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Atlanta airport considers axing parking as ride-hailing apps gain favor

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Travelers to the airport are choosing not to drive and park, meaning new parking decks won’t need to be as big

The rise of ride-hailing apps Lyft and Uber has been cited as the beginning of the end for personal vehicles. So far in Atlanta, however, little tangible evidence suggests the services are impacting the way we build out the city for cars.

But that could be changing.

As work continues at Hartsfield-Jackson on more than $6 billion of upgrades, it’s possible the airport will scale back plans for new parking decks.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that plans for an eight-story parking deck at the South Terminal are being reviewed, due to shifting demands.

More travelers are using ride-hailing services to get to the airport, diminishing the need for the expanded new decks. Initially, the existing four-story parking decks at both the North and South entries—original to the airport and obsolete—were slated to be replaced with eight-story decks.

a photo of the under construction canopy
As seen last month, soaring white arches are covering more than half of the 600-foot-long driveway in front of the airport.
Curbed Atlanta

However, the deck on the north side was ultimately scaled back to four stories, though plans for the south deck currently remain unchanged.

But Hartsfield-Jackson interim assistant general manager of planning and development Tom Nissalke indicates that more study is needed before a final decision is made, per the newspaper report.

If the scope is reduced, the change would show that technology is having a real-world impact on the way Atlantans move around the city. And perhaps it’d be only the beginning.

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

6000 N Terminal Pkwy, Atlanta, GA 30320 (800) 897-1910 Visit Website