Dublin Airport will speed up security queues this summer by introducing new scanners that cut the need to remove liquids from bags.
Airport operator State company DAA pledged on Wednesday to improve standards at Ireland’s biggest gateway, through which around 10 million people will travel during peak holiday months, following a similar initiative last year.
Dublin will remain within the 32-million passenger limit imposed by planners this year, according to DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs, who stressed that the company would comply with the rule, even as demand headed for 35 million.
Gary McLean, Dublin Airport managing director, calculated that it would have installed enough new C3 scanners to handle half of all passengers this summer.
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C3 scanners cut the need to remove material such as liquids from bags, speeding up security queues, although Mr McLean cautioned that travellers should stick with the current 100ml limit.
“We will have 10 installed in terminal two and up to four in terminal one by the end of May,” he predicted, adding that DAA would then pause work for the summer before continuing to install 35 of the new scanners in total.
A greater proportion of terminal two passengers will benefit this year, according to Mr McLean. He said that the airport aimed to get 90 per cent of passengers through security in less than 20 minutes, a target he maintained it exceeded last year.
DAA will keep Dublin car parking fees in line with 2023, but the airport faces a squeeze on its 23,000 spaces, while a potential 6,200 extra slots in the old Quick Park nearby on Swords Road remain unused.
The State’s mergers regulator, the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, blocked the airports company from buying the site earlier this year. Industry sources expected owner, builder Gerry Gannon, to offer it for sale shortly afterwards.
Mr Jacobs suggested that it could discuss operating the Swords Road car park with the owner. DAA is urging anyone who intends parking at Dublin to book space early.
Both he and Mr McLean pointed out that there were 1,000 bus services a day at the airport which now link all 32 counties to the gateway.
A new passenger panel established by DAA highlighted the need for a rail line to the airport. Mr McLean noted that this included those from outside Dublin.
Improvements set out by Mr McLean on Wednesday follow a 15-point plan on which the airport embarked last year to boost standards.
The passenger panel, which met for the first time in April, highlighted issues such as maintaining clean toilets, more seating at departure areas, improvements to the airport’s app and other issues on which DAA will focus, according to Mr McLean.
Meanwhile, Mr Jacobs said that DAA intended to boost Cork passenger numbers by 40 per cent to five million in coming years, as the combined city and county population is expected to top one million.
“We want to have an airport that is ready for that population growth,” Mr Jacobs noted. DAA will demolish Cork’s old terminal, which is disused, to give it more space, and add a mezzanine to the new building.
The airport could have flights to “all major European cities”, particularly in summer, Mr Jacobs predicted.
However, he stressed that increased traffic at Cork was not tied to Dublin’s cap, explaining that airlines flew to the airports for different reasons.
The cap is costing jobs and damaging the Republic’s reputation, Mr Jacobs added. DAA last year applied to Fingal County Council, the airport’s planning authority, to lift it to 40 million.
The company is considering a second application if that would speed up this process. “It is already costing jobs,” Mr Jacobs warned of the cap.
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