HubExpress Suspends Norwood-to-Logan Helicopter Shuttle-August 7, 1990

⠀Cite Due Low Ridership, Parking, and Equipment Shortages

Business travelers who once soared by helicopter from Boston’s southern suburbs directly to Logan International Airport are officially back on the roads, following the suspension of local air service. HubExpress Airlines Inc.—which originally launched its Norwood-to-Logan helicopter shuttle in January 1989—halted the service in early July, citing disappointing ridership figures alongside persistent shortages of parking and equipment. Company officials announced yesterday that while southern suburban helicopter runs could resume as early as September, they might not return to Norwood Airport. “Norwood certainly remains a viable option. It’s not the only option we have,” said George Kean, chairman and chief executive officer of HubExpress, adding that the firm is taking a broader strategic look at potential sites like Quincy, Braintree, or a dedicated Route 128 heliport.

HubExpress originally established the service to capture business travelers frustrated by crippling traffic jams in the East Boston tunnels leading to Logan. While company president Morris “Rhett” Flater noted that overall ridership climbed from roughly 800 passengers a month last year to about 2,500 a month in the first half of 1990, the vast majority of that traffic stemmed from the company’s primary route linking Boxboro to Logan with stops in Burlington and Waltham. In contrast, ridership originating from Norwood accounted for only about 10 percent of total business. Although standard peak rush-hour one-way fares reached up to $79, airline tie-ins frequently reduced the cost to between $20 and $25.

Operational hurdles heavily contributed to the sudden pullout from Norwood. Operating with a fleet of only two helicopters, HubExpress was frequently forced to divert its Norwood aircraft to cover the Boxboro route during routine maintenance, occasionally leaving passengers stranded and requiring van transportation to Logan instead of flights. Furthermore, severe parking limitations plagued the Norwood terminal, which offered only about a dozen dedicated spaces at its north end and prohibited overnight parking for security reasons, while a 150-space public lot sat a third of a mile away. Airport Manager Thomas Maher praised the airline’s operational conduct, noting that pilots carefully followed flight paths along commuter rail tracks away from residential neighborhoods and that the airport “actually never received a single noise complaint” during the 18 months of operation. Thomas Judge, chairman of the Norwood Airport Commission, stated that the ball remains in HubExpress’s court to propose solutions for the terminal’s parking bottlenecks when both parties meet in the fall.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger