OAKLAND — Air travel is in crisis across the country due to staffing shortages and long lines, but the Oakland airport is struggling with the opposite problem: lines that aren’t long enough.
New data show the Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport — as it is now known after a controversial rebrand a couple years ago — lost 15% of its passenger volume in 2025 from the year prior, with overall traffic reaching just 69% of pre-COVID-19 levels, according to a new economic report released earlier this week.
By both metrics, the airport’s passenger trends are lagging behind not just the biggest California airports like San Francisco and Los Angeles, but also those of comparable size, such as San Jose, and even smaller spots like Burbank, Ontario and Long Beach.
The latest data was published in the Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce’s yearly economic indicators report, which offered an overall bleak picture of the Bay Area economy, including declining buying power among residents and deepening office vacancies in the city.
It offers a worrying outlook for the airport off Interstate 880 even as its locally based Transportation Security Administration staff have helped avoid the long passenger wait times that are plaguing major airports around the country.
Ongoing travel restrictions and a partial government shutdown under the Trump administration have led the Federal Aviation Administration to order a cutback on flights. Major airlines, such as Mexico-based Volaris, have scaled back service at Oakland while foreign travelers are coming to the U.S. less frequently overall.
“I feel that our travel will come back,” said Craig Simon, the director of aviation for the Port of Oakland, which manages the city’s airport. “There’s a major geopolitical situation happening, and we need to let it play out.”
Travelers head to the checkpoint entrance at the Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Dec.20, 2024. Thousands of holiday travelers begin the winter break this weekend. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
But the problems likely extend beyond the ripple effects of White House policymaking. Customer satisfaction at Oakland’s major air travel hub ranked in the lowest quadrant among 27 large airports studied last year by research firm J.D. Power.
Oakland’s counterpart to the south, the San Jose Mineta International Airport, has similarly struggled to retain pre-pandemic passenger volume. Meanwhile, Ontario, a much smaller airport in Southern California, surged to 127% of its previous volume last year.
Research indicates the Bay Area’s uniquely shaped post-COVID economy is partially to blame, with a 2023 study finding that half of all the jobs here being “remote-eligible” led the region’s business travel patterns to decline further than in other areas.
The chamber report similarly notes that “both resident and visitor demand for air travel in the Bay Area remains weaker than other regions of the state,” suggesting, among other factors, an “oversupply of service in a highly competitive regional market.”
Other airports in Northern California — including in Sonoma, Monterey and Fresno counties — have grown their services significantly in recent years, the report states.
As with other flailing industries, airports across the country have begun shifting focus to user experience, betting that more people would be willing to fly if they have a comfortable time going through security, waiting to board and claiming their bags.
Simon, who joined the port in 2023 after 11 years at the San Jose airport, is doing the same: He ordered a number of changes upon taking the job, including a renovation of the ticketing counters and restrooms in the airport’s Terminal 1.
The airport has also welcomed 14 new restaurants with existing locations around town, including Forge Pizza, A16 Pizzeria and the sandwich spot Southie, as well as retail store Oaklandish and coffee shop Farley’s East.
Travelers exit after arriving at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group) (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Spirit Airlines withdrew from Oakland airport last year amid Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to the chamber report, but last October the airport announced new service to San Diego via Alaska Airlines.
The airport is also paying airlines directly, reimbursing companies for their costs in marketing new flight routes and drawing passengers to Oakland. The incentive program offers a brand-new airline $250,000 just for showing up.
Simon hopes these measures will win back passengers after losing the “bread-and-butter” model of business travel within the state.
The city’s leaders and economic boosters, for their part, have hammered home the idea that the Oakland airport boasts a faster entry-and-exit experience than San Francisco, and that its parking lot is a short walk across the street from the front entrance.
“It remains a very convenient and accessible airport,” Barb Leslie, CEO of the city chamber of commerce, said in an interview. “It’s just a great location.”
Shomik Mukherjee is a reporter covering Oakland. Call or text him at 510-905-5495 or email him at shomik@bayareanewsgroup.com.