Rural America Benefits from Airline Deregulation, But Less than Urban America

Rural America has benefited from airline deregulation, but with more mixed results than urban America. Many rural routes were abandoned by the major carriers after airline deregulation, but the commuter airline industry took over most of that service. These rural routes now receive more frequent service, but with smaller aircraft. Fares are down, after adjusting for inflation, for all sizes of communities, although larger cities have access to lower fares than smaller points and the fare disparity is widening. Passenger traffic at some small community airports is down, as rural residents are driving to more distant, larger airports to fly.