PUNE: For passengers alighting at Pune airport, having to walk a distance of more than 500 meters with luggage and kids in tow to reach the pickup point for app-based cabs and autorickshaws was bad enough, but now the rains and illmaintained parking lot have further compounded their problem.
Atul Sarathi, who reached Pune from Kolkata on Sunday night faced a tough time crossing the road in pouring rain to reach the parking lot. “With the road in front of the airport crammed with vehicles, it was really difficult to negotiate the traffic and blinding rain to reach the pickup point. I have never seen something like this in Kolkata, where you get cabs just outside the terminal building,” he said.
“What made matters worse was that the parking lot was not lit up. There is a high mast light at one corner, but it is not enough. I struggled to find my cab,” he added.
Shailendra Rai, another passenger, narrated his tale of woes. “I landed at the Pune airport from Bengaluru around 10.30pm on July 6 with my four-year-old daughter and 3 bags. Since I came to Pune after a year, I was under the impression that I will be picked up from outside the arrival gate,” he says.
“I had booked an app-based cab from my phone but to my surprise the pickup showed a spot outside the airport. I called the driver who told me that he had already reached the parking lot. As I stepped out of the exit gate, I found the road waterlogged and chock-ablock with vehicles. I had to manage my luggage and my daughter to reach the cab pickup point,” he added.
Rai had to criss-cross through the rushing cabs, holding on to his daughter and the luggage. “It took me around 10 minutes to reach the parking lot,” he told TOI.
Before being converted into the pick-up point, it was used as a parking space for four-wheelers and two-wheelers. “There is a building which is under construction at the farthest end of the parking lot. There is one high mast light at the parking and it is sufficient. But when it rains heavily, the visibility is poor,” a source at the airport said.
“The authorities must understand that it is extremely difficult to push the trolleys through the clogged road. On Saturday night, the road was packed with trucks, private vehicles and cargo-carrying vehicles. Why did the authorities not study these issues before moving the pickup point to parking number 2?” another passenger asked.
Queries emailed to the airport authorities on the issue did not elicit any response till the time of going to the press.
Atul Sarathi, who reached Pune from Kolkata on Sunday night faced a tough time crossing the road in pouring rain to reach the parking lot. “With the road in front of the airport crammed with vehicles, it was really difficult to negotiate the traffic and blinding rain to reach the pickup point. I have never seen something like this in Kolkata, where you get cabs just outside the terminal building,” he said.
“What made matters worse was that the parking lot was not lit up. There is a high mast light at one corner, but it is not enough. I struggled to find my cab,” he added.
Shailendra Rai, another passenger, narrated his tale of woes. “I landed at the Pune airport from Bengaluru around 10.30pm on July 6 with my four-year-old daughter and 3 bags. Since I came to Pune after a year, I was under the impression that I will be picked up from outside the arrival gate,” he says.
“I had booked an app-based cab from my phone but to my surprise the pickup showed a spot outside the airport. I called the driver who told me that he had already reached the parking lot. As I stepped out of the exit gate, I found the road waterlogged and chock-ablock with vehicles. I had to manage my luggage and my daughter to reach the cab pickup point,” he added.
Rai had to criss-cross through the rushing cabs, holding on to his daughter and the luggage. “It took me around 10 minutes to reach the parking lot,” he told TOI.
Before being converted into the pick-up point, it was used as a parking space for four-wheelers and two-wheelers. “There is a building which is under construction at the farthest end of the parking lot. There is one high mast light at the parking and it is sufficient. But when it rains heavily, the visibility is poor,” a source at the airport said.
“The authorities must understand that it is extremely difficult to push the trolleys through the clogged road. On Saturday night, the road was packed with trucks, private vehicles and cargo-carrying vehicles. Why did the authorities not study these issues before moving the pickup point to parking number 2?” another passenger asked.
Queries emailed to the airport authorities on the issue did not elicit any response till the time of going to the press.
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