Dublin Airport chiefs are confident travellers will have a hassle-free summer — with no passenger pick-up or drop-off charges introduced.
Hundreds of extra staff are being hired, at €22 an hour, which it is hoped will prevent the chaos witnessed last summer during peak times. There have been 500 new hires this year and there are now over 850 security staff working at the airport.
Air travellers had to wait for hours to get through security last year with queues snaking out of the main terminals as the airport struggled to meet demand. Dublin Airport Authority (daa) chief executive, Kenny Jacobs, was before the Oireachtas Transport Committee and promised the authority is better prepared going into the peak holiday months of the summer.
Mr Jacobs told the TDs and Senators about the huge economic impact of the daa. He said: “Some 116,000 Irish jobs are facilitated by dublin -airport>Dublin Airport, and about 10,000 jobs for Cork Airport. We account for over €5 billion in wages in the Irish economy.
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“We make an economic contribution of €9.6bn in Dublin, and another €1bn in Cork. We spend around €227m on Irish suppliers each year.
“Moving on to Dublin Airport, I would describe it as a positive performance year to date.
“We have 190 destinations, more than we have ever had, and 44 airlines in this coming summer. We have recently added Montreal and Vancouver as routes that are being restored post-Covid-19.
“The Dublin to Beijing route will be operated by Hainan Airlines from China.
“There are 1,400 flights each week across 30 European cities, and 180 flights each week to the USA.
“Dublin is now the fifth best-connected hub for transatlantic in Europe.
“We have around 600 flights a day — around 300 flights in, and 300 out — and more of them in Terminal 1 than we have in Terminal 2.”
Mr Jacobs added: “For me, the real heroes in Dublin Airport are the operational and security staff who have really put in a very strong performance.
“The passenger experience, including the time that, critically, is spent getting through security, is and will continue to be the number one focus.
“Queue times are stable since the summer of 2022.
“If I take May 2023, it was our busiest month ever in Dublin Airport.
“We had 3.05 million passengers, 95 per cent of them getting through Dublin Airport in less than 20 minutes.
“I am delighted to be able to say that. Principally, the biggest thing that annoyed people last year was the anxiety created by not knowing how long it was going to take them to get through security.
Some 95 per cent got through in May 2023 in less than 20 minutes, and 99.5 per cent of passengers, year to date, have got through security in less than 30 minutes.”
Fine Gael transport spokeswoman, Senator Regina Doherty, welcomed a promise from Mr Jacobs to drop drop-off charges.
She said: “I have vocally opposed the notion of drop-off charges since planning permission was first applied for, back in 2021.
“To penalise motorists without providing a viable alternative transport service would be completely nonsensical.
“As I’ve said time and time again, while there are plans for eventual improvement, our bus services aren’t up to scratch and we’re still waiting for MetroLink.
“This was always seen for what it was: a money-grabbing exercise and a cop-out from dealing with the real issues around transport connectivity.
“That’s why I’m pleased to report that Mr Jacobs confirmed to me – on the record – that despite having planning permission, the daa has absolutely no plans to introduce drop-off charges within the duration of his term as CEO.
“Mr Jacobs has six years left in the job; that gives the authorities a significant window to plan ahead.”
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