Access an Issue for New Kansas City International Airport Terminal

They knew there would be some kinks with the new $1.5 billion terminal at Kansas City International Airport.

But officials did not think parking and pick up would be among them. Some users at the airport say that parking is a nightmare.

One woman said she waited almost 20 minutes outside to pick up a passenger. But officials with the airport say it is just a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

They say the problem is that too many people are parking in the drop-off lanes instead of just dropping off passengers. It has created backups, some say, that stretch to Interstate 70.

It could be a signage problem or an enforcement problem. Officials have addressed both, Deputy Director of Aviation Justin Meyer says.

“So, if a driver is on the curb and saying, ‘Oh, but they just landed, they’re taxiing in now, or they’re walking to the baggage claim,’ that driver can’t sit there, we don’t have enough space for drivers to just sit and wait,” he says. “That curb front is for active loading only.”