Phoenix Sky Harbor Voted best in the USA! (transportation, ranked)

[Bungle]

Originally Posted by locolife

Of course it's possible, look how much success we've had without even trying much. Imagine if we just came in around national average for education funding...

Vote yes on 205

[C24L]

Congrats Phoenix Sky Harbor

[Java Jolt]

Originally Posted by ajonesaz

Something we all take for granted here. My favorite part is the location.

“Though Phoenix didn’t take the top spot in any single category (except how quickly you can drive to and from downtown), it was consistently among the best scorers in almost all categories, with excellent flight delay and flight cancellation scores, a convenient light rail, a high number of restaurants and bars for its level of passenger traffic and free Wi-Fi,” ThePointsGuy website said about what helped the airport’s ranking. “About the worst thing that could be said about Sky Harbor, apparently, is it could stand to add more lounges.”

Ranking the USA's 30 busiest airports: Phoenix No. 1

I agree, Sky Harbor is one of the better major airports.

Probably the most inconvenient aspect about Sky Harbor is the separate terminals but the skytrain connection has helped minimize that issue.

[DougStark]

I've had nothing but exceptional customer service at Sky Harbor. But other airports I use frequently (DIA) haven't been that shabby either....

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by azriverfan.

Part of the problem with the airport is not really the airport's fault. It has to do with Phoenix. If we want more carriers and international flights then we need to lure more white collar professional jobs. Business flyers account for most of those flights. We need more companies.

Not only do we need to lure more corporations and business professionals, but we also could use more tourist attractions. If you want a good example of this, look at Las Vegas which is a smaller city lacking corporations and not a very diverse economy (worse than Phoenix) ... however, McCarran Airport handles even more passengers than Sky Harbor because of all the people coming in & out of Vegas for the gambling, nightlife, conventions, and shows.

A countless number of people around the nation & world want to go to Vegas on vacation, and that's a big reason why it's an international destination. At the same time, how many people around the nation & world have a desire to go to Phoenix on vacation? Not nearly as many, and the reason is we don't have the attractions that Vegas has. Sure, Arizona has many natural attractions that are scattered all over the state, but Phoenix is what needs more focus as a city. If we had large scale theme parks as well as more corporate HQs on a national & global scale, there would be more international flights in & out of Sky Harbor.

[Hschlick84]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

Not only do we need to lure more corporations and business professionals, but we also could use more tourist attractions. If you want a good example of this, look at Las Vegas which is a smaller city lacking corporations and not a very diverse economy (worse than Phoenix) ... however, McCarran Airport handles even more passengers than Sky Harbor because of all the people coming in & out of Vegas for the gambling, nightlife, conventions, and shows.

A countless number of people around the nation & world want to go to Vegas on vacation, and that's a big reason why it's an international destination. At the same time, how many people around the nation & world have a desire to go to Phoenix on vacation? Not nearly as many, and the reason is we don't have the attractions that Vegas has. Sure, Arizona has many natural attractions that are scattered all over the state, but Phoenix is what needs more focus as a city. If we had large scale theme parks as well as more corporate HQs on a national & global scale, there would be more international flights in & out of Sky Harbor.

We have to break this image for Phoenix, but it won't happen anytime soon.

[timothyaw]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

Not only do we need to lure more corporations and business professionals, but we also could use more tourist attractions. If you want a good example of this, look at Las Vegas which is a smaller city lacking corporations and not a very diverse economy (worse than Phoenix) ... however, McCarran Airport handles even more passengers than Sky Harbor because of all the people coming in & out of Vegas for the gambling, nightlife, conventions, and shows.

A countless number of people around the nation & world want to go to Vegas on vacation, and that's a big reason why it's an international destination. At the same time, how many people around the nation & world have a desire to go to Phoenix on vacation? Not nearly as many, and the reason is we don't have the attractions that Vegas has. Sure, Arizona has many natural attractions that are scattered all over the state, but Phoenix is what needs more focus as a city. If we had large scale theme parks as well as more corporate HQs on a national & global scale, there would be more international flights in & out of Sky Harbor.

^^This

[JGMotorsport64]

Originally Posted by Hschlick84

We have to break this image for Phoenix, but it won't happen anytime soon.

I don't see how one precludes the other. Especially with how many of our Q-Tip visitors segregate themselves.

The real problem is a poor education system, and proximity to California/Las Vegas. We have everything else needed, but we have to compete with one of the largest economies in the world, and one the largest tourist destination in the world. If we were in an isolated location that might be different, but if I'm starting up some high powered tech firm, I'm probably skipping over Phoenix without some serious incentives

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by JGMotorsport64

I don't see how one precludes the other. Especially with how many of our Q-Tip visitors segregate themselves.

The real problem is a poor education system, and proximity to California/Las Vegas. We have everything else needed, but we have to compete with one of the largest economies in the world, and one the largest tourist destination in the world. If we were in an isolated location that might be different, but if I'm starting up some high powered tech firm, I'm probably skipping over Phoenix without some serious incentives

Well, you could say the same about the close proximity of cities like Boston and Philadelphia to NYC. I think we can all agree that New York has the ultimate powerhouse economy, but does that mean the other big cities nearby are on the sidelines? No, because those other cities have their own strengths which make them competitive & successful. The fact that Phoenix is within a few hundred miles of L.A. isn't any excuse for us to be overshadowed. Phoenix isn't a small, desert oasis like it was 50+ years ago. It's one of the largest cities in the nation ... and if we are still overshadowed by L.A., then we've allowed ourselves to be.

If it were me starting a business (tech firm or otherwise), I would choose Phoenix over CA or NV because it has a much more reasonable cost of living than CA, and more opportunity to not copy the mistakes of L.A. I wouldn't even be looking at Las Vegas to start a business because of the fact that it's very touristy, and less business friendly than Phoenix is. We actually have the opportunity to become a world class city if we grow up a little more and quit relying on what worked 50+ years ago.

[BIG CATS]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

Well, you could say the same about the close proximity of cities like Boston and Philadelphia to NYC. I think we can all agree that New York has the ultimate powerhouse economy, but does that mean the other big cities nearby are on the sidelines? No, because those other cities have their own strengths which make them competitive & successful. The fact that Phoenix is within a few hundred miles of L.A. isn't any excuse for us to be overshadowed. Phoenix isn't a small, desert oasis like it was 50+ years ago. It's one of the largest cities in the nation ... and if we are still overshadowed by L.A., then we've allowed ourselves to be.

If it were me starting a business (tech firm or otherwise), I would choose Phoenix over CA or NV because it has a much more reasonable cost of living than CA, and more opportunity to not copy the mistakes of L.A. I wouldn't even be looking at Las Vegas to start a business because of the fact that it's very touristy, and less business friendly than Phoenix is. We actually have the opportunity to become a world class city if we grow up a little more and quit relying on what worked 50+ years ago.

I'd agree with most of this, I think its very to-the-point. However, one also needs to look at LA and its status as a port, an international transportation hub, and its status as a Alpha class world city. Businesses are attracted to that, COL be damned. I know this because even though Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, etc, are more than qualified to attract tons of big business, it always went to Chicago, simply because of its existing status and location. I fear the same may be true for LA and Phoenix.