"Travel surge makes airport parking tricky"

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Travel surge makes airport parking tricky
By Gary Stoller
USA TODAY


Most big U.S. airports expect record parking revenue this year, a strong hint of headaches to come for travelers over Memorial Day weekend and the peak summer travel season that follows.

Garages and lots will fill to capacity or near capacity, and lines to enter or exit may be longer. Parking congestion could cause fliers to park farther from airline terminals, pay more for a premium parking space or miss a flight.

A big number of spaces offers no guarantee for travelers. Dallas/Fort Worth has more parking spaces than any other U.S. airport — about 42,000 — but its lots fill up, says spokesman David Magaa. The airport's north express lot was full on 53 days last year, and two other long-term lots were full on 31 days, he says.

Miami International Airport has only 260 short-term parking spaces, and they fill up every day of the year, says spokesman Marc Henderson.

Adding spaces

Even without the summer crunch, a surge in airline passenger traffic the past few years has slammed the parking facilities at many airports. Many are building additional facilities or looking for creative ways to add spaces. Examples:

   •Denver. The airport last year nearly doubled one lot to 9,000 spaces. Construction begins next month to add 2,000 spaces. "And it probably won't be enough," says spokesman Chuck Cannon. The airport has 38,000 spaces, more than double the number when it opened 11 years ago.

   •Minneapolis-St. Paul. A decision will be made next month whether to move forward with plans to add 4,500 spaces for the Humphrey Terminal, which serves AirTran, Midwest and others. Construction would begin in late summer or early fall and be finished in 2008, says Rick Decker, assistant manager of parking operations.

Last year, short-term parking lots at the airport were closed 52 times, for an average of 66 minutes each time, because all spaces were occupied. Closures this year are on pace to be more frequent and longer. During the first three months of this year, the lots closed 27 times and averaged 98 minutes for each closure, Decker says.

Minneapolis-St. Paul expects record parking revenue of $70 million this year. It is typical of many other big-city airports, where traffic backs up outside parking facilities during peak flight hours. "At 5 to 6:30 a.m. on Monday mornings, five lanes are backed up 20 cars," Decker says.

   •Boston Logan. Boston is adding 2,800 spaces to its old central parking garage. Long-term lots filled up 100 days in 2005, says spokeswoman Danny Levy.

   •Chicago O'Hare. Officials postponed plans to add 13,000 parking spaces when air travel declined after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The expansion is being reconsidered, according to spokeswoman Wendy Abrams, who says O'Hare's $120 million in parking revenue last year was the highest of any airport in the world.

Steve Martin, senior vice president of Airports Council International-North America, the airport trade group, says many airports put parking projects on hold after 9/11.

Now, they "may be in a catch-up mode," he says.

Planning ahead for parking

Ron Goltsch, an electrical engineer who works in Parsippany, N.J., often parks at the Newark, N.J., airport. He says he's been leaving for the airport a bit earlier than normal to ensure a parking space. Monday-morning departures are particularly difficult for parking, he says.

Larry Friedman, an optometrist in Fresno, Calif., often looks outside the airport for his parking — an off-site lot at a hotel that permits long-term parking and has courtesy transportation. "I've even used street parking and taken a city bus from the location to the airport terminal," says Friedman.

Many frequent fliers complain that airport parking rates are too high. Some say the cost for a few days or a week can exceed the price of an airline ticket.

USA TODAY surveyed the airports that handled the most passengers last year. The most expensive parking rate among the busiest 20 airports is at Philadelphia — a $38 daily rate for short-term parking. Washington Dulles has a $36 daily parking charge. New York's JFK, Newark and Los Angeles charge $30 daily in some lots.

Such rates are why Robert Evans, managing director of a Philadelphia consulting company, seldom parks at an airport. He says off-airport parking rates are cheaper than airports' long-term lots, and his travel agent provides discount coupons for off-airport parking.

What U.S. airports that handled the most passengers in 2005 say about their parking capacities
Airport	Short-term spaces		Long-term spaces		Number of days last year that all short-term spaces filled1		Number of days last year all long-term spaces filled2		Weekday hours when short-term lots are most filled		Weekday hours when long-term lots are most filled
Atlanta	3,400		25,376		Undetermined.		Undetermined.		3-5 p.m.		3-5 p.m.
Boston	750		9,750		Less than 10		100		Noon-9 p.m.		8 a.m. Tuesday-6 p.m. Thursday
Charlotte	750		15,925		Most major holidays		Most major holidays		2-3 p.m. Thursdays		3 p.m. Thursdays
Chicago O'Hare	25,848		No distinction with long term.		0		0		10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays at terminal garage.		8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays at economy lots
Dallas/Fort Worth	1,962		40,048		0		0		10 a.m.-6 p.m.		9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Thursday
Detroit	700		17,800		0		0		Noon-8 p.m.		Noon
Denver	203		37,563		1		0		10 a.m.-1 a.m.		Varies by lot; morning to late evening at most
Houston George Bush Intercontinental	25,652		No distinction.		0		0		1-10 p.m. Wednesday through Friday		1-10 p.m. Wednesday through Friday
Las Vegas	900		7,910		Some days during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays		8		8 p.m.-midnight		8 a.m.-6 p.m.
Los Angeles	8,662		11,439		0		0		7-11 p.m.		8-11 p.m.
Miami	260		7,600		365		Thanksgiving holiday		1-9 p.m.		Noon-5 p.m.
Minneapolis-St. Paul	1,479		16,140		52		66		9 a.m.-2 p.m.		Noon Tuesday-noon Thursday
New York JFK	5,905		9,536		0		0		4-7 p.m.		7 a.m.-3 p.m.
Newark, N.J.	13,152		5,595		0		0		7 a.m.-5 p.m.		7 a.m.-7 p.m.
Orlando	9,293		12,295		0		0		5 a.m.- 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday		5-10 a.m., 4-6 p.m.
Philadelphia	690		17,000		Less than 5		10		6 a.m.-11 p.m.		4 a.m.-10 p.m. (garages); midnight-10 p.m. (economy)
Phoenix	9,822		13,504		0		Four or five days a week May-September		10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.		7 a.m.-2 p.m. Fridays
San Francisco	4,673		2,980		0		Every three-day holiday weekend		6 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday		After 6 p.m.
Seattle-Tacoma	1,131		7,241		0		4		5 a.m.-1 p.m.		10 a.m.-1 p.m.
Washington Dulles	2,516		21,280		0		0		3-6 p.m.		Fridays
1 — At some time during a day last year; 2 — At some time during a day last year											Source: USA TODAY research