The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Airport aims to improve infrastructure
Plans include better cell signals, adding jobs to manage flow.
Hartsfield-Jackson International is asking for Atlanta city council approval to add 28 positions to its staff to handle more Uber and Lyft vehicles at the airport, manage traffic around construction, prepare for crowds for big events like the Super Bowl, bolster its command center to respond to issues and expand in other areas.
The Atlanta airport also plans to bolster the cellular signal in outdoor areas including parking decks, jet bridges, taxiways and ramp areas by expanding its digital antenna system. Some travelers have encountered problems with getting a cellular signal when getting picked up by Uber or Lyft at the air- port. The airport plans to relocate the Terminal North pick-up area for Uber and Lyft to a location closer to the terminal later this year.
“The new location is going to be markedly closer
and easy to navigate,” said Hartsfield-Jackson general manager Roosevelt Council during an airport budget briefing for city council last week.
To better manage ground transportation, security, traffic and other areas, the airport is seeking approval for a budget including 12 more positions for the vehi-cle-for-hire department and six more positions inground transportation.
Construction is “having an effect on our ability to manage traffic flow,” Council said. “We need to have a little bit more personnel to manage that.”
Big events like the Super Bowl will “really put some pressure, in addition to construction on those curbsides, [to] be able to keep those passengers moving and get them onto planes,” Council said.
The airport also plans to add positions in other departments, including two positions in the office of the general manager and three positions at its Centralized Command & Control Center.
Council said the command center allows the airport “to respond quickly to any event that happens around the airport. That’s kind of a 24-hour situation for us.”