Ovation's weekly client e-newsletter, the Informed Traveler, keeps readers updated on travel industry news and trends.
Following is a recap of November's Top 5 (most clicked by Ovation clients) e-newsletter stories.
1. LAGUARDIA AIRPORT NOW OFFERS $15 FLAT-RATE RIDES TO MANHATTAN AND BROOKLYN
LaGuardia Airport (LGA) has teamed up with ride-share app Via to offer a new option for leaving the airport, reports Condé Nast Traveler. For a $15 flat-rate fee, travelers arriving at LGA can take a carpool ride to any destination in Manhattan, Brooklyn or Queens. For the farther boroughs of Staten Island and the Bronx, the flat fee will be $20. The service, called LGA Connect, is currently in a pilot program phase and available for travelers arriving in Terminals C and D. Pickup areas will be located just outside of said terminals, allowing for a more convenient pick-up instead of having to take a shuttle to LGA's other rideshare pick-up areas. Rides can be booked through Via's app, which will have a special LGA Connect option in its menu.
2. AUTOMATED SECURITY SCREENING ON HORIZON FOR US AIRPORTS
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) wants to establish self-service security checkpoints at US airports, reports Business Traveller. According to a new Request for Information (RFI) posted by the DHS, the government is seeking proposals from companies to build systems that would allow travelers to conduct their own security screening by running their own bags through an x-ray machine and pass through body-scanning portals. “Many patrons prefer an experience that they can complete all by themselves, at their own pace,” the DHS states. “The objective would be to create a passenger friendly, intuitive screening process while improving security, accelerating passenger throughput and reducing pat-down rates.”
3. BOSTON LOGAN AIRPORT MOVES RIDESHARE PICKUPS TO CENTRALIZED LOCATION
As of November 4, travelers using Ubers, Lyfts and other app-based rides for pickup at Boston Logan International Airport will now meet at a new, centralized location at Central Parking, reports NBC Boston. The new Central Parking structure is weather protected, with heaters for the cold winter months, and connects to all the terminals at Logan Airport. For now, any rideshares headed to Logan airport will continue dropping passengers off curbside at the terminals' departures area. That changes in part next Monday, November 11, when dropoffs between 4 a.m. and 10 a.m. will move to lower level terminal curbs. Dropoffs will permanently move to Central Parking on December 9, when a new $3.25 dropoff fee will be charged. Shared rides will have a reduced dropoff fee starting then as well.
4. DELTA AIRLINES TO USE FACIAL RECOGNITION AT SEATTLE-TACOMA AIRPORT
Delta Airlines is set to introduce facial recognition technology at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) by the end of this year, reports Airport Technology. Seattle Times reported that passengers boarding international flights will be photographed by the airlines and cross-matched with their visa or passport photo in the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) files. CBP also plans to begin using facial recognition for identification of travelers who arrive in the country via the SEA international arrivals building, slated to open in July next year. This initiative is expected to be implemented in every part of the airport that requires international travelers to provide proof of identity. Additionally, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) reportedly plans to use the program for domestic passengers.
5. NEW DELTA HUB MEANS BOSTON LOGAN AIRPORT IS SET TO PASS MIAMI IN TRANSATLANTIC TRAFFIC
Boston Logan International Airport, quickly taking shape as a Delta Air Lines transatlantic hub, is about to become the East Coast’s third largest European transatlantic gateway, reports Forbes. Statistics compiled by UK-based flight data information firm OAG indicate that Boston will move to third from fourth among East Coast hubs in transatlantic service to Western Europe in 2020, passing Miami International Airport. In 2020, Delta will launch four new transatlantic flights from Boston, including new seasonal service to Rome, a second daily flight to Paris and new service to London-Gatwick and Manchester. The carrier will also extend seasonal service to Edinburgh and Lisbon.
