OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new parking garage and rental car facility that will open soon at Omaha’s Eppley Airfield will reshape the traffic flow for many travelers and provide a technological assist to their searches for parking spaces, officials said.
What’s being called the North Garage will offer 2,000 new spaces and shelter from the elements as people walk to and from the terminal. There will be electric-charging stations, sensors and a tracking system to analyze parking availability and electronic signs to point people to open stalls.
The Omaha World-Herald reported that people wishing to park in the garage will enter off Abbott Drive without needing to enter the existing driveway in front of the terminal. Rental car customers and motorists wishing to park will have separate routes.
The parking expansion follows Eppley’s steady business growth: more flights in and out and a doubling of the number of nonstop destinations in recent years to 34. Eppley surpassed 5 million passengers in 2018.
“We know there’s the demand. People need convenient, close-in, covered parking,” said Steve McCoy, the Airport Authority’s director of air service and business development. Parking in the North Garage is expected to cost $16 per day, although the open top floor will be $12.
The new facility will eliminate the shuttle bus system to get air travelers to their rentals. The project follows the national trend of airports placing rental car services together to maximize convenience for travelers. Rental cars and car returns will take up the first two floors. Public parking will be on floors three through six.
The Airport Authority’s master plan calls for expanding Eppley’s facilities, including a rebuild of the airport terminal at a potential cost of $500 million.
