The long-awaited train link to New York's John F. Kennedy Airport is on course to open to passengers before the end of the year, cutting the hassle and cost of one of the world's most awkward journeys between a major airport and a city centre, writes Joanna Walters .

The JFK AirTrain could even be launched as early as October if final testing goes smoothly. Trials on the train link resumed in April following a derailment last autumn.

The one-way fare will be $5 (just over £3) for a journey lasting between eight and 12 minutes, depending on which airport terminal you arrive at. It will take passengers to Jamaica in the New York borough of Queens. From there, they can change to the Long Island Rail Road or the Subway. Both go into Manhattan, a journey that will take as little as 45 minutes from airport to Penn Station at 34th Street. There will also be trains to Howard Beach Subway station.

The Subway costs $2 and the various lines connecting to the AirTrain offer routes through Queens and Brooklyn to different points in Manhattan. Most passengers arriving at the airport now take buses, paying from $13 for a single ticket, or taxis costing $35 plus tolls and a tip. This journey can easily take an hour, and up to two in congestion.

Pasquale DiFulco, a spokesman for the New York Port Authority, which is developing the $1.9 billion link, said: 'The issue of trains to JFK has been debated for decades and decades. At last people will not be at the mercy of the road system.' The AirTrain would run 'every few minutes'. The airport now runs free buses to Jamaica, but they are not widely known about, and often get stuck in traffic.

The final launch date for the AirTrain is likely to be announced before the end of the summer.

The new service is expected to accelerate development of check-in facilities, hotels and shopping malls at Jamaica. And it means JFK will finally catch up with Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, which opened its own AirTrain almost two years ago.