I see that the overwhelming opinion appears to be that this is a great thing for Southwest. I must respectfully disagree. Perhaps the airline feels they have outgrown it, but this sort of expansion forgets completey what it was that brought Southwest to such prominence. AVOIDING, the major hubs and all their attendant drawbacks. Granted the expansion into PHL has been successful in terms of load factors and the like, but the restrictions inherent in the PHL facility make late departures and arrivals a way of life. EWR has one of the poorest on-time records in the US. This is exactly the kind of place that can cause a cascade of delays across the Southwest system...and that is bad for business.
I have no doubt that Southwest will make EWR work, much like PHL, but it will force further compromises of the Southwest model. A perfectly good "Southwest-style" option exists to serve the northern NJ and eastern PA market...ABE in Allentown, PA. Easy in and out, cheap parking, and an area which has been lobbying for Southwest to starrt service for years. A quick hop onto I-78 and you are in NJ from ABE. ABE and EWR are close enough that Continental used to (and may still) use buses for their connecting service.
Good luck Southwest...but don't forget your roots, in favor of routes.
Alan
Rapid Rewards Member since 1991
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