NEW AIRPORTS REPORT-Los Angeles International Airport landed near the bottom in a newly released study measuring traveler satisfaction at large- and medium-sized U.S. airports.
The J.D. Power 2015 North America Airport Satisfaction Study looked at six factors — terminal facilities, airport accessibility, security checks, baggage claim, check-in/baggage check and terminal shopping.
Using a 1,000-point scale, the overall traveler satisfaction among all airports in the study averaged 725, up from 690 in 2010, which was the last time the survey was conducted.
Overall satisfaction with the large airports increased to 719, up from 655 in 2010. Customer satisfaction at medium-sized airports likewise rose 69 points to 752.
“Most airports have really made a tremendous shift over the past six years and are now focused on managing the end-to-end experience for their travelers,” said Rick Garlick, the global travel and hospitality practice lead at J.D. Power. “It’s no longer just about getting travelers from Point A to Point B as efficiently as possible — it’s about making the airport experience enjoyable.”
But it appears LAX is anything but enjoyable.
In fact, LAX ranked third from the bottom among the 31 large airports, with a traveler satisfaction reading of 670, topping only LaGuardia Airport in New York with a score of 655 and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, which ranked lowest at 646.
Portland International Airport topped the ranking with a score of 791.
LA/Ontario International Airport and Burbank Bob Hope Airport were included among the study’s 33 medium-sized airports. LA/Ontario ranked 13th in customer satisfaction with a score of 763. That put it well above the average score of 752. But Bob Hope Airport ranked seventh from the bottom at 726. Long Beach Airport did not make the study.
LA/ONT spokeswoman Maria Tesoro attributed her airport’s healthy ranking to convenience.
“Convenience is the number one factor, especially for people who live in this area,” she said. “It’s laid out where you can easily can get in and out. We’ve definitely pleased with this ranking.”
Garlick attributes LAX’s low showing to perpetual congestion, long lines and a variety of other factors.
“One of the big things that drives a positive airport experience is the terminal facilities, and at LAX they are in a constant state of renovation,” he said. “And just getting to the airport has its challenges. We fly to LAX frequently to go to our office in Westlake Village and it’s a very difficult airport to get to and from.”
Garlick noted other factors as well. “I struggle to find where I have to go to return my rental car because they are off-site,” he said. “And the security lines at LAX are very slow and tedious.”
LAX spokeswoman Nancy Castles said the airport is doing several things to improve the experience for travelers.
“Los Angeles World Airports is undertaking a $9 billion modernization program to improve the guest experience throughout the LAX Central Terminal Area, including passenger terminals, parking facilities, elevators/moving walkways, sidewalks and roadways,” she said.
Castles said in an email the airport also launched an airport-wide customer service initiative to create an overall service delivery strategy. The goal is to align the entire airport community to provide customer-centric touch points to improve the overall guest experience at LAX.
“In Southern California, transportation to/from LAX is a perennial issue that significantly impacts the guest experience before and after travelers pass through LAX,” she acknowledged. “LAWA began an estimated $5 billion Landside Access Modernization Program (LAMP). The centerpiece of LAMP will be an automated people-mover that will connect the Central Terminal Area with a new consolidated rent-a-car facility, with stops in between at new airport parking facilities and a station connecting to the Metro regional transit system.”
Most Southland residents are aware of the congestion that surrounds LAX. And with Christmas just days away, it’s expected to ramp up.
This year more than 100 million Americans are expected to travel 50 miles or more from home between Dec. 23 and Jan. 3. An estimated 7.5 million Southern Californians traveled during that window last year and that number will likely increase by at least 1 percent this holiday season, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California.
Garlick dispelled the notion that LAX’s problems are all linked to its heavy flow of domestic and international passenger traffic, which totaled more than 70.6 million last year. McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport are also busy airports, he said, but they both ranked far higher in traveler satisfaction.
(Kevin Smith is the Business Editor of the San Gabriel Valley Tribune … where this piece first appeared.) Photo: Brad Graverson Prepped for CityWatch by Linda Abrams.
-cw
CityWatch
Vol 13 Issue 103
Pub: Dec 22, 2015
