Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport’s new parking system will expedite international travelers’ entering and exiting of airport parking areas, making it easier for them to get to their flights and appointments on time, said Katie Stanciel, aviation parking manager.
Scheduled for completion in June, the new parking system is already being implemented in various parking lots around the airport, Ms. Stanciel told GlobalAtlanta.
Components include new automated ticketing machines at parking entrances that count vehicles and display parking space availability. So if a lot is full, a gate will close it off to incoming vehicles, she said. This replaces the current manual counting of available spaces, which is not as accurate, Ms. Stanciel noted.
“We are doing everything we can to accommodate as many customers as we can. We understand the importance of catching a flight,” she said. “With the new system, we can manage spaces more efficiently and get our lots to 99 percent full,” she added.
Security cameras located at entrances will record license plate numbers for increased security as well as accuracy of parking space availability.
Replacing 1980s technology, 40 new “ExpressPay” machines located inside the airport terminal, at airport exit doors and in parking lots will allow customers to pay for parking without going through a cashier.
The ExpressPay stations will have communication options in French, German, Spanish and other languages and will include an intercom for audio communication with customer service representatives if patrons experience difficulties using the system.
The machines allow customers to “pay on foot” and then insert a ticket receipt into an exit machine, so exiting the parking area “should take only about three seconds,” Ms. Stanciel said.
Those who do not use the payment machines can utilize express lanes with exit machines that accept only credit cards for faster exiting of parking areas.
The airport has recently completed a parking master plan that includes future expansion of parking facilities to keep up with continually increasing demand, Ms. Stanciel said.
Some 1,300 additional reserved parking spaces are scheduled to become available in July, she said. The new reserved spaces will be available to only those customers who purchase a reserved parking membership. Members must park at the airport a minimum number of times per year, but those requirements have not yet been determined, according to Ms. Stanciel.
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Reserved parking membership: (404) 530-6725.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport