Hollywood Burbank Airport considers reconfiguring passenger pick-up locations
Since the advent of transportation-network companies, such as Lyft, Uber and Wingz, Hollywood Burbank Airport has had to figure out where ride-sharing drivers can make their drop-offs and pick-ups.
TNC vehicles currently clog the ground level of the airport’s parking structure and the curb in front of the terminal. However, officials may have a solution that could relieve traffic congestion.
Airport staff discussed with the operations and development committee of the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority on Monday the possibility of reconfiguring what types of activity occur at the three concrete islands found between the curb in front of the terminal and the parking structure.
Currently, any type of vehicle can make passenger drop-offs at the curb in front of the terminal. However, there are different locations for specific services where pick-ups can be made.
At the first island, closest to the curb, pick-ups can be made by airport parking shuttles and courtesy vehicles. Shuttles from hotels and motels and door-to-door services, such as Prime Time and Super Shuttle, pick up passengers at the second island. The third island, which is just outside the valet area, is reserved for taxis.
Ride-sharing drivers are currently required to pick up passengers from the ground level of the parking structure. Those who attempt to make pick-ups at the curb could be fined.
To better streamline the pick-up process, authority staff suggested changing the operations at the first and second islands. Door-to-door shuttles and ride-sharing drivers are proposed to be relocated to the first island, while airport parking lot shuttles and courtesy vehicles would move to the second island.
Pick-ups from hotel and motel shuttles would remain at the second island and taxis pick-ups would stay at the third island. The proposed plan would eliminate any pick-up activity in the parking structure.
Because there is a geofence around the airport that tracks when a ride-sharing driver enters and leaves the facility, the airport has been charging the transportation-network companies $3 for every drop-off made at the curb. However, the authority was not doing the same for pick-ups in the structure and, instead, has ride-sharing drivers pull tickets and pay a $3 fee, said Denis Carvill, the airport’s deputy executive director of engineering, maintenance, operations and airline relations.
Carvill said with the geofence in place, the airport can move the pick-up activity by transportation-network companies to the island and charge the companies for every pick-up made.
He added that ride-sharing drivers cannot make a drop-off and pick-up at the same time. Every time a pick-up or drop-off is made, the driver must exit the airport and enter again to perform a new transaction.
anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com
Twitter: @acocarpio
