By Dan Schlossberg
ConsumerAffairs.com
August 20, 2007
It will take five years and $1.2 billion but completion of a new 10-gate facility should be a big boon for the much-maligned Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
Poor roadway access, inadequate parking, cramped terminals, and long waits for both security and baggage have caused both airlines and passengers to look for alternative airports putting a small but noticeable dent in the citys economy.
The city councils approval of the new docking station should help.
It will be used primarily by large jets from international destinations. One of those new giants, the Airbus A380, visited LAX on a practice flight earlier this summer, in advance of its first flights for Singapore Airlines later this year.
The new Los Angeles facility, located west of the Tom Bradley International Terminal, will be connected by an underground tunnel and people-mover.
All 10 gates at the new structure will be capable of handling both the A380 and its chief competitor, Boeings 787 Dreamliner.
The design and construction of the futuristic complex and a central car-rental facility is the responsibility of Los Angeles World Airports, which operates Los Angeles International.
LAX is the nations fifth-busiest airport, trailing Atlanta, Chicago OHare, New Yorks John F. Kennedy International, and Newark Liberty.
