When the KC airport does get rebuilt... (St. Louis, Lee's Summit: rental car, rental)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Cuz it will.... do you think they should relocate it closer to the city?
Since 9/11 the cost of maintaining security at our airport is CRAZY high because they have the checkpoints at the entrance to every little group of gates at each of the terminals.
I hate our airport, and like it because it's so easy to get in and out of quickly. But the fact remains most are built so people go through 1 central security check then go to their terminals.... it keeps the cost of security down, and for people who are doing transfers makes for a better experience for them.
I'd like them to expand the downtown airport and rebuild it to be our main airport, but not sure if that is realistic or not... my understanding is it was originally moved because difficulty for planes due to the bluffs that downtown is built on.
Tho this will probably be another 20 years down the line... thoughts?
I hear this complaint a lot, but most every city I have ever been to has their airport far away from the city. I don't see the big deal. What we need is a high speed rail to the airport, but other than that I think it is fine.
If we do ever rebuild it, we should probably have one main terminal. But re-doing KCI is pretty far down on my list of priorities for the city. We just renovated it and it does pretty well for the amount of air traffic we get.
KCI is not that far from the city, It's 20 minutes from Downtown, no matter the traffic. 5-15 minutes for any of the 300,000 plus that live in the northland. It's 10-15 minutes from KCK. It's 30 minutes from most of midtown KCMO and portions of JoCo.
Big deal. If you fly a lot, don't live in Lee's Summit or South JoCo or Cass County. But even then, it's only 45 minutes from most of those areas.
Having said that. KCI's terminals are a total joke and need to be blown up. I don’t find the airport convenient. I find it to be dark, dated, small etc with a total and complete lack of services and general basic needs. It's almost impossible to even find a place to grab a sandwich or a drink and then you can't take it into a gate. Most people want to get through security, then grab something to snack or drink or go to the restroom. And that's at that Southwest gates. In any other terminal or gate, forget about services. You are in ghostown USA. I also don't know how they keep the terminal cool or warm with all the doors. In the winter, cold air blast into the terminals making them not so nice.
If more than one flight departs or arrives within a few gates, waits for security get very long and the gates get very crowded and there is no place to go since you can't leave your gate. In most airports, if things get too busy, you can walk down and sit at an empty gate, grab a bite to eat or browse a gift shop. I rarely wait a long time in any airport to get through security, the most tends to be 20-30 minutes at very peak times at certain airports. Modern terminals in even very large airports tend to be very quick to get through security as lines move very fast. But I would rather wait 30 minute and know that I have services and bathrooms and some level of freedom on the other side of that secured wall. But at KCI, if you get a flight at a busy time such as southwest in the morning, you WILL WAIT LONGER. Everybody has to wait for one or two security checkpoints to a few gates. All while 50 other security checkpoints have nobody in them.
At KCI, you are stuck.
It's a horrible airport and I live here (locals love it). EVERY SINGLE person I meet that has had to change planes at KCI hated it. Many have told me they would never change planes in KC again. Nice first impression we give to so many people of our city. Come to our poduck airport and drive yourself nuts by having to exit and leave a secure area to change planes, even if your gate is NEXT DOOR. But god help you if you have to change airlines and wait a half hour for the red bus, then go through security again.
Build a modern terminal that is open and airy and has a vast common area on the air side (secure side) with places to shop and dine and restrooms while you wait for your plane or wait out a layover or delay.
MCI sucks. It's the worst airport in the country. It's one of the reason's KC has a "country" image. Omaha has a nicer airport than KC. When you walk off the jetway at KCI, it's like you landed in Joplin. Not a major city top 40 airport that gets 10 million passengers a year. Its' bad enough you see no sign of a city when you land from most approaches at KCI. But when you get of the plane to have what appears to be a tiny, dated and dead airport just justifies it for people. What a freaking cowtown.
I hate KCI and think the convenience factor of it is EXTREMELY overrated. Sort of like how people like how convenient the ballparks are, yet if you live in the city or are a visitor it's impossible to get there. Zero transit and a monopoly on parking. 25 bucks to park at Arrowhead? Are you kidding me? But you have no options. Pay or don't go. I have never paid 25 bucks to park at any stadium, no matter how urban, yet in KC that’s what you have to pay. In my book, that's not convenient, that’s a rip off and annoying. Royals is a $25 dollar cab fare each way from downtown. Most baseball stadiums are $5 cab rides from most city hotels, parking is free on the street a few blocks away to 5-10 dollars in lots or you can walk there or take transit. Not in KC.
KCI is a perfect location. It has plenty of land, it's only 20 minutes from downtown and is within 30 minutes of half the metro. It has great facilities outside the terminals like the rental car facility and the long term parking. But god KCI's terminal set up blows. Time to move on KC. It's not 1960 anymore.
I like our airport. I find it much easier to get around than any other airport I have ever been too. I dont travel a whole lot but I have no issues with our airport at all.
The airport definitely could use some improvements.
What it really needs though is a complete overhaul of the terminal structure. Which would mean a full redesign. That's not going to happen any time soon.
I don't mean to be a pessimist, but there's no way around it, really. They will make some additional minor improvements, but we are stuck with KCI for the most part, as is, for a least a couple more decades.
KCI is not that far from the city, It's 20 minutes from Downtown, no matter the traffic. 5-15 minutes for any of the 300,000 plus that live in the northland. It's 10-15 minutes from KCK. It's 30 minutes from most of midtown KCMO and portions of JoCo.
Big deal. If you fly a lot, don't live in Lee's Summit or South JoCo or Cass County. But even then, it's only 45 minutes from most of those areas.
Having said that. KCI's terminals are a total joke and need to be blown up. I don’t find the airport convenient. I find it to be dark, dated, small etc with a total and complete lack of services and general basic needs. It's almost impossible to even find a place to grab a sandwich or a drink and then you can't take it into a gate. Most people want to get through security, then grab something to snack or drink or go to the restroom. And that's at that Southwest gates. In any other terminal or gate, forget about services. You are in ghostown USA. I also don't know how they keep the terminal cool or warm with all the doors. In the winter, cold air blast into the terminals making them not so nice.
If more than one flight departs or arrives within a few gates, waits for security get very long and the gates get very crowded and there is no place to go since you can't leave your gate. In most airports, if things get too busy, you can walk down and sit at an empty gate, grab a bite to eat or browse a gift shop. I rarely wait a long time in any airport to get through security, the most tends to be 20-30 minutes at very peak times at certain airports. Modern terminals in even very large airports tend to be very quick to get through security as lines move very fast. But I would rather wait 30 minute and know that I have services and bathrooms and some level of freedom on the other side of that secured wall. But at KCI, if you get a flight at a busy time such as southwest in the morning, you WILL WAIT LONGER. Everybody has to wait for one or two security checkpoints to a few gates. All while 50 other security checkpoints have nobody in them.
At KCI, you are stuck.
It's a horrible airport and I live here (locals love it). EVERY SINGLE person I meet that has had to change planes at KCI hated it. Many have told me they would never change planes in KC again. Nice first impression we give to so many people of our city. Come to our poduck airport and drive yourself nuts by having to exit and leave a secure area to change planes, even if your gate is NEXT DOOR. But god help you if you have to change airlines and wait a half hour for the red bus, then go through security again.
Build a modern terminal that is open and airy and has a vast common area on the air side (secure side) with places to shop and dine and restrooms while you wait for your plane or wait out a layover or delay.
MCI sucks. It's the worst airport in the country. It's one of the reason's KC has a "country" image. Omaha has a nicer airport than KC. When you walk off the jetway at KCI, it's like you landed in Joplin. Not a major city top 40 airport that gets 10 million passengers a year. Its' bad enough you see no sign of a city when you land from most approaches at KCI. But when you get of the plane to have what appears to be a tiny, dated and dead airport just justifies it for people. What a freaking cowtown.
I hate KCI and think the convenience factor of it is EXTREMELY overrated. Sort of like how people like how convenient the ballparks are, yet if you live in the city or are a visitor it's impossible to get there. Zero transit and a monopoly on parking. 25 bucks to park at Arrowhead? Are you kidding me? But you have no options. Pay or don't go. I have never paid 25 bucks to park at any stadium, no matter how urban, yet in KC that’s what you have to pay. In my book, that's not convenient, that’s a rip off and annoying. Royals is a $25 dollar cab fare each way from downtown. Most baseball stadiums are $5 cab rides from most city hotels, parking is free on the street a few blocks away to 5-10 dollars in lots or you can walk there or take transit. Not in KC.
KCI is a perfect location. It has plenty of land, it's only 20 minutes from downtown and is within 30 minutes of half the metro. It has great facilities outside the terminals like the rental car facility and the long term parking. But god KCI's terminal set up blows. Time to move on KC. It's not 1960 anymore.
BTW, I fly many times a month.
I completely agree. I used to live in KC (JoCo area), and I thought it was ridiculous that I had to take three freeways and drive 40 minutes to an airport in an area of only 2 million people. I live in Chicago now, and I find that O'Hare airport is a million times more convenient. Why is Chicago's O'Hare, the second most congested airport easier you ask?:
1) Public Transportation. I take a bus two miles from my street to the Blue Line Subway, which takes me all the way to O'Hare. Even if I owned a car, there would be no sense in me driving to the airport, since the public transporation only take 45-50 minutes to get there and driving would take longer (due to the insane traffic on the way to/from there).
2) Central Security Gates. Once I am through security, I can eat (if I forgot to pack some food), grab a magazine, go to McDonald's, etc. When I used to go through the gate in MCI, I was greeted by a kiosk of expensive sandwiches (if it was actually open) and a bathroom with one stall and one urinal. The bathroom line would often take 10-15 minutes, especially before a flight, whereas in O'Hare there is more then one bathroom per security gate.
Also, to agree with KCMO, you oftentimes wait longer then you would at a bigger airport due to the segregrated gates.
3) Landing in the middle of nowhere. I always used to be depressed when I landed at MCI, since there wasn't anything around it but fields.
I know that the KC locals tend to love MCI airport (I refuse to cause it KCI, because all that does is confuse tourists and out-of-towners), but if you grew up here and only knew that, it explains it. Kansas Citians, please realize that MCI is the ONLY airport with the bizarre security layout, so even though you may like it, almost all of your visitors will find it weird/different, and if they have to connect/change planes may actually hate it and find it frustrating.
Open fields are depressing? I have family that lives a couple of suburbs north of the airport in St. Louis, and their house almost shakes from the airplanes overhead. Open fields are not a bad thing in my opinion. For people who lived in JoCo before MCI was built, they might have an argument. Anyone who's moved to the southern reaches of the metro in recent years really have no argument on the location of the airport, considering the lifestyle in the northland is pretty much the same as it is way down there. Schools, houses, shopping, neighborhoods, etc.
I was reading the complaints and praise for MCI/KCI here. I fly there once or twice a year, typically from SFO or OAK. It's a short trip to KC from the airport, so no problem. I like the laid back feeling at the place. If I'm tired, I'll nap there before hopping the shuttle.
I like landing in fields instead of the city. In my view, there's a greater margin for safety landing and leaving from open areas than highly developed areas.
As for security, it's understood the airport was built before the current 9/11 craziness, and they're doing the best they can. It seems there might be a more reasonable solution available than rebuilding the entire place. Security is evolving.
Public rail would be nice. What are the boundaries? I'd wager there would have to be cooperation and funding from 2-3 county commissions, an airport authority, and the city of KC, to name a few. Probably unlikely, but it would be nice.
Complaints about event parking noted and empathized. Our neighbors sell their driveway in Berkeley for $20 at Cal football games, and a little less for basketball games. And that's with plenty of BART access fans could be using instead of attempting to drive. Accordingly, $25 for Arrowhead doesn't sound outrageous relatively speaking; that's the way it goes these days, apparently.
No problems with KCI, except that there's poor public transportation to and from. But given the poor quality of public transportation in KC in general, there's a lot I'd want to see fixed before airport shuttling would even make the list.
I generally think most airports are annoyingly chaotic, but I don't have any specific problem with KCI over O'Hare or Midway, the other airports I've used most often.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
