BRIEFING

September 2001

 

 

EDITORIAL

In the over 20 years that The Highway Stations has published The Briefing, we've never made editorial comments, but the events of the last two weeks warrant some attention.

 

Las Vegas has been through a number of crisis situations, including the MGM and the Hilton fires, the Gulf War and the recent economic recession.  American optimism and the long-term appeal of Las Vegas, plus its proximity to major markets, has led to recovery and growth in spite of many past challenges.  Las Vegas's greatest asset has been the optimistic attitude of the many entrepreneurs who, like Howard Hughes, had the confidence to make major investments in Southern Nevada.

 

The greatest danger in the current situation could be best expressed by the famous quote by Franklin D. Roosevelt at the beginning of World War II:  "All we have to fear is fear itself."  Knee-jerk reactions that would reduce the "brand awareness" of Las Vegas could dangerously diminish all the efforts that have been put into building this destination over the last fifty years. 

 

Las Vegas management and marketing executives are highly skilled and are more than capable of successfully dealing with the current challenge.  The appeal of Las Vegas is still here and that appeal will assure not only its survival, but its continued growth. As has been proven in the last few days, people are coming back to Las Vegas and the long-term prognosis is good. The message should be that Las Vegas is open for business and that it is still one of America's prime vacation destinations. 

 

Here are some quotes that are certainly relevant:

 

"In a recession the best defense is offense.  In other words, in a recession, advertising works.  And advertising working together with an integrated marketing communication plan works even better."  Phillip H. Greer, Jr., Chairman Emeritus, Inter-Public Group of Companies, New York.

 

And finally when asked what individuals could do help our country at the present time, Larry King gave this advise:  "Take a commercial airline flight." 

 

TRAFFIC REPORT/AUGUST

Total traffic in both directions on I-15 was up 2% in August based on the report from the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT)  as measured at State Line/Primm, Nevada.  Northbound traffic on the four comparable August weekends showed mixed results.  On Friday/Saturday, the 3rd and 4th, counts were off 3%, up 6% on the 10th and 11th, down 4% on the 17th and 18th, and up 1% on the 24th, 25th.  For breakdown of weekend and daily traffic see the chart on page 4.

 

Due to an NDOT equipment failure there is no data available for I-15 north of Las Vegas at Mesquite.

 

Rounded estimates of southbound traffic taken at the Yermo Agricultural Inspection Station showed a decline of 5% in total traffic in August.  Autos were down 2%; trucks took a huge 59% jump, RV's down 9% and buses up 5%.

 

Traffic into Laughlin on Davis Dam Road showed a healthy increase of nearly 11% in August.  There was no data available on U.S. 95 because of equipment failure.  For the breakdown on Davis Dam Road see the chart on page 4.

 

TRAFFIC REPORT/JULY

The Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) had a failure of their computer system  in July and was unable to give traffic statistics in time for last month's Briefing. The system has now been updated and the July figures are as follows:

 

With the 4th of July falling on Wednesday, there were comparatively few visitors who made the trek to Las Vegas for the holiday.  On the weekend preceding the 4th of July northbound traffic was down 25% as compared with the Friday and Saturday preceding the 4th last year when the holiday was on a Tuesday.  Southbound traffic on Sunday, July 1, 2001 was slightly below the comparable Sunday last year.  Northbound traffic on Tuesday, the 3rd, was heavier than a normal Tuesday as was the return traffic on Thursday, so there are some people who did take advantage of just a one-day holiday.

 

Primarily due to the mid-week holiday, July traffic on I-15, in  both directions, was down 3%.  Northbound traffic on each of the Fridays and Saturdays of the non-holiday weekends was down slightly with the exception of the 13th and 14th which was up 1%.

 

CAL TRANS PROMISES NO LANE CLOSURES

In an effort to speed traffic through Barstow and Mountain Pass on weekends, there will be no lane closures on I-15 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  This was announced in a meeting with the Barstow Chamber of Commerce/CalTrans Advisory Committee by Dennis Green, Construction Liaison for CalTrans and Frank Lozano, Construction Manager.

 

Lane closures on I-40 will continue.  This construction is major resurfacing and lane closures are the only way to accomplish the work.

 

McCARRAN AIRPORT REPORT

Total arriving and departing passengers through McCarran International increased 5.2% in August, bringing the year-to-date (YTD) total to a 2.9% increase.  This includes scheduled, non-scheduled, charter and general aviation.

 

National Airlines continued to show spectacular growth, up 19.8% in August, for a 31.4% increase YTD.  It's obvious that their low cost options from close-in markets has great appeal.  Southwest showed the second largest growth, up 14.7% and up 13% YTD.  America West was up 6% for the month and 11.7% YTD.  For the first time since March 2000 United showed an increase of 1.8%, but still down 5.7% for the year.  Delta continues to cut back service into Las Vegas showing a 4.6% decline for the month and down 11.3% YTD.   Total passenger counts for all scheduled carriers was up 7% and are up 5% YTD.  Terminal #1 charters are up 7% YTD, Terminal #2 charters are up 6.2% and commuter traffic is up 8.5% YTD.

LAS VEGAS' McCARRAN HAS FAST RECOVERY

Mass media has given extensive coverage to the difficulties and cutbacks airlines are suffering after September 11th, but Southwest Airlines, Las Vegas' largest carrier, is still running a full flight schedule.

 

Getting in and out of McCarran is fairly easy.  The only restrictions are the ones that are imposed by the FAA on all airports, that is: no curbside check-in and no short-term parking within 300 feet of the airport itself.   The major impact at McCarran will, therefore, be on residents, not the visitors who, almost exclusively, use taxis, limos, or rental cars.

 

As of Wednesday, September 26th, McCarran Airport reported 95% of scheduled flights were landing and taking off.  The load factors was coming back to normal and Southwest has added additional personnel to handle people promptly through the flight check-in process.  According to Hillary Gray, Liaison for the Clark County Department of Aviation, passengers are being advised to arrive at the airport two hours before the flight, but many are finding that this is more than enough time.

 

GAMING REPORT

Downtown was the only area showing an increase in total gaming win in July, up 2.4% over last year and the percentage of statewide gaming win (share) up to 6.9% from 6.5% last year, according to the Nevada Gaming Control Board report.  The Strip win was down 3.8% with share dropping to 47.3% from 48% last year.  Laughlin win was off 4.2%, with share down just slightly to 5.3% from 5.4%.  Clark County win was off 1.2% and share was up slightly to 77.7% from 76.8% last year.  Statewide, the win was down 2.4%.

 

 

 

INTERSTATE 15 TRAFFIC JUMPS SHARPLY AFTER SEPTEMBER 11TH

By Thursday, September 14th, just three days after the tragedies in New York and Washington, southbound traffic on Interstate 15 at the Yermo Agricultural Inspection Station was nearly four times the volume of Thursday of the previous week.  Wednesday the 13th, southbound traffic was up about 4%.  The Highway Stations' General Manager, Tim Anderson, estimated that many of the cars were being driven by airline passengers who had been stranded in Las Vegas.

 

Full and accurate monthly statistics on both northbound and southbound traffic for September will be available in next month's Briefing.  CalTrans publishes the figures three to four weeks after the close of the month.

 

LISTENERS LINE UP FOR EDGEWATER PRIZES

Even heavy rain and a threatened tornado in the area couldn't deter The Highway Stations' listeners who lined up as early as 7:00 a.m. on Labor Day, September 3rd, to meet "Mr. Edgewater" to receive a complimentary 3-day/2 night stay at the Laughlin hotel.  When the promotion started at 2:00 p.m., at the Factory Outlet Mall off I-15 in Lenwood, there were more than 600 people standing in line just as a torrential rain storm hit the area but nobody left.  By 5:00 p.m. all the 2,000 room awards plus numerous other prizes, including Outlet Mall discounts, Del Taco coupons, t-shirts, cookies and hats, were all gone.  In several instances listeners came off I-15 after specific offers were made on the air to "Drive in and show your slot club card from the Edgewater and get a special prize."  Several local merchants phoned the station the next day and asked if a similar promotion could be repeated at their businesses.

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEVADA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

AUGUST 2001 TRAFFIC SUMMARY

 

AVERAGE DAILY TRAFFIC 1

WEEKDAY 2

WEEKEND 3

I-15 NEV/CA STATELINE

(PRIMM, NEVADA)

2.2%

4.6%

-.13%

I-15 MESQUITE

Incomplete data

Incomplete data

Incomplete data

SR 163 LAUGHLIN - Davis Dam Rd.

10.9%

6.2%

13%

US 95 AT SEARCHLIGHT

Incomplete data

Incomplete data

Incomplete data

1.      Percentage increase (decrease) in average daily traffic northbound and southbound divided by the total number of days of the month.

2.      Percentage increase (decrease) in total traffic northbound and southbound Monday through Thursday divided by the number of days of the month.

3.      Percentage increase (decrease) in total traffic northbound and southbound for Saturday and Sunday divided by    the number of days of the month.