ASK THE ADVOCATE: Baton Rouge Metro Airport

Advocate file photo by Travis Spradling -- Terminal area at Baton Rouge Metro Airport.

Why is the Baton Rouge Metro Airport rotunda being expanded? Could this money have been used to attract a low-cost carrier, or could it have been used to reduce the cost of parking, which has gone up over the years? I do not see the benefit.

Response from Jim Caldwell, manager of Air Service Development, Marketing and Public Relations, at Metro Airport:

The existing rotunda and security screening area at the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport (BTR) was built prior to Sept. 11, 2001.

Before the post 9/11 security changes, non-ticketed airport visitors could access the secure area of the terminal to meet or see passengers off.

After 9/11, access to the secure area of the terminal was restricted to ticketed passengers only. At BTR, this forced airport guests awaiting arriving passengers or accompanying departing ones to congregate in the same area where arriving passengers exit the secure area and departing passengers clear security, creating a bottleneck.

The BTR terminal renovation project will allow the existing rotunda area to become an arrival court, providing a spacious area for non-ticketed airport visitors to meet arriving or departing passengers. Transportation Security Administration screening will be relocated to the expanded area of the rotunda, and an additional screening position will be provided. An interior glass wall will separate the arrival court portion from the new, expanded rotunda area where TSA screening will be relocated.

The money for this project comes from the Passenger Facility Charge (PFC) Program. The Federal Aviation Administration-approved PFC fees are added to ticket prices at public, commercial airports; and the airports use PFC fees to fund "FAA-approved projects to enhance safety, security, or capacity." The PFC funds are specifically earmarked for brick and mortar airport improvements and cannot be used for airline incentives or parking subsidies.

Regarding money used to attract a low-cost carrier, public airports that accept FAA funding must comply with certain restrictions in providing incentives for new air service when using airport funds for those incentives. Using airport funds, BTR currently provides temporary marketing support, rent reductions and waivers of landing fees for an airline (new or incumbent) meeting the new service criteria. While airport funds may not be used as an exclusive offer to a single airline, these restrictions do not apply if the money comes from sources other than airport funds such as chambers of commerce, foundations, area corporations, etc.

Comments

1) Comment by jdk944 - 21/01/2013

And it was LESS time with direct flights than if I had flown out of BR and then dealt with changing planes, layovers etc. Takes me 1 hour 15 minutes to get to New Orleans airport and 20 minutes, at least, to get to BR airport with significantly more possible issue with traffic. Confused by SuzanneMS's comment on traffic - New Orleans airport is west of the city so there really is no traffic!!

2) Comment by jdk944 - 21/01/2013

I just returned this past Friday from a roundtrip to Denver. I flew out of New Orleans vs. Baton Rouge because: 1. Direct flight nonstop from New Orleans to Denver and back, 2. Better options for times to fly, 3. Much cheaper, even factoring in parking and gas.

3) Comment by phil - 21/01/2013

This statement - "The money for this project comes from the Passenger Facility Charge (PFC) Program. The Federal Aviation Administration-approved PFC fees are added to ticket prices at public, commercial airports; and the airports use PFC fees to fund "FAA-approved projects to enhance safety, security, or capacity."" Gee this kind of sounds like it might actually be a tax to me but they are calling it a fee. When is a fee a tax, and when is a tax a fee?? On the other hand, I guess we need a nice airport facility to impress people who arrive here, especially before they actually possibly ride through North BR and see all of the poverty and hear about all of the murders and also our high AIDS rate etc. By the way, does anyone track how much money is being spent at the airport?

4) Comment by Terd Handler - 21/01/2013

Only rich people can afford to fly out of BR Metro Airport.

5) Comment by SuzanneMS - 21/01/2013

An improvement that has been desperately needed, and one that will make the airport more attractive to passengers and airlines. False economy, Bighug, when you factor in the cost of gas and the higher cost of parking, to say nothing of the increased time to get to the airport and the stress of driving through the traffic and worrying about missing the flight as you sit, waiting for it to clear. And the last time we had guests fly into New Orleans, we had to add the cost of a hotel room on both ends of the trip, as the flights were late night/early morning. But they were minors and had to come on direct flights, and there were none to BR. That's the real problem -- the flight is not only more expensive, but it takes twice as long with twice as many stops, half of them in the opposite direction (go to Atlanta to get to Las Vegas). Of course, it's a Catch-22. People don't fly out of BR because there are no direct flights, and there are no direct flights because people don't fly out of BR.

6) Comment by Bighug - 21/01/2013

As long as a round-trip ticket in or out of New Orleans is $100 or more cheaper than Baton Rouge for the same city on the other end, you won't need the extra room for greeters here.