Point-to-point transit


Point-to-point transit is a transportation system in which a plane, bus, or train travels directly to a destination, rather than going through a central hub. This differs from the spoke-hub distribution paradigm in which the transportation goes to a central location where passengers change to another train, bus, or plane to reach their destination.

Use in airlines

The point-to-point model is used widely by low cost carriers, including Allegiant Air and Southwest Airlines in the U.S., and European carriers such as Ryanair, easyJet and Wizzair. Many such airlines sell each flight leg independently and have no concept of round-trip ticketing or connecting flights so baggage must be collected and rechecked even to transfer between flights booked at the same time on the same airline. Although there are many point-to-point airlines, most have at least a "homebase" airport where most flights originate or depart. The United States airport system was point-to-point, controlled by CAB, until deregulation late 1960s/early 1970s, and eventually the 1978 Airline Deregulation Act when they switched to the hub concept, until the advent of low-cost carriers, when point-to-point air transport increased. Some full-service network carriers operate the point-to-point model alongside the hub-and-spoke system for certain high-density routes between focus cities. In Europe, for example, most traditional full-service airlines operate seasonal point-to-point service outside their hubs to serve Mediterranean and Alpine holiday resorts.

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