigh, N.C.-based company that operated the rest of the market's massive shuttle system, added a few of its vehicles to the airport fleet.
Covington said boardings on hotel shuttles totaled 21,240, which was roughly even with April 2004 and about 8% ahead of October 2004. At the most recent market, hotel service was available for the first time on Wednesday — one day before the market's official opening.
Shuttles to airports in Raleigh and Charlotte, N.C., weren't nearly as popular — there were only 143 boardings — but riders had to pay $50 for a one-way ticket.
Covington said the Market Authority is re-evaluating the Raleigh and Charlotte service, but she doubts it will be eliminated. She said it appears that most market attendees who fly to those airports use rental cars.
Ridership on the revamped shuttle routes among downtown showroom buildings was about even with April 2004, and Covington said the north route proved more popular than the south route.
Several showrooms on the south route, notably Center Point, operate their own shuttles.
