Airport Check-in: San Jose gets street-level ticketing lobby
— -- WHAT'S NEW
Mineta San Jose in California has opened a new street-level ticketing lobby at Terminal A, used by Southwest luv, American amr, Hawaiian and Mexicana airlines.
The lobby, part of a broader $1.3 billion terminal improvement project, expands the number of ticketing stations by 60%, the airport says. Counters and kiosks are common-use capable, meaning airlines can share them depending on traffic and capacity. The street curb is also longer.
The space vacated by the old upstairs ticket counters will be cleared for an expanded security checkpoint that will be completed this fall. The number of lanes will increase from six to eight in November, and will eventually reach 12. SJC's improvement program also calls for a new Terminal B that will replace the aging Terminal C. Terminal B's concourse will open this summer, while the rest of the terminal will be completed next summer.
After strong opposition from airlines, the Department of Transportation said last week it will cancel plans for slot auctions at New York-area airports.
The initial proposal, announced in October, sought to reduce congestion and delay in the region by withdrawing takeoff and landing times from airlines operating at New YorkJohn F. Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty and auctioning the slots to the highest bidder. It also called for caps on the number of flights per hour at the airports. Due to litigation and a court-ordered stay, the auctions had not started.
The DOT noted in a statement that "the rulemaking was highly controversial and that most of those filing comments opposed the slot auctions." The slowing economy was also a factor in the decision, it says. Trade groups for airlines and airports applauded the decision.
Dallas/Fort Worth says it will launch a mobile-device website today. Easier to access on smartphones than DFW's regular website, it will include a flight tracker and a feature that lets people find services near their gate.
The board of directors of BART, the Bay Area's rail system, voted last week to fund a project to link BART's Coliseum Station and the Oakland Airport. The Oakland Airport Connector would cost about $500 million and would use $70 million in federal stimulus money. The 3.2-mile elevated people mover, which would replace the current bus connection, is scheduled to enter service in 2013.
Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta feature live jazz music in the main atrium Monday through May 29. The event primarily features local jazz artists.
U.S. Airports are lobbying for a higher cap on the so-called passenger facility charge, which is used to pay for construction projects. Currently, the cap on the fee, which is paid by consumers when they buy tickets, is $4.50 per passenger. But airports say raising the cap to $7.50 — and indexing future increases to inflation — is needed to finance rising construction costs. Airports collected about $2.7 billion from the passenger charges in 2008.
FACTS AND FIGURES
• .S. airlines collected $1.15 billion in baggage fees in 2008, according to the Department of Transportation. To generate more revenue, airlines began imposing luggage-check fees in early 2008, which typically range from $15 to $25 per bag. American Airlines collected the most, $278 million, followed by US Airways ($187 million), Delta ($177 million), United ($133 million), Northwest, which merged with Delta in 2008 ($121 million) and Continental ($97 million).
• The number of scheduled domestic and international passengers on U.S. airlines in February 2009 fell 11.8% to 49.8 million from a year ago, says the DOT's Bureau of Transportation Statistics. It was the largest decrease from the same month of the previous year since December 2001 and the lowest monthly total since January 2004.