Oakland Airport’s ‘San Francisco’ rebrand has failed to reverse plunging passenger numbers

The controversy over the Oakland airport’s addition of San Franisco to its name brought headlines, but not travelers, even during the typically frenzied holiday season. 

Passenger traffic at OAK (now officially known as Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport) dropped steeply over the past year, even as air travel nationwide held steady and its rival to the west seeing record numbers. 

The naming controversy generated publicity and a tiff with San Francisco International Airport, but not the desired increase in traffic. In the 12 months through September 2025, approximately 8.2 million people passed through OAK for domestic flights — 1.8 million, or 17%, fewer than in the previous year, according to federal data (opens in new tab). Passenger traffic was down 15.5% (opens in new tab) in the first three quarters of 2025.

International travel showed a bump, but with limited routes to only Mexico and El Salvador.

The drop at OAK is happening as domestic travel around the country has remained flat, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (opens in new tab).

In fact, Oakland’s decline in the first half of 2025 was the worst of all 93 major U.S. airports, according to LocalsInsider.com (opens in new tab). The second-sharpest drop was at Chicago’s Midway, which was 12.9% off from the previous year.

The decline in passengers isn’t tied to fewer flights being offered. OAK data shows just 56 fewer so-called “airplane movements” through September compared with last year, a negligible 0.03% decrease out of more than 153,000 flights.

The Port of Oakland, which operates the airport, says people aren’t traveling for work anymore. 

“Like all of the industry, the decline at OAK can be attributed to the decline in business travel,” said Kaley Skantz, a port spokesperson.

But Collin Czarnecki, who leads Locals Insider’s research on airlines, ties the troubles to a larger industry trend: the death of the middle-class airport. 

“Overall, the ‘why’ is sort of this bigger picture,” he said. “Secondary hubs and midsize airports are seeing a lot of change with low-cost carriers.”

Despite the declines, OAK is moving forward with a major makeover and adding 16 gates because of a previous forecast (opens in new tab) that annual passenger levels would reach 24.7 million in 2038. Current traffic has yet to match 2019 levels. 

Meanwhile, for San Francisco’s airport, the outlook is sunny. 

With its nonstop flights to the East Coast, Europe, and Asia, SFO is in a different class. The airport showed 5.1% growth in 2025 from 43.5 million to 45.7 million passengers, according to its own data (opens in new tab). SFO also boasted that it had its busiest Thanksgiving travel season on record. OAK officials said they lacked the daily data to analyze Thanksgiving traffic.

SFO representatives attribute the gains to the airport’s  mix of domestic and international flights and business and leisure travelers. 

“Drilling down further, the diversity of our international service is a real advantage, as our fortunes aren’t tied strictly to the performance of one specific market,” SFO spokesperson Doug Yakel said.

Business owners near OAK say they don’t get much lift from their proximity to the travel hub. Alan Liang, who owns a Mexican restaurant, a burger joint, a towing company, and an auto repair shop in a plaza along Hegenberger Road, said about 95% of his customers are blue-collar workers with jobs nearby. 

“I never came across anyone who said, ‘I’m here in town and came to get a bite,’” said Liang. Crime has scared away customers and led to the closure of chain restaurants like In-N-Out Burger, Black Bear Diner, and Denny’s.

“A few decades ago, Hegenberger primarily benefited from the traffic flow from the airport,” he said. “It’s extremely hard for me to believe that today.”

The fortunes of Oakland’s airport are intertwined with the popularity of Southwest Airlines, which accounts for 83.3% of OAK’s passengers, according to federal statistics. Spirit Airlines had been the airport’s second-largest carrier, with nearly 6% of travelers, but the company in October pulled out of Oakland (opens in new tab), as well as San Jose.

To stabilize its position and grow, OAK should strive to become a hub for a major airline like Delta or American, according to Linchi Kwok, a Cal Poly Pomona professor who specializes in travel and tourism. 

“It would bring a lot more traffic and draw customers who are loyal to the airline,” said Kwok. “Everyone can benefit from healthy competition.”