Rural cargo & passenger options: transportation off the road system in Alaska.

• Author: Harrington, Susan
• Position: TRANSPORTATION

As Valdez recently learned, cargo and passenger options are limited for rural Alaska communities not connected to the road system. After sustained unusually warm January temperatures and heavy rains caused massive multiple avalanches January 24 in Keystone Canyon on the Richardson Highway, road connections were terminated in and out of Valdez and the city joined some 256 other Alaska locations without access to the state's road system. With the road closed between mileposts 12 and 64, eliminating access, air and water became the only means of egress in or out of Valdez for almost two weeks in January and February--options that for some in Alaska are always the only ticket in or out.

In the case of Valdez, increased cargo and passenger flights, extra Alaska Marine Highway System ferry stops, and stepped-up schedules for freight bearing barges were made, providing temporarily needed transportation services that were typically provided over the road. What about those other 256 Alaska towns with no connection to the road system? What do rural businesses and people do day after day, 24/7/365?

Businesses and residents of Valdez are luckier than many in rural locations, in that there are abundant marine transportation resources in the community. Many others across Alaska have much more limited options. There are scores of rural Alaska communities built near the shores of rivers and seas, although many of those have very limited marine services due to lack of harbors, no docking facilities, limited window of accessibility by barge services, and no visits from the state ferry. The Alaska Marine Highway System ferry service makes its way to about three dozen locations in the state. In these communities, the ferry offers transportation for people and goods. For everyone else, the options are much more limited and expensive. Transportation, for many in Alaska, is up in the air.

Up in the Air

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities controls more than 254 airports in the state through its Northern, Central, and Southeast regions. About four dozen additional airports are controlled by other government agencies that are local, borough, or tribal in nature. There are countless private airstrips scattered across the state as well. Alaska is heavily invested in runways and associated airport infrastructure.

Close to half of all the airports in Alaska provide the only means of year-round cargo and passenger transportation in or out of...