KOCHI: Tourism industry stakeholders deplore the changes in parking charges at the Kochi international airport, cautioning that the decision to implement entry fees for commercial vehicles on the airport premises could hit the district’s fragile tourism sector.
As per Cochin International Airport Ltd’s new Fastag system, commercial vehicles will be charged `60 for the first 10 minutes. An additional payment of Rs 40 permits taxi drivers to park their vehicles inside the airport compound for two hours. Thereafter, Rs 30 will be charged for every additional hour for taxi drivers.
While CIAL maintains that the move is aimed at optimising parking facilities, industry stakeholders urge an immediate rollback of the new fee system. “Who is CIAL trying to help – the people or the contractors?” questioned Jose Pradeep, state president of Kerala Travel Mart.
He believes that the airport was pushing for tourist taxis to pass on the parking fees to passengers. “Isn’t that ridiculous? Are they trying to discourage tourists from arriving in Kochi?” he asked, trashing notions that CIAL was facing revenue shortages.
At present, Jose added, some of the taxis wait at Athani and drive to the airport when the passengers call them. “But, with the increase in the parking fee, the number of taxis parking at Athani will go up. That could lead to traffic congestion,” he said.
“It is being said that CIAL opened a new parking facility after the local body complained about the taxis taking over the open spaces in Athani. Do you think charging an entry fee of Rs 60 for 10 minutes at the CIAL facility would solve the issue? Well, I don’t think so.”
The spike in parking charges have sparked displeasure among the taxi driver’s association as well. “Initially, the management had waived the fees for the first 10 minutes. Now, the CIAL authorities have instructed us to charge the entry fee of Rs 60 to the passengers, and we find this unfair,” said Ajith M A, a taxi driver. “On behalf of the CITU taxi drivers’ union, we have expressed our displeasure. We are planning a strike.”
Meanwhile, CIAL officials argued that fixed entry fees for taxis were a norm at airports across the country.
“This is not a new system; it’s a national norm. The taxi operators need to charge the entry fee to the passengers. There is nothing we can do,” said an official.