Cleveland and San Francisco both opened consolidated rental car facilities in 1998 and since then th

The wave of airports building centralized rental car centers now reaches Atlanta, where a new facility opens Tuesday with one major benefit over many others: A SkyTrain straight from the main terminal.
For the past decade airlines across the country have consolidated rental car company lots into a single facility. Instead of each rental car company running buses through the airport and each company having its own lot, busing is shared, car company counters and cars are side-by-side and valuable real estate around airports is freed up.
Atlanta says its facility and elevated train will open together. The train ride will be five minutes to the 67.5-acre facility just west of the Airport. Atlanta Aviation General Manager Ben DeCosta says the train will take 125 rental car shuttle buses off the streets, easing congestion at the terminal. About 2 million passengers rent cars in Atlanta each year.
Cleveland and San Francisco both opened consolidated rental car facilities in 1998 and since then they have opened in Albuquerque, ocean city new jersey vacation rentals Baltimore, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Kansas City, Fort Lauderdale and other major airports. More are planned, such as Miami, San Jose, Memphis and New Orleans.
The centers have sparked some controversy over the years. Some travelers complain they raise rental car rates when airports pass on the costs of gleaming new facilities; others find themselves with longer bus rides to remote facilities. But there is some convenience to consolidating the shuttle buses, and not having to wait while every other car rental company comes by except the one you booked. (Why does it always seem to work that way?) And it can be easier to get in and out of the bigger central facility than a rental car lot wedged into a crowded airport neighborhood.
Error message Name We welcome thoughtful comments from readers. Please comply with our guidelines . Our blogs do not require the use of your real name. Comment Comments (5 of 8) View all Comments 1:11 pm December 11, 2009 RussK wrote :
Convenience yes, but for the rental companies, not hte travellng public. I like being dropped off at my car and not walking 1/3 mi. from the consolidated bus drop off point to my car (yes, that is DFW and MCI at least). Yes, it does help getting the busses off the roads so for the other drivers its good.
My home airport is PHX, most of the time I see 2 or 3 rental busses lined up at terminal 4 so you can get right on and wait until they have a full load or roughly 10 minutes, ocean city new jersey vacation rentals which ever comes first. It really doesn t save time for the traveller sitting on the bus. And late at night when only 1 bus services the whole airport, who do you call if you wait and wait? At least ATL has the SkyTrain which is on a regular schedule.
I only fly a couple of times a year, but it s always from ATL. I always drive myself and park at the airport. Getting all of those rental company shuttle busses serving out-of-towners out of the locals way will cut down significantly the time it takes to get to your flight. I m sure it ll be quicker for the rental car customers too with only one lot to go to, and not having to loop back and forth around the airport because you missed the poorly marked lot you were looking for.
I think the consolidated facilities are great because they reduce the number of shuttle busses and should reduce rental car company costs. ocean city new jersey vacation rentals Unfortunately, they rarely reduce the costs paid by consumers. Additionally, they add to the industry s deceptive pricing practices because they quote a low rate, then later add in consolidated facility ocean city new jersey vacation rentals and shuttle charges ocean city new jersey vacation rentals (which were covered under under their quoted price when they provided the service).
Nobody has a gun to your head to rent a car, dude. Take the bus, take a taxi, walk. I ve been to the same airports you have. I find consolidated facilities to be very convenient. As far as the other taxes? Sure, you have a point. And that the rental ocean city new jersey vacation rentals car companies haven t been able to pressure local governments indicates a failure ocean city new jersey vacation rentals on their part. But again, you are the consumer, you chose to rent the car.
Having experienced SFO, BWI, MCI, DFW, Houston, and others. I can t count the hours that I ve lost either ocean city new jersey vacation rentals waiting for the shuttle ocean city new jersey vacation rentals or riding to what seems to be the next county. And for that convenience and delay, the city gets to charge me extra money.
Scott McCartney writes The Middle Seat every Thursday. The Wall Street Journal s Travel Editor, Scott has been on the airline beat since 1995 long enough to see it go from bust to boom and back to bust. He also writes a blog on travel at The Middle Seat Terminal.
Scott won the Online News Association award for online commentary ocean city new jersey vacation rentals in 2003 for The Middle Seat, the George Polk Award for transportation ocean city new jersey vacation rentals reporting in 2000, and has been honored by the Deadline ocean city new jersey vacation rentals Club and New York s chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Before joining the Journal in 1993, he spent 11 years at The Associated Press.
Scott, a native of Boston and graduate of Duke University, is the author of four books, including ocean city new jersey vacation rentals The Wall Street Journal Guide to Power Travel: How to Arrive with Your Dignity, Sanity, and Wallet Intact, which was published in 2009. He s also an instrument-rated private pilot.
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