Airport pick-ups, Canberra style. Images of Canberra.

creative_canberran said :

http://www.canberraairport.com.au/air_toAndFrom/pickup.cfm

And if you stay longer than 10mins, you simply pay the normal parking rates, so there’s no fines or anything.

The “10 min free parking” bays are not particularly well signposted, for drivers or arrived passengers. Go out to the airport sometime and pretend you have just picked up your baggage. Look for the signs indicating where the pick-up bays are. There is one near the exit, pointing in the direction of the taxi/bus rank. After that you’re on your own.

Now take the point of view of a driver looking to pick up a passenger. You drive in to the airport, there’s a variable message display sitting to the side saying, “PICKUP BAYS ->”. After that the only signs you’ll see are little coreflute boards, no bigger than about A3 or so. They are blue & green background with some three-inch high text proclaiming “pickup bays” – they are not easily visible, and the writing is illegible from a moving car.

The pickup bays themselves have no cover, so you’re SOL if it’s raining. Both Brisbane and Sydney have covered pickup bays, with covered walkways leading to them. In Brisbane there are two or three lanes of traffic – one for taxis/busses, the next for pickup/dropoff (drop off at one end of the road, pickup at the other), the next for cars heading to/from the parking facilities.

Granted, there may be a point in time at which the construction hoarding to the left of the ramp and at the top of the ramp gets taken away and we’ll see a wonderful pickup area unveiled.

In the meantime the signage for the current pickup bays is useless to both passengers and drivers. Sure, if you’re a frequent user of the airport you’ll find the pickup bay because you know where it is.

At the very least, the signage indicating the path to the pickup bays should be black-on-yellow, the same as road-work signs, and be presented with 20cm high letters. The signs should be easily seen and read from a moving car, in order to direct traffic more smoothly.

For the passengers, there should be at least one sign with a map indicating where the pickup bays are actually located. They have a nice map on the web site, all they need to do is print that out and paste it up on a sign just outside the exit, and near the road that the passengers will have to cross (which of course has no pedestrian crossing along its entire length).

I-filed said :

Easy. Three options:
1. Drive to arrivals and develop momentary car trouble. Open bonnet. Your friends jump in, and away you go.
2. Drive to arrivals having instructed your friends to limp. When you get hassled, threaten to sic HREOC onto them
3. Go around the little circle again and again (unless they’ve closed that option off) very slowly, and get your friends to walk down and jump in quickly.

If you’re brazen, you’ll get away with any of the above.

And for the first two you will walk away with a fine from the AFP for driving past a well placed “No Entry – Authorised Vehicles Only” on the round-a-bout exit. Picking up in the round-a-bout as well as the no stopping zone next to the carparks will also land you a fine from the AFP. It is one of their duties (Amongst others) to ensure the free movement of traffic around the airport, so be sure you will get caught (Whether it be the first time, or the second, or the third etc.).

The road next to the multi storey carpark has now been sign as a no stopping zone (Not that it wasn’t obvious before).

I have been told all carparks have the 10 minute grace period as long as you do not place your ticket into the Pay Machine within the 10 minutes. However, we have the cheapest major airport parking in Australia so don’t complain, it could be alot worse. I agree fully with the fact that there is no waiting shelter at the designated 10 minute zone, that is because it was a late after thought. Place in a complaint to CAG at http://www.canberraairport.com.au and they may listen (I Stress may).

Grail said :

There’s cities in Australia where parking for work each day can set you back $30+, so the occasional fee for the airport is comparatively miniscule.

I went to Westfield Belconnen on the weekend and noted the daily rate was over $30. They’re all having a laugh – back to what I was paying in Sydney.

EvanJames said :

I use the airport quite a lot, and still can’t work out where the pickup area even IS. Why are we able to drive up those ramps to drop people off at the door, but can’t do the same thing when they are standing outside Arrivals, with their stuff, waiting? It’s an absolute joke.

I don’t want to go in and park. I don’t want to stuff around. I want to drive up to my friend or relative, have them chuck their stuff in the boot, they get in, and we drive away. That’s what I want to do.

So I do it… the arrivee is told to get the escalator or lift up to Departures, and go wait at the kerb there. Works a treat.

Easy, take note where the picture was taken, because the free pick-up area would be right behind the photographer. But yes do agree the whole thing is bloody stupid and pure revenue raising. No reason why there couldn’t be a covered waiting area for passengers and a pick-up zone.

krash said :

watto23 said :

Some of you whingers should try and pick people up at Sydney airport. There is no pickup zone, and you’ll pay at least $7. Apparently the trick is to pick people up in the carpark, but continually coming in and out you get a 5 grace period where you don’t have to pay to leave.

Seriously for the sake of $1.50. Its the price we pay for having a decent life and not living in a slum somewhere.

I arrived back to Kingsford Smith in Sydney after a European trip last year and there was a 15 Minute free parking pickup zone. It was right next to a Multi-storey parking, so if it rained you had shelter. The person picking me up, parked the car, had to go to the toilet in the airport, did their business and got back with plenty of time to spare.

Number ones or numbers twos?

watto23 said :

Some of you whingers should try and pick people up at Sydney airport. There is no pickup zone, and you’ll pay at least $7. Apparently the trick is to pick people up in the carpark, but continually coming in and out you get a 5 grace period where you don’t have to pay to leave.

Seriously for the sake of $1.50. Its the price we pay for having a decent life and not living in a slum somewhere.

I arrived back to Kingsford Smith in Sydney after a European trip last year and there was a 15 Minute free parking pickup zone. It was right next to a Multi-storey parking, so if it rained you had shelter. The person picking me up, parked the car, had to go to the toilet in the airport, did their business and got back with plenty of time to spare.

Some of you whingers should try and pick people up at Sydney airport. There is no pickup zone, and you’ll pay at least $7. Apparently the trick is to pick people up in the carpark, but continually coming in and out you get a 5 grace period where you don’t have to pay to leave.

Seriously for the sake of $1.50. Its the price we pay for having a decent life and not living in a slum somewhere.

m_ratt said :

p1 said :

The no pickup rule is to prevent terrorists using car bombs

Because no terrorist could work out how to pretend to drop someone off, or ram their car through the front of the terminal.

I assume they can’t otherwise the no pickup rule just makes no darn sense?

Eppo said :

I think the beef with the crappy road situation is that it was left till AFTER thousands of people had already started working there. That place was an utter mess for about 18 months. But we seem to have some form for that in Canberra *cough* GDE.

Working out there was the pits. A bloody hairdresser went in before we got a newsagent or a post office. We lost 1/3 of our staff when the move was announced, as there wasn’t even a public transport option at the time. Inconvenient doesn’t even begin to tell the tale!

It does you no good to dwell on these things when they are years past.

I agree – the road situation was chaos for years, exacerbated by increasing numbers of workers mingling with traffic streams to and from Gungahlin and Queanbeyan. It would be gridlock and I’d have a passenger anxious to make their flight and there was no option at all but to sit and take it. As the meter ticked on.

But the completion of the overpass and the replacement of the various roundabouts has worked wonders. Traffic flows very well now. There are more roadworks to be completed at the terminal, but they will be minor in comparison to what has gone before.

Grumbling and grudging over troubles past is unhelpful except as a reminder of mistakes to avoid.

Just don’t get me started on that bloody GDE!

Disinformation said :

I’d actually like to know what legal ability the airport has to fine you for picking someone up at the departure drop off point.
I’m betting the legal costs of civil court exceed the fine though.
Next time I have to pick someone up, I’m going to do exactly this and risk it, being the devil I am.

There are always cops at the airport, and they will whip out their notebooks and give you a cheery reminder of the road rules if they feel like it. Ask any cabbie. Now that the roadworks are reasonably stable, the old roads are being regazetted and traffic is subject to the usual firm and occasionally fair hand of the AFP.

The whole area is under video surveillance, and it’s not a good place to be a dickhead.

creative_canberran said :

In this case, s106A states the airports to which Division 2 (Landside parking) is applicable, Canberra Airport is not listed.

Using AustLii because ComLaw is misbehaving, the reference cycle becomes:

1) On the landside of an airport, certain parts of the Australian Road Rules apply.
2) Those certain Rules apply as if you stepped back in time several years when it comes to which version road rules due to the way the law was written and is still in effect as such. Use this document until they update the Airports (Control of On-Airports Activities) Regulations (A(CoOAA) Regs).
3) Stopping and parking have meanings under the Road Rules, but the offence pictured above is a violation of Road Rule 197, which is one of those offences covered by Regulation 106E of the A(CoOAA) Regs.
Part 12, 197 Stopping on a path, dividing strip or nature strip
(1) A driver must not stop on a bicycle path, footpath, shared path or dividing strip, or a nature strip adjacent to a length of road in a built-up area...
Stop, in Part 12 includes park, but does not include stop to reverse the driver’s vehicle into a parking bay or other parking space.
4) This offence is a strict liability & infringement notice offence under Regulation 107 of the A(CoOAA) Regs.
5) The airport-operator company is authorised person under Reg 114 to serve penalty notices at the rate prescribed, and can serve it by post on the vehicle owner due to Regulation 106 being part of Division 2 .

IE: The only defence against the infringement notice that you could stand on for parking on a footpath at an airport is “You have no real evidence that I did it!”.

(The above applies at every capital city airport except Canberra, so I guess airport fines here are purely a civil matter?)
So always demand proof.

Skidbladnir said :

I -think- thats still a public road (its the terminal and beyond thats SnowTown for purposes of Airports (Control of On-Airport Activities) Regulations 1997)
IE: The fines should be going through AFP .
If not, then its mighty strange, as Canberra Airport doesn’t have traffic infringement powers.

Well done for finding the legislation on this. When readings Acts though, always be sure to see the first section of a Division which often contains definition alternations and applicability criteria specific to that division. If You look at the Criminal Code ACT, the same word can have a different meaning every few pages.

In this case, s106A states the airports to which Division 2 (Landside parking) is applicable, Canberra Airport is not listed.

I’m not sure why Canberra was omitted.

Now an important thing people may be overlooking is that Canberra Airport, like other major Australian airports owned by the Commonwealth Airport Corporation until 1998 is leased. Canberra Airport Pty Ltd purchased the lease, but the land is still the Commonwealth’s.

creative_canberran said :

There are 4 cafes (Breakout, Avalon, Dakota and Fat Goanna) and a Subway in Brindabella Business Park itself. Has been for a long time.

There are additional food outlets in the terminal and precinct, 5 in fact plus the new Maccas.

As for the crappy drives and construction works, how else do you build stuff? Let’s hear your solution… perhaps you can just click on a highway and drag it somewhere like in Sim City… oops, doesn’t work like that.

It’s Avion, and for a long long time when the place first opened, its crappy food was pretty much the only option. The Subway is at the servo (unless it has moved) & who is going to pay ridiculous prices inside the airport terminal for food? Maccas is far enough away from BBP that you might as well keep going into Civic for proper food.

I think the beef with the crappy road situation is that it was left till AFTER thousands of people had already started working there. That place was an utter mess for about 18 months. But we seem to have some form for that in Canberra *cough* GDE.

Working out there was the pits. A bloody hairdresser went in before we got a newsagent or a post office. We lost 1/3 of our staff when the move was announced, as there wasn’t even a public transport option at the time. Inconvenient doesn’t even begin to tell the tale!

Grail said :

And on a side note, I think this is exactly the kind of thing that deserves a good serve of civil disobedience. Let the bastards fine you for picking people up in the departures drop-off area. Then don’t pay the fines, and use the case to draw attention to the greediness of the bastards that are running our airport.

I -think- thats still a public road (its the terminal and beyond thats SnowTown for purposes of Airports (Control of On-Airport Activities) Regulations 1997)
IE: The fines should be going through AFP .
If not, then its mighty strange, as Canberra Airport doesn’t have traffic infringement powers.

BenMac said :

Failing to pay a parking fine in an ACT spot could get your licence suspended, but failing to pay at the airport means the airport corp would have to take you to civil court to get the money.

The airport would no doubt sell the debt to Bikies.

Easy. Three options:
1. Drive to arrivals and develop momentary car trouble. Open bonnet. Your friends jump in, and away you go.
2. Drive to arrivals having instructed your friends to limp. When you get hassled, threaten to sic HREOC onto them
3. Go around the little circle again and again (unless they’ve closed that option off) very slowly, and get your friends to walk down and jump in quickly.

If you’re brazen, you’ll get away with any of the above.

grunge_hippy said :

why cant get this right? melbourne, sydney and brisbane all have a drive up drop off/ pick up area. Why wasnt this implemented in our new wizz bag fancy pants terminal?

http://www.canberraairport.com.au/air_toAndFrom/pickup.cfm

And if you stay longer than 10mins, you simply pay the normal parking rates, so there’s no fines or anything.

And Canberra Airport also has a drive up drop off area: http://www.canberraairport.com.au/PDF/CA_TerminalUpperFloor.pdf
You must however not allow the vehicle to stand for any period.

Disinformation said :

I’d actually like to know what legal ability the airport has to fine you for picking someone up at the departure drop off point.
I’m betting the legal costs of civil court exceed the fine though.
Next time I have to pick someone up, I’m going to do exactly this and risk it, being the devil I am.

Again: http://www.canberraairport.com.au/air_toAndFrom/pickup.cfm

And as for legal rights, it’s criminal trespass. If you don’t move on, they are within there rights to have the AFP move you. If you leave a car unattended, they will most likely call in the SRS to examine the vehicle for explosives and send you the emergency services bill.

grunge_hippy said :

I would also argue that if you were working at the southern end of brindabella park, you aint gonna shlep it all the way to maccas out near jim murphy’s for a feed. not that you would want to eat that crap every day in any case.

There’s cafes in 2, 9, 23 and 35 Brindabella Ct.
There’s an additional restaurant and cafe in 8 Brindabella Ct.
And a Subway where the servo is.

http://www.brindabellabusinesspark.com.au/bbp-workinginthepark/dining.cfm

The workers hardly have to shlep over to Maccas.

James_ said :

I want to welcome home a loved one or see a loved one off on their journey without having a 10 minute time limit. And to add to the insult if its raining there is no cover to get to or from the terminal or for passengers to wait without getting wet.

Im happy to pay if the infrastructure is there to support it or if i am there longer than it is reasonably expected to complete a drop off or farwell / pickup and welcome.

Why not just pay for the undercover park right beside the terminal? Costs $1.50.

I think the airport could arrange things better, but when I see people doing stupid and dangerous things such as loading luggage in the middle of the roundabout, I have to wonder about their priorities.

It’s an M class Mercedes, built in South Carolina. It obviously broke down and was pushed onto the kerb.