FAA Pushes Back Airport Parking
The Federal Aviation Administration directive to ban all parking within 300 feet of airport terminals has forced some airport authorities to close entire garages, causing serious shortages of parking space.
During the past five years, many airport authorities, eager to increase their lucrative parking revenues and enhance customer convenience, have been moving their car rental facilities farther away from the terminal and replacing them with close-in parking garages. In hindsight of the Sept. 11 disaster, that strategy, which didn't take into account airport security, seems short-sighted. Many of these facilities now are off-limits.
Minneapolis-St. Paul International, for example, has had its parking space reduced by more than half, according to Jim Welna, director of public safety for the Metropolitan Airports Commission, which operates the airport. "The 300-ft. setback applies to 125 feet of two of the four ramps at the airport," he said. Once barricades are in place, marking the sections of the ramps that are off-limits, some of the garage space would be accessible. Nonetheless, the authority is sending a letter to FAA requesting an exemption to the rule and asking the agency to reduce the 300-ft. limit to 175 feet. He added that airport security had been enhanced by the addition of blast-reduction film to the glass sheathing of the terminal.
Parking at Dallas-Fort Worth International has been reduced by a third, with 1,000 spaces off-limits, said spokeswoman Tina Sharp. She added that business travelers shouldn't be too affected, since the restrictions are limited to one-hour parking. However, the financial impact on the airport could be severe, as "parking is the number-one revenue source" at DFW, Sharp said.
New Orleans International has lost almost two-thirds of its parking space, although once barricades are set up, half of that amount will be restored to use, leaving about 1,000 spaces off limits. "We have constant shuttles going back and forth to the remote lot," said a spokesperson. And at Boston's Logan airport, the garage at Terminal B is completely closed—putting 2,400 spaces out of commission. Central garages at San Francisco and Los Angeles airports also have been shut down.
Beyond the fact that travelers have to park farther away from the terminal and, hence, may have to allow a few more minutes for parking, the garage closings are not a critical inconvenience yet, since so few people are traveling. But once travel picks up, the lack of space could be a serious problem. Meanwhile, airport authorities are encouraging people to use alternative means of transportation—taxis, hotel shuttle buses, chauffeured sedans—to get to the airport.
The new rules also are causing logistical problems for the car services companies as well. FAA is allowing chauffeured vehicles to stop at the curb only to drop someone off; they cannot wait in the vehicle for an arriving passenger. "We lost more parking because the barricades have been moved back at Newark, JFK and LaGuardia," said David Seelinger, president of Empire International in Norwood, N.J., adding that construction at Newark already had limited space. "It's even more challenging to meet a traveler when they come off a flight." Empire, like some of its competitors, is using more "meet and greet" airport concierges to help guide arriving passengers from the terminal to their cars.
Another inconvenience, Seelinger said, is random vehicle inspections by police. The checks can take up to 10 minutes, causing more airport delays for travelers. He said the checks have caused his company to add another hour to the pick-up time, with trips entailing a one-hour drive to Newark now requiring three hours of a traveler's time, once the extra hour required to get through the airport also is figured in.
At some airports, drop-offs and pick-ups are restricted to the parking lot, from which point customers must be bused to the terminal, said Scott Solombrino, president and CEO of Dav El Chauffeured Transportation Network in Chelsea, Mass. He added the situation further is complicated by the fact that procedures vary among airports. Plus, "in New York, they keep changing the rules. A lot of airports have been criticized for not being tight enough, some for being too difficult." Until the situation stabilizes, travelers should allow ample time not only to check in, but also to get to the terminal.