IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jotrge/v60y2017icp68-79.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Low-cost carrier entry at small European airports: Low-cost carrier effects on network connectivity and self-transfer potential

Author

Listed:
  • Zeigler, Patrick
  • Pagliari, Romano
  • Suau-Sanchez, Pere
  • Malighetti, Paolo
  • Redondi, Renato

Abstract

Airport connectivity can improve the competitiveness of regions by attracting tourism and inward investment. Regions traditionally accessed international destinations via connecting flights to national gateway airports usually operated by full service network carriers (FSNC). However, the entry of low-cost carriers (LCC) in these markets has led to changes in incumbent FSNC service provision. We analyse how intra-European connectivity has changed at small airports between 2002 and 2012 and how LCC entry has affected the quality of day-return schedules in these markets. Results show that offline LCC connectivity is greater than that scheduled by FSNCs. Furthermore, LCC entry had a negative effect on the quality of the connectivity offered by FSNCs. Interestingly, we also found that day-return itineraries become more difficult for passengers in markets where the LCC is the sole operator. Regional policy-makers may need to more carefully consider the connectivity implications in the design of LCC start-up incentive schemes.

Suggested Citation

  • Zeigler, Patrick & Pagliari, Romano & Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Malighetti, Paolo & Redondi, Renato, 2017. "Low-cost carrier entry at small European airports: Low-cost carrier effects on network connectivity and self-transfer potential," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 68-79.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:60:y:2017:i:c:p:68-79
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2017.02.011
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966692316301624
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2017.02.011?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Fageda, Xavier & Fernández-Villadangos, Laura, 2009. "Triggering competition in the Spanish airline market: The role of airport capacity and low-cost carriers," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 15(1), pages 36-40.
    2. Reynolds-Feighan, Aisling & McLay, Peter, 2006. "Accessibility and attractiveness of European airports: A simple small community perspective," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 12(6), pages 313-323.
    3. Jose Castillo-Manzano & Manuel Marchena-Gomez, 2011. "Analysis of determinants of airline choice: profiling the LCC passenger," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(1), pages 49-53.
    4. Veldhuis, Jan, 1997. "The competitive position of airline networks," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 181-188.
    5. Germà Bel & Xavier Fageda, 2008. "Getting there fast: globalization, intercontinental flights and location of headquarters," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 8(4), pages 471-495, July.
    6. Gaspar, Jess & Glaeser, Edward L., 1998. "Information Technology and the Future of Cities," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(1), pages 136-156, January.
    7. Paleari, Stefano & Redondi, Renato & Malighetti, Paolo, 2010. "A comparative study of airport connectivity in China, Europe and US: Which network provides the best service to passengers?," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 198-210, March.
    8. Jan K. Brueckner, 2003. "Airline Traffic and Urban Economic Development," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 40(8), pages 1455-1469, July.
    9. Guillaume Burghouwt & Renato Redondi, 2013. "Connectivity in Air Transport Networks: An Assessment of Models and Applications," Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, University of Bath, vol. 47(1), pages 35-53, January.
    10. Lieshout, Rogier, 2012. "Measuring the size of an airport’s catchment area," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 25(C), pages 27-34.
    11. Lieshout, Rogier & Malighetti, Paolo & Redondi, Renato & Burghouwt, Guillaume, 2016. "The competitive landscape of air transport in Europe," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 68-82.
    12. Eric Pels & Peter Nijkamp & Piet Rietveld, 2001. "Airport and Airline Choice in a Multiple Airport Region: An Empirical Analysis for the San Francisco Bay Area," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(1), pages 1-9.
    13. Pere Suau-Sanchez & Guillaume Burghouwt & Xavier Fageda, 2016. "Reinterpreting EU Air Transport Deregulation: A Disaggregated Analysis of the Spatial Distribution of Traffic in Europe, 1990–2009," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 107(1), pages 48-65, February.
    14. Richard Florida & Charlotta Mellander & Thomas Holgersson, 2015. "Up in the air: the role of airports for regional economic development," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 54(1), pages 197-214, January.
    15. Van De Vijver, Elien & Derudder, Ben & Witlox, Frank, 2014. "Exploring causality in trade and air passenger travel relationships: the case of Asia-Pacific, 1980–2010," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 142-150.
    16. Frédéric Dobruszkes, 2013. "The geography of European low-cost airline networks: A contemporary analysis," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/135954, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    17. Alderighi, Marco & Cento, Alessandro & Nijkamp, Peter & Rietveld, Piet, 2012. "Competition in the European aviation market: the entry of low-cost airlines," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 223-233.
    18. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Voltes-Dorta, Augusto & Rodríguez-Déniz, Héctor, 2016. "Measuring the potential for self-connectivity in global air transport markets: Implications for airports and airlines," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 70-82.
    19. Rodríguez-Déniz, Héctor & Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Voltes-Dorta, Augusto, 2013. "Classifying airports according to their hub dimensions: an application to the US domestic network," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 188-195.
    20. Halpern, Nigel & Graham, Anne, 2015. "Airport route development: A survey of current practice," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 213-221.
    21. O’Connell, John F. & Williams, George, 2005. "Passengers’ perceptions of low cost airlines and full service carriers: A case study involving Ryanair, Aer Lingus, Air Asia and Malaysia Airlines," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 11(4), pages 259-272.
    22. Clark, William A. V. & Huang, Youqin & Withers, Suzanne, 2003. "Does commuting distance matter?: Commuting tolerance and residential change," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 199-221, March.
    23. Nassiri, Habibollah & Rezaei, Ali, 2012. "Air itinerary choice in a low-frequency market: A decision rule approach," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 34-37.
    24. de Wit, Jaap G. & Zuidberg, Joost, 2012. "The growth limits of the low cost carrier model," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 21(C), pages 17-23.
    25. Jia, Tao & Jiang, Bin, 2012. "Building and analyzing the US airport network based on en-route location information," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 391(15), pages 4031-4042.
    26. Danesi, Antonio, 2006. "Measuring airline hub timetable co-ordination and connectivity: definition of a new index and application to a sample of European hubs," European Transport \ Trasporti Europei, ISTIEE, Institute for the Study of Transport within the European Economic Integration, issue 34, pages 54-74.
    27. Pels, Eric & Nijkamp, Peter & Rietveld, Piet, 2003. "Access to and competition between airports: a case study for the San Francisco Bay area," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 71-83, January.
    28. Zhang, Yunlong & Xie, Yuanchang, 2005. "Small community airport choice behavior analysis: A case study of GTR," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 11(6), pages 442-447.
    29. Burghouwt, Guillaume & de Wit, Jaap, 2005. "Temporal configurations of European airline networks," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 185-198.
    30. Williams, George & Pagliari, Romano, 2004. "A comparative analysis of the application and use of public service obligations in air transport within the EU," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 11(1), pages 55-66, January.
    31. Malighetti, Paolo & Paleari, Stefano & Redondi, Renato, 2008. "Connectivity of the European airport network: “Self-help hubbing†and business implications," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 14(2), pages 53-65.
    32. Salanti, Andrea & Malighetti, Paolo & Redondi, Renato, 2012. "Low-cost pricing strategies in leisure markets," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 249-256.
    33. Windle, Robert & Dresner, Martin, 1999. "Competitive responses to low cost carrier entry," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(1), pages 59-75, March.
    34. Derudder, Ben & Devriendt, Lomme & Witlox, Frank, 2010. "A spatial analysis of multiple airport cities," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 18(3), pages 345-353.
    35. Adikariwattage, V. & de Barros, Alexandre G. & Wirasinghe, S.C. & Ruwanpura, Janaka, 2012. "Airport classification criteria based on passenger characteristics and terminal size," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 36-41.
    36. Guida, Michele & Maria, Funaro, 2007. "Topology of the Italian airport network: A scale-free small-world network with a fractal structure?," Chaos, Solitons & Fractals, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 527-536.
    37. Fageda, Xavier & Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Mason, Keith J., 2015. "The evolving low-cost business model: Network implications of fare bundling and connecting flights in Europe," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 289-296.
    38. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Voltes-Dorta, Augusto & Rodríguez-Déniz, Héctor, 2015. "Regulatory airport classification in the US: The role of international markets," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 157-166.
    39. Wang, Jiaoe & Mo, Huihui & Wang, Fahui & Jin, Fengjun, 2011. "Exploring the network structure and nodal centrality of China’s air transport network: A complex network approach," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 712-721.
    40. Hess, Stephane & Polak, John W., 2005. "Mixed logit modelling of airport choice in multi-airport regions," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 11(2), pages 59-68.
    41. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Burghouwt, Guillaume, 2012. "Connectivity levels and the competitive position of Spanish airports and Iberia’s network rationalization strategy, 2001–2007," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 47-53.
    42. Button, Kenneth, 2002. "Debunking some common myths about airport hubs," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 8(3), pages 177-188.
    43. Halpern, Nigel & Bråthen, Svein, 2011. "Impact of airports on regional accessibility and social development," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 19(6), pages 1145-1154.
    44. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Burghouwt, Guillaume & Pallares-Barbera, Montserrat, 2014. "An appraisal of the CORINE land cover database in airport catchment area analysis using a GIS approach," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 12-16.
    45. Fageda, Xavier & Flores-Fillol, Ricardo, 2012. "Air services on thin routes: Regional versus low-cost airlines," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(4), pages 702-714.
    46. Burghouwt, Guillaume & Hakfoort, Jacco, 2001. "The evolution of the European aviation network, 1990–1998," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 7(5), pages 311-318.
    47. Dobruszkes, Frédéric, 2013. "The geography of European low-cost airline networks: a contemporary analysis," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 75-88.
    48. Lian, Jon Inge & Rønnevik, Joachim, 2011. "Airport competition – Regional airports losing ground to main airports," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 19(1), pages 85-92.
    49. Garrett Dash Nelson & Alasdair Rae, 2016. "An Economic Geography of the United States: From Commutes to Megaregions," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(11), pages 1-23, November.
    50. Peter Hall, 2009. "Looking Backward, Looking Forward: The City Region of the Mid-21st Century," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(6), pages 803-817.
    51. Redondi, Renato & Malighetti, Paolo & Paleari, Stefano, 2013. "European connectivity: the role played by small airports," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 86-94.
    52. Hess, Stephane & Polak, John W., 2006. "Exploring the potential for cross-nesting structures in airport-choice analysis: A case-study of the Greater London area," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 63-81, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Pedro Plasencia-Lozano, 2021. "An Ex Ante Analysis of the Planned Transportation Network in the Region of Extremadura (Spain) by Using Physical Parameters," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-32, May.
    2. Cheung, Tommy K.Y. & Wong, Collin W.H. & Zhang, Anming, 2020. "The evolution of aviation network: Global airport connectivity index 2006–2016," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    3. Never, Jan & Suau-Sanchez, Pere, 2020. "Challenging the interline and codeshare legacy: Drivers and barriers for airline adoption of airport facilitated inter-airline network connectivity schemes," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    4. Zhu, Zhenran & Zhang, Anming & Zhang, Yahua & Huang, Zhibin & Xu, Shiteng, 2019. "Measuring air connectivity between China and Australia," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 359-370.
    5. Lin, Pei-Chun, 2023. "The propagation of European airports’ on-time performance and on-time flights via air connectivity prior to the Covid-19 pandemic," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    6. Jingjing Hao & Ling Zhang & Xiaofeng Ji & Xiaolong Wu & Lan Liu, 2020. "Investigating the Accessibility between Civil Airports and Tourist Locations in Tourist Cities in Yunnan Province, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-22, May.
    7. Klophaus, Richard & Merkert, Rico & Lordan, Oriol, 2021. "Mesh network as a competitive advantage for European LCCs: An alternative topology to hub-and-spoke for selling online connections," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 196-204.
    8. Morlotti, Chiara & Birolini, Sebastian & Cattaneo, Mattia & Redondi, Renato, 2020. "Introducing connecting flights in LCCs' business model: Ryanair's network strategy," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    9. Meire, Sarah & Derudder, Ben, 2021. "Virtual interlining within the European airport network: An airfare analysis," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    10. Chang, Yu-Chun & Lee, Wei-Hao & Wu, Chi-Hung, 2019. "Potential opportunities for Asian airports to develop self-connecting passenger markets," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 7-16.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Voltes-Dorta, Augusto & Rodríguez-Déniz, Héctor, 2015. "Regulatory airport classification in the US: The role of international markets," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 157-166.
    2. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Voltes-Dorta, Augusto & Rodríguez-Déniz, Héctor, 2016. "Measuring the potential for self-connectivity in global air transport markets: Implications for airports and airlines," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 70-82.
    3. Allroggen, Florian & Wittman, Michael D. & Malina, Robert, 2015. "How air transport connects the world – A new metric of air connectivity and its evolution between 1990 and 2012," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 184-201.
    4. Cheung, Tommy K.Y. & Wong, Collin W.H. & Zhang, Anming, 2020. "The evolution of aviation network: Global airport connectivity index 2006–2016," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    5. Lenaerts, Bert & Allroggen, Florian & Malina, Robert, 2021. "The economic impact of aviation: A review on the role of market access," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    6. Rodríguez-Déniz, Héctor & Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Voltes-Dorta, Augusto, 2013. "Classifying airports according to their hub dimensions: an application to the US domestic network," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 188-195.
    7. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Burghouwt, Guillaume, 2011. "The geography of the Spanish airport system: spatial concentration and deconcentration patterns in seat capacity distribution, 2001–2008," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 19(2), pages 244-254.
    8. Wong, Wai-Hung & Zhang, Anming & Cheung, Tommy King-Yin & Chu, Jeremy, 2019. "Examination of low-cost carriers' development at secondary airports using a comprehensive world airport classification," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 96-105.
    9. Wang, Yu-Chen & Wong, Jinn-Tsai, 2019. "Exploring air network formation and development with a two-part model," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 122-131.
    10. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Voltes-Dorta, Augusto & Rodríguez-Déniz, Héctor, 2017. "An assessment of the potential for self-connectivity at European airports in holiday markets," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 54-64.
    11. Redondi, Renato & Birolini, Sebastian & Morlotti, Chiara & Paleari, Stefano, 2021. "Connectivity measures and passengers’ behavior: Comparing conventional connectivity models to predict itinerary market shares," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    12. Sismanidou, Athina & Tarradellas, Joan & Bel, Germà & Fageda, Xavier, 2013. "Estimating potential long-haul air passenger traffic in national networks containing two or more dominant cities," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 108-116.
    13. John Francis O’Connell & David Connolly, 2017. "The strategic evolution of Aer Lingus from a full-service airline to a low-cost carrier and finally positioning itself into a value hybrid airline," Tourism Economics, , vol. 23(6), pages 1296-1320, September.
    14. Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Voltes-Dorta, Augusto & Rodríguez-Déniz, Héctor, 2016. "The role of London airports in providing connectivity for the UK: regional dependence on foreign hubs," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 94-104.
    15. Teixeira, Filipe Marques & Derudder, Ben, 2021. "Spatio-temporal dynamics in airport catchment areas: The case of the New York Multi Airport Region," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    16. Fageda, Xavier & Suau-Sanchez, Pere & Mason, Keith J., 2015. "The evolving low-cost business model: Network implications of fare bundling and connecting flights in Europe," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 289-296.
    17. Dziedzic, Marcin & Njoya, Eric T. & Warnock-Smith, David & Hubbard, Nick, 2020. "Determinants of air traffic volumes and structure at small European airports," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    18. Lieshout, Rogier, 2012. "Measuring the size of an airport’s catchment area," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 25(C), pages 27-34.
    19. Qi Zhang & Bo Wang & Desheng Xue, 2022. "The Hub Competition in Delivering Air Connectivity between China and Oceania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-19, May.
    20. Mueller, Falko, 2022. "Examining COVID-19-triggered changes in spatial connectivity patterns in the European air transport network up to June 2021," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:60:y:2017:i:c:p:68-79. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-transport-geography .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.