Air travelers who braced for a rush get pleasant surprise

Like many airports around the county, Tampa International has not experienced a logjam.

TAMPA - Ruthe Bowen was not looking forward to airline travel on Thanksgiving eve, notorious for crushing crowds, long lines and aggravation.

"Everybody said, "Are you crazy, Mom? You can't get there,"' said the 71-year-old Tampa retiree.

But Bowen was undeterred. After visiting family in Annapolis, Md., she booked a return trip to Tampa.

The result: "It's been a pleasant surprise."

Bowen said road traffic and the airline crowds were mild both at Tampa International Airport and in the Baltimore area.

Bowen's experience seemed typical for TIA travelers Wednesday as airport officials girded for the first holiday since they initiated measures to ease congestion.

Many travelers had prepared for a logjam. But it never developed Wednesday at TIA, and that appeared to be the case at many airports around the country.

Despite high wind in the Northeast and ground delays at New York's LaGuardia Airport, "everything's going relatively smoothly," said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Greg Martin. He said about 55,000 flights were scheduled Wednesday, 20 percent more than on a normal Wednesday.

The Air Transport Association predicted 21.7-million people would fly globally on U.S. airlines from Nov. 19 to Nov. 29, slightly more than last year's record number.

Coming back may not be as easy.

"What we're seeing is a staggered effect on the front end," said John Wallace, a spokesman at Bradley International Airport near Hartford. "And then, on the back end, everybody's got to get back for the beginning of the school week and the workweek."

In Tampa, at least, the return hassles will be buffered in part by parking improvements.

The new economy parking garage opened about two weeks ago and added 2,300 spaces at TIA. At $7 a day, it is half the price of the long-term garage.

It proved so popular Wednesday that both it and the 2,000 ground-level economy spaces nearby had been claimed by late afternoon. Airport employees had to direct people back to the long-term garage.

Those who were redirected were charged the same as what it costs in the economy garage and lots.

Meanwhile, cars pulled in and out of a new cellular phone parking lot near the post office at TIA, where they waited for friends and loved ones to buzz them and let them know they had arrived.

Signs in the lot recommended that the picker-uppers wait 20 minutes after receiving the call to make sure the arriving folks had cleared baggage claim.

"On paper, it sounds great," said Russell Skillman, 57, of St. Petersburg, trying the lot for the first time as he waited for his daughter and her husband to arrive from New York. "I'm a little worried about what happens when I leave here and get to the terminal."

John Hollis, 62, and his wife Teddie, 60, of Plant City were trying the lot for their first time as they waited for their son and his family to get in. They agreed to call a reporter with a review of how it went at the terminal.

"It worked out good," Mr. Hollis said. "It's much better than it was before."

Transplanted from Rhode Island, they figure they'll be using the lot quite a bit.

"When you move to Florida, you invariably have friends and family coming out of the woodwork," Mrs. Hollis said.

Along with the new lots, airport traffic control personnel were strictly enforcing a new rule that bars drivers from lingering at the terminal if the passengers they were picking up weren't waiting by the curb. They handed out fliers directing the drivers to the cell phone lot or to the short-term parking garage, where the first hour of parking is now free.

Crowds should be comparable Sunday, when many of those departing return, and Monday, when stragglers will mingle with the business traveling crowd.

Those coming and going shouldn't assume getting in and out will be a snap said TIA spokeswoman Brenda Geoghagan.

She encouraged passengers to get to the airport two hours ahead of time. And if possible, they should catch a ride with a friend, a cab or a shuttle service, to avoid parking altogether.

Information from Associated Press was used in this report.

Tampa Bay headlines

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times 490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 Contact the Times | Privacy Policy Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright