Traffic in and out of McCarran International Airport fell yet again in November. In the largest percentage drop this  year, the number of passengers fell by over 125,000, or 14.7 percent fewer than November of 2007. U.S. Airways again was the hardest hit seeing passengers fall by 31.4 percent. McCarran’s most prolific carrier, Southwest, took the second largest hit with numbers dropping by 10 percent.

Finally, a good number to report here on Vital Stats. As you already know from the last time you were at the pump, gas prices are falling even faster than gaming revenue! In Las Vegas, gas fell 52 cents just in the past month alone and is $1.30 cheaper than this time last year according to the American Automobile Association. They also reported that as of December 9th, gas prices had fallen for 82 days in a row.Lets hope that cheap gas will have some simulating effect in getting people on the road for a vacation to Las Vegas. If you want to see the best deals on gas in your area, head on over to the LasVegasNOW Gas Tracker … we even have a version you can use on your cell phone. 

But the real story is how gaming revenue fell off a cliff in October. For Clark County as a whole, gaming revenue was down 25.3% from October of 2007. That is a fall from just over $1 billion last year to $757 million this year – a staggering fall.Other numbers released in the October Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority report are just as grim. Total airline passengers are down 12.8%, hotel occupancy levels are down 8.5%, average room rate down 14.3%, auto traffic down 6.3%. Does anyone see light at the end of the tunnel?