Teething troubles mar Day 1 of overstay charges at Bengaluru airport T1

Bengaluru: The overstay charges imposed at the arrival kerbsides at Terminal 1 (T1) of the Kempegowda International Airport on Saturday, triggered teething problems throughout the day, leaving passengers fuming about how to get their cabs. 

The new rules, which kicked in around 11 am, bar yellow board vehicles from accessing the arrival gate of T1. 

As per rules, private vehicles will get eight minutes of free stay. They will be charged Rs 150 for 8-13 minutes and Rs 300 for 13-18 minutes.

Vehicles staying beyond 18 minutes will be towed to the nearest police station, with fines added.

Commercial vehicles must wait at designated parking zones, where they will get 10 minutes of complimentary parking. After that, cab drivers will have to pay Rs 150 for a half-hour slot. 

To begin with, the biggest change a passenger/driver is to notice while approaching the arrivals gate of T1 is the segregated entry points.

With security officials and airport staff guarding the entry, it is ensured that no yellow board is allowed to enter the Arrivals and are directed to the dedicated parking zones for the terminal — P3 and P4. 

With the newly enforced rules, the Arrivals premises remain much calmer — free of overcrowding taxis and loud hollers from pestering drivers, a complaint which was often raised by flyers.

Now, with just one portion dedicated to airport taxis, all three lanes remain free for private vehicles. Patrolling vehicles, both in-house and police, have been appointed to ensure smooth operations. 

Confusion all around 

Despite the Bengaluru International Airport Limited’s best efforts to place signage across the premises, make regular announcements about changes and deploy personnel to guide flyers, passengers arriving at the terminal remain confused about how to access taxis. 

While there are dedicated pickup zones for airport authorised aggregators such as Airport Taxi, Uber, Ola, Quick Ride, OHM electric cabs, Uber Black and WTI cabs, to access any other yellow board vehicles, one will need to walk to the allotted parking zone — which is located at a distance of about 15-20 minutes from the Arrivals. 

Passengers perplexed

Several passengers were left perplexed, waiting at the gate, wondering why their taxi hadn’t arrived to pick them up yet. Most senior citizens found the walk to the parking zone exhausting.

While buggies are available on the premises, along with facilities like elevators and escalators, lack of awareness was a problem for many. A 70-year-old visiting from Delhi was bewildered by the mismanagement.

“I booked the porter service because I needed assistance as I’m recovering from hip surgery. But the porter ended up causing me more trouble. He told me I had to walk as all the buggies were busy. After reaching the parking lot, he tells me that we could’ve just taken the elevator. I was furious,” she
told DH. 

While several buggies could be seen moving around the premises, the ground staff too remained unaware of how or where to hail one. K V Pradeep, 77, too had to walk the distance after not being offered a buggy.

“It would be ideal if they made some exceptions for senior citizens, parents with young kids and the differently abled. The sudden change in rules not only feels inconvenient, but also impractical. We’re having to drag five big trolleys and two toddlers. No one wants to do this at the end of their journey,” said G Prashanth, who was travelling with his mother and two kids. 

The same rules were enforced at Terminal 2 (T2) on Friday. However, as the change in operations remains minimal at T2, it is smoother there compared to T1. 

Signs put up across Terminal 1 at KIA.