Expressways link major cities in Sri Lanka. Upgraded road conditions and quick access to travel lend greater efficiency to the transportation system. Higher efficiency and accessibility expand economic opportunities within the country. People are more likely to use the road transportation due to easy access and high level of provision compared to domestic air transport mode. These factors have been enhanced with the expansion of expressway network while reducing travel time. Considering the competitiveness between land and air travel modes. It appears that the huge cost savings associated with use of land transport may pose a threat to domestic air travel. Alternative modes give a choice to the traveller. As they encounter mode choice opportunities, their travel preferences may not remain the same. Mode choice analysis can be done based on various parameters. (Espino & Carlos, 2007) highlights the importance of including service quality variables when assessing transport services [1]. It also mentions that, according to the trip purpose like business and other non-leisure motives, the willingness to pay for time savings differ. A study (Can, 2013) has been done to find characteristics and attributes that influence domestic tourists’ modal selection [2]. The said study provides a number of important findings which are significant in explaining tourists’ modal choice decision such as travel time per kilometre, travel cost to income ratio, mode quality variables and income. Understanding tourists’ modal choice behaviour may help tourism transport companies to develop appropriate marketing strategies (Can, 2013). (Park & Ha, 2006) shows that air transport services found that competing effectively in the short-haul transport market (distances of 500 km or less) is very difficult compared to high-speed rail [3]. (Chou, Aviation, & Management, 2006) points out there is a 79.8% ratio of the air passengers are willing to transfer to high-speed rail [4]. Tourism growth is anticipated to continue. There is an indirect relationship between tourism growth and demand for domestic air services. Factors influencing this include the nature and characteristics of Sri Lankan tourists, air preference for tourist destinations, the supply of domestic air services, and the availability of alternative transport options (Asia, 2016) [5]. Large airports are not essential to domestic travel in Sri Lanka. There are many waterdromes which are successful in operation. According to Cinnamon Air, their boarding time is 15 minutes while tourists should be at the terminal 30 minutes before departure. Those figures show that a relatively short span of time is needed for terminal procedures. Further the Cinnamon Air route map shows that various domestic airports and waterdromes are providing a vast service spread through increased accessibility. Significant deviations from other countries such as many waterdromes, variety of natural places around the country and weather changes within the country which provide positive signs to the domestic aviation in Sri Lanka.

Abeysinghe, W.A.M.R.P., & Bentotage, S.N. (2018). Tendency to shift from domestic air travel to road travel after the expansion of expressways in Sri Lanka [Extended Abstract]. In T.L. Gunaruwan (Ed.), Proceedings of 3rd International Conference on Research for Transport and Logistics Industry 2018 (pp. 71-76). Sri Lanka Society of Transport and Logistics.