Taxing times for visitors to airport

Mumbai: Flying in and out of Mumbai airport will now entail paying a levy. But the scene outside the airport's international terminal could be straight out of a construction site. Finding a pre-paid taxi or locating a telephone booth means walking a kilometre-and-a-half during rush hours, and there is only one flight information display board at the arrival section. As a result, those using the terminal are at sea trying to figure their way out.
Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd (MIAL) has promised a dream airport for the city three years hence, but passengers and their relatives using the airport currently find themselves stuck in a labyrinth due to the ongoing construction activity and lack of directions or sign-boards. Benches for those waiting outside arrival terminal 2C are located under the glaring sun. A soft-board with names of airlines scribbled on it is the only guide to the arrival gate. And the new user development fee only makes it worse.
"I have been waiting for over an hour outside the gate with nowhere to sit. There are no announcements about flight arrivals or departures. I have been going back and forth trying to check if my daughter's flight has landed,'' said a 45-year-old Ghatkopar resident.
Another person had to run from pillar to post looking for a pre-paid taxi counter before she was directed by a security guard to a small `opening' on one of the glass walls. The staff at the counter, located inside the terminal, sat facing away from those trying to book a cab.
Officials at the airport said the situation gets worse by evening when passenger traffic is at its peak. Passengers have to walk long stretches with their luggage for a taxi.
09/03/09 Chinmayi Shalya/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Mar 2009