Thanks for the responses! I wrote to SW's customer service, and here is their reply. I'm sure it's a form letter in a file they can easily access, which is fine with me tbh:
"We're so glad that you enjoy Southwest Airlines’ low fares and heartfelt Hospitality. We appreciate your suggestion for Southwest to start serving Bakersfield, CA. We strive to be the hometown airline in every city we serve by offering low fares with no hidden fees and going above and beyond to make your day brighter. While we can’t make any promises to serve Bakersfield at this time, your request has been shared internally. We appreciate your patronage, and we hope to serve you onboard soon."
So if anyone here also likes this idea, you might consider writing to Southwest Airlines' customer service email so I'm not the only one:
https://support.southwest.com/email-us/s/
Erik.
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Hello,
I am staying in Bakersfield, CA, and will probably live here permanently. It would be a drag to have to drive to LAX, take the train or pay for a ride, when I could just practically walk out of my front door and almost be at the airport in Bakersfield. I believe that many travelers living in Kern and Tulare Counties would likely be very happy if Southwest began servicing BFL Airport. With Bakersfield being a city with a population of just over 400,000 and growing, why not, when LAX is 122 driving miles away and Fresno is 120 miles?
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