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| Airport drivers try to beat drop-off charges by parking in laybys | Airport drivers try to beat drop-off charges by parking in laybys |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Caroline O'Brien parked in a lay-by near the main terminal building to avoid paying the drop-off charge | Caroline O'Brien parked in a lay-by near the main terminal building to avoid paying the drop-off charge |
| It's a hot and sticky Friday in the middle of the summer holidays and cars are flooding onto Edinburgh Airport's approach road. | It's a hot and sticky Friday in the middle of the summer holidays and cars are flooding onto Edinburgh Airport's approach road. |
| There are few places to stop, but in almost every lay-by a steady stream of drivers await friends and loved ones touching down from their holidays. | There are few places to stop, but in almost every lay-by a steady stream of drivers await friends and loved ones touching down from their holidays. |
| They are all parked in a half-mile radius from the entrance to the terminal building in a bid to beat so-called "kiss-and-fly" charges in the official drop-off zone. | They are all parked in a half-mile radius from the entrance to the terminal building in a bid to beat so-called "kiss-and-fly" charges in the official drop-off zone. |
| Research by the RAC, released this week, found that more than half of the country's busiest airports have raised drop-off fees in the last 12 months. | Research by the RAC, released this week, found that more than half of the country's busiest airports have raised drop-off fees in the last 12 months. |
| In Edinburgh, drivers face a £6 tariff for a 10-minute stay at a specific drop-off zone metres from the main terminal building. | |
| Every minute beyond that allowance will cost them an extra £1. | Every minute beyond that allowance will cost them an extra £1. |
| A lay-by near a roundabout at Edinburgh Airport was almost full | A lay-by near a roundabout at Edinburgh Airport was almost full |
| Instead, drivers here look to beat the system, waiting in nooks and crannies along Eastfield Road for a message that their passengers have arrived. | Instead, drivers here look to beat the system, waiting in nooks and crannies along Eastfield Road for a message that their passengers have arrived. |
| They then drive a few hundred metres towards the Moxy or Hilton hotels and pick them up as they leave the airport complex, exiting hastily to avoid risking a fine for parking on double yellow lines. | They then drive a few hundred metres towards the Moxy or Hilton hotels and pick them up as they leave the airport complex, exiting hastily to avoid risking a fine for parking on double yellow lines. |
| Close to the Moxy, next to a farm gate by a grass verge, Caroline O'Brien, 52, is waiting in a lay-by for her husband and children after they returned from a holiday to Paris. | Close to the Moxy, next to a farm gate by a grass verge, Caroline O'Brien, 52, is waiting in a lay-by for her husband and children after they returned from a holiday to Paris. |
| She says she had previously been charged £24 for under 30 minutes in the drop-off zone and decided not to take any chances this time. | She says she had previously been charged £24 for under 30 minutes in the drop-off zone and decided not to take any chances this time. |
| "You don't know if the plane is going to be early or late in and I don't want them to be standing around," she says. | "You don't know if the plane is going to be early or late in and I don't want them to be standing around," she says. |
| "For pick-up and drop-off, I think a couple of pounds [would be fair]. You're only there a few minutes for them to get their cases and then right back in the car and away again." | "For pick-up and drop-off, I think a couple of pounds [would be fair]. You're only there a few minutes for them to get their cases and then right back in the car and away again." |
| The pickup and drop-off zone at Edinburgh Airport does not inform drivers about fees on their approach | The pickup and drop-off zone at Edinburgh Airport does not inform drivers about fees on their approach |
| Drivers approaching via Eastfield Road pass three roundabouts on the way into the main terminal, the closest of which leads them on to a one-way system which means they have to pass through the drop-off zone. | Drivers approaching via Eastfield Road pass three roundabouts on the way into the main terminal, the closest of which leads them on to a one-way system which means they have to pass through the drop-off zone. |
| There is no signage on the approach to inform them of the charges, however there is when they are already inside the drop-off zone. | There is no signage on the approach to inform them of the charges, however there is when they are already inside the drop-off zone. |
| Drivers pay once they exit the drop-off area. | Drivers pay once they exit the drop-off area. |
| Edinburgh Airport is among those to have increased their prices in the last year | Edinburgh Airport is among those to have increased their prices in the last year |
| London Gatwick, Bristol, Leeds Bradford, Southampton and Stansted charged the top rate of £7 in the RAC survey. | London Gatwick, Bristol, Leeds Bradford, Southampton and Stansted charged the top rate of £7 in the RAC survey. |
| Edinburgh is level with London Heathrow, Birmingham, Liverpool John Lennon and Glasgow in charging £6 for the initial drop off. | Edinburgh is level with London Heathrow, Birmingham, Liverpool John Lennon and Glasgow in charging £6 for the initial drop off. |
| By contrast, at nine of the 10 busiest airports in the European Union there are no drop-off fees. | By contrast, at nine of the 10 busiest airports in the European Union there are no drop-off fees. |
| Rontom Tschopp, 32, from Switzerland, had just dropped a friend off at the terminal but was unaware there would be a charge for doing so. | Rontom Tschopp, 32, from Switzerland, had just dropped a friend off at the terminal but was unaware there would be a charge for doing so. |
| Rontom Tschopp said there were no drop-off charges at his local airport in Switzerland | Rontom Tschopp said there were no drop-off charges at his local airport in Switzerland |
| He says his local airport, in Basel, did not charge for the same service. | He says his local airport, in Basel, did not charge for the same service. |
| He says: "I was a bit flabbergasted to be honest, because we don't have that in Switzerland. | He says: "I was a bit flabbergasted to be honest, because we don't have that in Switzerland. |
| "I think it creates a form of aversion to do the little things like drop off your friends. If I had known about the fees, we probably wouldn't have had such a heartfelt goodbye, it would have been: 'No, go now, there's extra fees'." | "I think it creates a form of aversion to do the little things like drop off your friends. If I had known about the fees, we probably wouldn't have had such a heartfelt goodbye, it would have been: 'No, go now, there's extra fees'." |
| Sheila McPheely said the free drop-off zone was useful for some, but not those with mobility issues. | Sheila McPheely said the free drop-off zone was useful for some, but not those with mobility issues. |
| Edinburgh Airport does have other road links with the city centre through bus services, while the tram network also stops just outside. | Edinburgh Airport does have other road links with the city centre through bus services, while the tram network also stops just outside. |
| It also has a free drop-off zone about half a mile (0.8km) from the main terminal building, across the tram line and near a car rental service. | It also has a free drop-off zone about half a mile (0.8km) from the main terminal building, across the tram line and near a car rental service. |
| Drivers can park there for 30 minutes free of charge, but it costs £10 up to an hour after that and £18 for between one and three hours. | Drivers can park there for 30 minutes free of charge, but it costs £10 up to an hour after that and £18 for between one and three hours. |
| Up another side street, near a vacant commercial business, Shiela McPheely is waiting to collect her sisters from their holiday in Albufeira in Portugal. | Up another side street, near a vacant commercial business, Shiela McPheely is waiting to collect her sisters from their holiday in Albufeira in Portugal. |
| She says the cost of the drop-off zone is "appalling" and is planning to pick her sisters up at the free drop-off point, despite both having mobility issues. | She says the cost of the drop-off zone is "appalling" and is planning to pick her sisters up at the free drop-off point, despite both having mobility issues. |
| "It's just greedy. You pay enough for your flights and when you get in there, you get a tea or a coffee, so they are getting money from you that way," Sheila, 79, says. | "It's just greedy. You pay enough for your flights and when you get in there, you get a tea or a coffee, so they are getting money from you that way," Sheila, 79, says. |
| "There is a bit you can park in that is free, but that is all very well if you are young and fit, but one of my sisters has a sore back, the other one is waiting for a hip operation, so it's difficult for them." | "There is a bit you can park in that is free, but that is all very well if you are young and fit, but one of my sisters has a sore back, the other one is waiting for a hip operation, so it's difficult for them." |
| Gavin Marshall said the charges were "extortionate" | Gavin Marshall said the charges were "extortionate" |
| Back inside the charged drop-off area, a multi-storey car park provides a roof and shade from the warm afternoon sun. | Back inside the charged drop-off area, a multi-storey car park provides a roof and shade from the warm afternoon sun. |
| Gavin Marshall, 45, has been waiting for some time for his in-laws to arrive on a flight from London, before driving them back to Stirling. | Gavin Marshall, 45, has been waiting for some time for his in-laws to arrive on a flight from London, before driving them back to Stirling. |
| He says he had not noticed the charge before he parked up. | He says he had not noticed the charge before he parked up. |
| He says: "It's a bit extortionate, £1 per minute is a bit of a joke." | He says: "It's a bit extortionate, £1 per minute is a bit of a joke." |
| "The flat £6 I think is fair, this £1 per minute seems a bit silly, it's a bit much." | "The flat £6 I think is fair, this £1 per minute seems a bit silly, it's a bit much." |
| Dean Carse said the charges made each journey £6 more expensive for customers in his taxi | Dean Carse said the charges made each journey £6 more expensive for customers in his taxi |
| Meanwhile, taxi driver Dean Carse, 31, says the charge has an impact on customers. | Meanwhile, taxi driver Dean Carse, 31, says the charge has an impact on customers. |
| He says: "Every journey is £6 more expensive. | He says: "Every journey is £6 more expensive. |
| "I pay it, but I get it back off the customer, which is ridiculous, it goes from the customer to me to the airport. | "I pay it, but I get it back off the customer, which is ridiculous, it goes from the customer to me to the airport. |
| "The airport spin it like they care about pollution, but they don't. They're a business and they want to make money." | "The airport spin it like they care about pollution, but they don't. They're a business and they want to make money." |
| Edinburgh Airport declined to comment when contacted by BBC News, but said that a free drop-off area was available. | Edinburgh Airport declined to comment when contacted by BBC News, but said that a free drop-off area was available. |
| They added that passengers could choose whether to use the free or paid areas. | They added that passengers could choose whether to use the free or paid areas. |
| The industry body, Airports UK, said all hubs offered free drop-off options further from the terminals. | The industry body, Airports UK, said all hubs offered free drop-off options further from the terminals. |
| It said "park and ride" facilities where people can leave their car and take a bus to the airport were provided. | It said "park and ride" facilities where people can leave their car and take a bus to the airport were provided. |
| A Police Scotland spokesperson said it regularly gave "advice" to motorists in the airport complex, but was unable to be specific on what that was. | A Police Scotland spokesperson said it regularly gave "advice" to motorists in the airport complex, but was unable to be specific on what that was. |
| They added: "Where necessary, appropriate action will be taken." | They added: "Where necessary, appropriate action will be taken." |