Details

As they say, the devils in the details - the HOW to do something.  Airships can make possible point to point travel, and vertical take off and landing.  Helicopters can do this but are dangerous and noisy with their huge whirling blades, expensive both to buy and maintain, and complex which makes them high maintenance. They are not practical, not the realistic solution to creating a safe reliable  cheap transportation system. 

Airships have one major problem - vulnerability to weather, to wind. Their huge bulk is a problem.  How can it be dealt with?  In the early days of airships the solution was  just - not fly, stay tethered, or in the hangar (vast hangars).  Powerful engines also helped with later airships, but they needed to be handled very carefully, especially near the ground on takeoff and landings. 

How can this problem be overcome?

Hybrid airships are one answer, use of dynamic lift along with the static lift of lifting gas. Wings, modest wings can provided dynamic lift, along with an aerodynamic hull shape allowing the hull of an airship to be smaller and therefore less wind sensitive. and also stay on the ground when landed, not so subject to the buoyancy of static lift (lift of the gas).  Another solution is varying the shape of the ship - narrower when winds are strong. 

And as will be discussed shortly, landing takeoff 'harbor' airship ports can be created as safe havens in bad weather.