In this April photo, airport security officer Raymond Browning patrols the passenger drop-off and pick-up zone at Redmond Airport. The airport is adding 30 minutes of free parking to try to ease congestion at the drop-off area.Â
Clayton Franke covers growth, development and transportation for
The ÅÝֱܽ²¥. A graduate of the University of Oregon's School of
Journalism and Communication, Clayton joined The ÅÝֱܽ²¥ in 2024.
He was born and raised in Missoula, Montana.Â
In this April photo, airport security officer Raymond Browning patrols the passenger drop-off and pick-up zone at Redmond Airport. The airport is adding 30 minutes of free parking to try to ease congestion at the drop-off area.Â
Redmond Airport’s exponential growth comes with a vexing side effect: the line of cars waiting to scoop up travelers can stretch a quarter mile, nearly blocking the airport’s entrance.
Airport managers hope free parking will be a simple remedy.
Starting Monday, the airport gave visitors 30 minutes of free parking in the main lot, a policy change intended to ease congestion and provide convenient options for picking up and dropping off passengers.
“We continue to be very busy,†said Airport Director Zachary Bass.
Increased passenger vehicle traffic at the airport has paralleled growth in the number of flights touching down on Redmond’s runways — especially since the airport added a direct flight to Dallas in May, Bass said. The airport will see 1.3 million passengers this year, a 165% increase from 10 years ago, according to Bass. That equates to hundreds of cars per hour during busy periods.
Some customers have noticed tighter enforcement of federal regulations prohibiting idling at the curb in the pick-up and drop-off areas. Those rules, intended to prevent a clog of cars, won’t change, Bass said.
He hopes 30 minutes of free parking will give some drivers the incentive to use one of the 1,200 parking spaces in the airport’s main lot, especially for people who might need extra time to help their passengers.
Those who choose to park will save a maximum of $1. That’s how much the airport charged previously for the first half hour of parking. For any time beyond that, the fee structure will remain the same: $1 for the second half hour, $2 for each subsequent hour and $24 per day.
Clayton Franke covers growth, development and transportation for
The ÅÝֱܽ²¥. A graduate of the University of Oregon's School of
Journalism and Communication, Clayton joined The ÅÝֱܽ²¥ in 2024.
He was born and raised in Missoula, Montana.Â
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