Parking at Chandigarh Airport - Cont.

Well, I got a response to my complaint though it tells me nothing that I did not know!  I may be required to park in the parking lot but I found many people did not. Furthermore, given the 20 minutes it takes to exit from the parking lot, it makes no sense to park in the lot. Oh, well.

Dear Sir

Reference is invited to your complaint concerning the Parking irritation at Civil Air Terminal Chandigarh.
In this regard it is mentioned that 5 minutes free time is allowed for pick and drop of passengers as per the terms of Parking contract. If you wish to stay beyond the stipulated time you are required to park your vehicle in Car Parking area.

Regards-
Public Grievance Officer
Civil Air Terminal
Chandigarh

UPDATE: Hurray, I got another response on 21st March, 2012.

Considering in view the inconveniences while extricating from exit lane (from Car Parking area) as reported by few airport users, AAI Management have decided to explore possibilities for converting the exit lane (from Car Parking area) into lanes besides deployment of additional manpower so as to ensure fast movement of traffic and to curb such complaints, in future.

The misery of parking at Chandigarh Airport

It seemed silly to complain to myself on the blog; so I had been reluctant to write about the Chandigarh airport. Finally, today I got the idea of writing to the officer in charge of the Airport. If I get any response, I will acknowledge it. But meanwhile, it explains the predicament of parking at Chandigarh airport, which is a pretty small airport.

Dear Captain,

I got your email id from the Airports Authority web site. I wanted to
share my experiences of picking up people at the airport in the last
few months. For a small airport, it is an unforgettable experience.

On first occasion, it took 20 minutes to exit from the parking lot
after I had picked up my  sons.

On the second occasion, it took only 10 minutes to pay - but I was
late and had just entered the airport, picked up the passengers and
exited. It was hard to find a spot to stop without blocking traffic
and hard to extricated my car and get out. It took more than 5 minutes
and had to pay Rs. 25. The amount is peanuts but to pay for the
nuisance involved  I felt cheated.

On third occasion, it took 20 minutes to pay and exit.

My conclusion, it is better not to park - keep the car in the pick-up
area. I noticed people stopping their cars and just moving away. The
security officer was totally helpless.

Last year, I paid on entering the parking lot and exited reasonably
quickly. The current system is flawed as everyone wants to exit as
soon as the flight arrives. It seems to be helping only the contractor
of the parking lot.


Regards, ...