LAX Planning New Car Rental Facility

The Los Angeles Times reports this morning that "Los Angeles International Airport officials are drafting plans to build a terminal that will house many of the area's rental car companies." The hope is that the potential move will make finding a rental car easier for Los Angeles travelers, reduce congestion, and reduce air pollution as well. So how will that be done?

Right now, rental car companies are all throughout the airport. Ten rental car companies are allowed to have their shuttles circle the airport, but others can only run a shuttle when a traveler calls them. With the current system, shuttles for rental car companies run about 800,000 times, and only with a few passengers. It is estimated that a combined facility would reduce trips to 437,000, and a potential light rail extension to the facility might decrease that even more. And that's what will bring about the reduction in air pollution and airport traffic congestion.

Such a move would also be handy for passengers. Let's say that you get to your rental car company of choice, but the line is incredibly long, or they're out of the car you want. Well, it takes another bus ride to get to another car company. Not fun. So that should make things simpler.

Of course, the new facility sounds great, until we get to the money part of things. It's estimated that the new facility will cost about $800 million. The airport has been collecting money for the project by charging $10 per rental for the past few years. That's raised only about $47 million. The airport wants to raise as much money as possible this way because that means there's less debt that needs to be issued. As a result, a daily fee is being suggested to increase that revenue. Of course, some rental companies might be concerned that extra fees might hurt their bottom line.

Anyway, the project is still years away, but it sounds promising as this should make life easier for travelers.

J.D. Power Airport Rankings

Well, last week J.D. Power and Associates released its 2010 report on airport customer satisfaction, and (spoiler alert!) the study found "that the areas with greatest impact on overall passenger satisfaction are speed of baggage delivery; ease of check-in and baggage check; comfort in airport terminals; and the amount of time required for security check."

Not to be harsh, but didn't we already know this? That being said, it's a good reminder for airports that they should be focusing on the basics here. Make sure signage is plentiful, accurate, and easy to understand. Work with the TSA to make an efficient checkpoint.  Free Wi-Fi might be cool, for example, but all that does is make it easy for angry passengers to tweet about how long the security line is.

The report did share a very interesting statistic, however:

The study finds that providing high levels of airport passenger satisfaction has a strong positive impact on retail spending. Among passengers who are "disappointed" with their airport experience (providing ratings of one to five on a 10-point scale), airport retail spending averages $14.12. However, passengers who are "delighted" with their airport experience (providing ratings of 10 on a 10-point scale), spend an average of $20.55 on airport retail purchases-45 percent more than do "disappointed" passengers. Only a small percentage of passengers-9 percent-are "delighted" with their airport experience.

That's a good revenue incentive.

Anyway, let's quickly go over the stats. In the large airport category, Detroit took the top spot and Minneapolis and Denver tied for second. That's certainly good news for Delta passengers, especially those flying on Northwest's network. Personally, I think Denver should've won just for its gorgeous views of the Rockies! Kansas City was the best medium-sized airport, and Indianapolis took the top spot for small airports. (I was quite happy that my home airport, T.F. Green in Rhode Island, ranked 6th in this category.)

You can see how your airport measured up here.

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St. Louis to Get a Makeover

Ah, St. Louis. In the 1980s TWA made it one of its hubs and became the airport's biggest carrier, but the operation has been cut down slowly ever since American acquired TWA in 2001. The next big cut comes on April 5, and after that American will serve less than ten nonstop destinations from the city, essentially making it a glorified spoke in American's system.

Transitioning from a hub is a painful process. There's a huge decrease in passengers, and therefore a proportional decrease in airport revenue. Plus, being a hub can be good for some passengers - having a hub carrier means there's service that the market doesn't demand on its own. Additional service from Southwest is filling the gap a bit, but that won't replace American's large cuts.

So the airport is getting creative. In 2007 the airport announced $105 million of improvements, but that budget has been cut to $70 million (of which $20 million has been spent). The airport will be closing off the B and D concourses - American was the primary user and the airport simply doesn't need the space at this time. So $50 million will be going to renovate the A and C concourses, which are some of the oldest and need the upgrade. Terminal E will continue operating as well, and since it's fairly new it doesn't need any renovations at this point.

Adjusting to life after being a hub isn't exactly a pleasant process, but St. Louis seems to be doing the best it can for its facility right now.

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Win a Mancation from Akron-Canton

I've always been a fan of the folks over at Akron-Canton airport, as they've really been ahead of the curve when it comes to social media. But they also make a fantastic effort of making sure that their passengers and airlines are happy. And part of the latter involves helping to promote new service to the airport to help ensure its success.

The airport's latest efforts involve promoting new nonstop service to Milwaukee (see advertisement above), which is provided by SkyWest airlines as part of their new partnership with AirTran. The flight operates three times a day, and complements existing AirTran service to Atlanta, New York, Boston, and some Florida destinations. Plus, thanks to AirTran's ramping up of Milwaukee service, the new nonstop opens up a bunch of connecting opportunities for CAK flyers.

So, the airport is offering a two-night "mancation" to Milwaukee as part of its advertising strategy. The trip includes hotel, tickets to a Cleveland-Milwaukee NBA game, a spa treatment, tours of the Harley factory and the MillerCoors brewery, and a one-year lease on a Harley motorcyle!

Kudos to Akron-Canton for its continuing creativity. You can enter here.

Vegas Considers Adding a Liquor Store

I've posted here before about how airports have faced lower fee revenue from airlines due to operating flights with smaller aircraft or elimination of service all together. One way to deal with that, as I wrote here, was increase parking rates. Vegas, however, has decided to get more creative by floating the idea of putting in a liquor store near the baggage claim, according to a post on Brett Snyder's BNET blog.

Would we expect anything different from the airport that has slots in the terminal?

But it makes sense. Vegas has been hurting of late. Passengers in 2009 were down 8.2% year-over-year. Remember that nice little America West hub that US Airways acquired? That's pretty much dead. One big cut was the elimination of America West's overnight operation as fuel went up, and US Airways has now decided to focus its efforts in the West on Phoenix.

So, the powers that be have decided that a liquor store would be a good idea to boost its revenue.  Right now, the airport needs approval to start requesting bids on the project. So let's see how this one plays out.

Logan’s Oldest Terminal To Receive Makeover

Well, this seems timely - just as Boston's Logan Airport has received some negative results in an annual J.D. Power & Associates report on airport quality, the board of directors of airport operator Massport has approved $55 million in improvements for Terminal C. That terminal, used by JetBlue, United, and Cape Air, certainly needs it since it's Logan's oldest (built in 1967).

Actually, one of the big changes, a consolidated security checkpoint, has already been approved, and that's especially useful for passengers. Right now, terminal C has two piers, each with its own security checkpoint. That's worked relatively fine since United is the primary user of one, JetBlue the primary user of the other. But JetBlue is now using some of United's old gates, and having to go through security again to get from one JetBlue gate to another is pretty annoying. So the connector makes life easier for travelers, but the new spaces for restaurants and shops that the project will create opens up new revenue opportunities for the airport, too.

The new combined security checkpoint will mean an increase in one security lane for the terminal, and will also be set up to handle body scanning machines that are making their way to Boston.

Anyway, what is new to the project is some aesthetic changes - new lighting, ceilings, and ventilation - and these have been approved by Massport yesterday. Work is set to begin this spring, and is planned to be completed next summer.

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The Ugliest Airports?

JetBlue's T5.

Yesterday, I was interested to read an article from Travel + Leisure that profiled the world's ugliest airports, and, unfortunately a few American airports made the list - New York's JFK, Washington-Dulles, Atlanta, and El Paso. And the magazine is spot-on when it comes to one of the major reasons for this : "the American airports we love to hate all share roughly the same problem: they were built in the 1950s or ‘60s and have been endlessly expanded and renovated to keep up with ever-increasing passenger loads."

That being said, I think it's fair to say that the publication paints in very broad strokes, calling JFK "resolutely hellish," while only making a passing mention of JetBue's new Terminal 5, which has received rave reviews. Nor does it mention which terminals actually present the most problems for travelers (i.e. Delta's terminal). And while the article mentions some coming renovations for some airports, it completely glosses over the new international terminal under construction in Atlanta, instead noting the only positive as, "Somewhere in concourse B there’s a Nestlé’s Cookie Cart."

But while I don't necessarily agree with Travel + Leisure, the article is an interesting read nontheless. Which airports do you think are the ugliest?

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ANA Unveils New Lounge at Narita

I love blogging about airport lounges, so of course I was excited to see ANA's announcement yesterday. The airline is rebranding its ANA Lounge First as the ANA Suite Lounge, which will open on February 20. The lounge is available exclusively for ANA Diamond members and first class passengers.

The biggest change is the addition of new personal rooms that will provide private space for ANA passengers that provide some excellent features that want to stay productive. These include desks, wired and wireless Internet, computers, and 32-inch TVs.

Of course, the great features currently available will remain, such as an open area with sofas, shower facilities, and concierge services.

Yeah, too bad I can't afford first class tickets.

Would You Park in Someone’s Driveway?

It's very common among travelers to look to save money on airport parking, especially when on-airport parking rates appear overpriced. There are, of course, plenty of ways to avoid some costs. Depending on the length of one's trip, a taxi trip might actually be cheaper. Some airports might have very convenient connections to mass transit.

Of course, everyone should first check AboutAirportPakring.com.

But a recent travel column from Sophie Butler of The Daily Telegraph presents another interesting idea - how about parking at someones house? She notes a couple of interesting websites - ParkatMyHouse.com and YourParkingSpace. The two websites essentially do the same thing - homeowners who have spare parking/driveway space can rent it out. It appears to be a win-win - travelers can get access to cheap parking, often near an airport, while providing some extra income for those renting out the spot. The websites, of course, take a commission.

Are you comfortable leaving your car at someone's house? Is it worth the savings?

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Manchester Airport Saves Valentine’s Day

I hope everyone had a happy Valentine's day! Today a friend sent me an interesting story from Reuters about how Manchester Airport in the UK tried to make the holiday a bit brighter for those who were planning to propose over the weekend.

Imagine this - you've booked a fantastic romantic getaway for you and your partner so you can pop the big question in some exotic locale. So, naturally, you try to hide that expensive ring from your other half so it's a complete surprise. But, as you walk through airport security the ring is discovered - in front of your partner. Last time I checked, a security checkpoint isn't all that romantic. (Though I guess there could be possibilities with those new body scanners...?)

Apparently this exact situation has happened often enough that Manchester introduced a special program from the 12th to the 15th (today) to help avoid any awkward marriage proposals. All one has to do is whisper "be my Valentine" to a member of the security staff to receive a private screening.

Though, to avoid this situation, it might be best to put the ring in your checked or carry-on luggage (if it's not shared, of course).

But kudos to Manchester to doing some thing special for the holiday.