Airports double charge for baggage trolleys

[crewmeal]

It seems that airports will do anything to make travelling as unpleasant as possible. Now some airports are charging £2 for use of a trolley.

Operator Bagport said the price rise would enable it to provide a quality service after a recent declines in passenger numbers.

What I'd like to know is what is quality service using a trolley? 4 wheels instead of 3? Goes in a straight line?

PS don't tell BHX or they'll be the first to charge £3 in addition to their horrendous car park charges of £5 a minute after 30 mins.

[Shyted]

Its simple,buy suitcases with wheels then they can stick the trolley and there £2.00 charge where the sun don't shine.

[ConstantFlyer]

Strange. If this is a UK airport that caters mainly to domestic flights, then I understand why they're doing it; but if it's an international gateway, passengers won't be arriving with pockets full of pound coins, so will just not use the trolleys.

Instead of messing around with trolley charging, the airports should be looking at the passenger's whole journey needs, and investing in partnerships with other transport providers to get people to their final destinations swiftly and comfortably: bemos, service taxis, minicabs, minibuses, rail, trams, buses, camels, whatever.

In these times of difficulty and low passenger numbers, airports need to think strategically. If you go to Durham railway station and look at the departure screen, you will see a train every hour to Manchester Airport. Nothing to Durham/Tees Valley Airport. Says a lot, really.

[davidjohnson6]

Constant -Luton airport (or at least the company managing it) is a company run for profit. Certainly, the company realises that if they annoy customers sufficiently that they go elsewhere next time, the profits may drop, but the company is betting that the increase in trolley charges is something people will tolerate enough to avoid people moving en masse to Stansted.

If trolley usage falls 80%, the charges will be lowered pretty quickly. If trolley usage declines only 10%, then trolley profits will have increased significantly, and the increased charge will remain.

Once Joe Bloggs and family have made their booking to/from an airport, they become considered fair game for whatever money making scheme an airport may dream up. Customer satisfaction exists only to ensure future profits. As long as you keep flying from their airport rather than a rival, airport management don't really care whether you resent paying that extra pound or two.

[TSR2]

Is it not the case that the 'charge' is not an actual charge as you get your money back when you return the trolley. Well you do at MAN.

[nonemmet]

At some airports you do not get your money back. This obviously implies they do not care where you leave the trolly when you have finished with it:suspect:

[davidjohnson6]

nonemmet - apart from the car park, the airport bus/train station, or somewhere around the terminal, where are passengers realistically going to leave their trolleys ? Security at most airports is too tight for the average hoodie to bother causing trouble.

[call100]

In a world where Airlines (FR etc) charge for every little part of the journey, then expect airports to get on board.....You don't want to pay the correct price for a flight!! Expect to take the hit somewhere else....They are business concerns at the end of the day and need to make money from somewhere!!!
My view would be bring back the cheap car parking, free trolleys, free security bags, comfortable seating, less of a shopping mall. Then raise the air fare to a level that reflects what you are actually getting....Something is wrong in the world when you pay more for the cab to the airport than the aircraft taking you to your destination...:ugh:

[al446]

At some airports you do not get your money back.

Which ones? Name them and I will avoid them.

[TSR2]

Something is wrong in the world when you pay more for the cab to the airport than the aircraft taking you to your destination...

But you can't get 189 into a cab ;)

[Johnny F@rt Pants]

MCO - Orlando International:sad:

Arrived there to find the trolleys are $7:* if my memory serves me right, and you can swipe your credit card to release a trolley from the stowage area:eek:.

[Anansis]

Given that most airlines only give you a 15-20kg baggage limit, I fail to see how even passengers going on a family break have to take so much baggage that it is impossible to wheel them from the carpark/bus stop to the check in desk. All too often people take a lot of things they don't actually need when they go away, particularly on short trips. On longer journeys it is often more cost effective to buy many non essentials at your destination and discard them at the end.

I'm more the 'backpacker' type of traveller. The first six week trip I made my backpack weighed in at 23kg. Now I can do a similar trip with a bag weighing under 10kg and I still take things away which I don't use.

Still, it all seems a little bit devious to me. My cynical side suspects that many of the people paying to use the trolleys are unsuspecting families arriving with lots of bags who are about to go on their annual holidays. It seems a shame though that flying cheaply is increasingly an excercise in anticipating how airlines/airports might attempt to extort money from you in advance and making preperations accordingly :{

[possibleconsequences]

'flying cheaply is increasingly an excercise in anticipating how airlines/airports might attempt to extort money from you in advance and making preperations accordingly '


Flying cheaply forces the airports to try and extract (not extort) money from you as they make practically nothing from the airlines. If cheap airline xxxxxxx pays next to nothing to the airport to land there, how else is the airport to make any money other than charging passengers for car parks, trolleys etc?

[LTNman]

Don't see many people using trolleys at Luton now. What I do see are people being dropped off on the roundabout complete with luggage so they avoid being charged/fined £1 for using the drop off zone.

[Anansis]

Flying cheaply forces the airports to try and extract (not extort) money from you as they make practically nothing from the airlines. If cheap airline xxxxxxx pays next to nothing to the airport to land there, how else is the airport to make any money other than charging passengers for car parks, trolleys etc?

True. I don't doubt that the loco's have driven down the cost of flying but it has got to the point now where costs are being shifted around rather than eradicated. I think this stops becoming extraction and becomes extortion when poeple are not aware they are going to be charged for something and are left in a position where they have no other option but to pay for it.

[call100]

Which ones? Name them and I will avoid them.
Birmingham....:}

[nonemmet]

nonemmet - apart from the car park, the airport bus/train station, or somewhere around the terminal, where are passengers realistically going to leave their trolleys ? Security at most airports is too tight for the average hoodie to bother causing trouble.

If trolleys are left scattered in inconvenient spots obstructing parking bays, roadways etc then perhaps the airport will be incentivised to encourage people to return them to designated bays by way of a deposit scheme like many supermarkets employ. The UK public are (generally) too compliant, lets have some trolley disobedience!