Airports Contribute $36.7 Billion Annually Statewide

A new study details the economic impact of regional airports on the state.  KRCC’s Kate Dunn reports.

The study comes from the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Aeronautics Division.  It shows while payroll and economic output continue to rise, the total number of jobs has fallen below 2003 levels.

Credit CDOT: 2013 Economic Impact Study for Colorado Airports

The Denver International Airport is the major driver statewide, but Jeffery Forrest of CDOT's Aeronautical Board says Southern Colorado’s airports play a unique and crucial role.

There are a lot of folks in agriculture and ranching, oil and gas, mining that have aircraft that need to be able to operate in and out of certain types of areas…and we need to be sensitive to those needs and make sure that those airports are sustained so that they have got the infrastructure that will keep them viable for the needs of those economic segments. 

Statewide, airports provide over 265,000 jobs, an annual payroll of $12.6 billion and a total economic output of $36.7 billion. The Colorado Springs Municipal Airport contributes nearly $3.7 billion dollars annually to the state’s economy.