Airport plans barrier-free drop-off system

East Midlands Airport said the new system will speed up the time it takes to drop off passengers

East Midlands Airport (EMA) has announced plans to introduce a barrier-free system for dropping off passengers.

The airport, near Castle Donington, in Leicestershire, said existing barriers would be replaced with an automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) system in May.

Airport bosses said they hoped the change would allow drop-offs to be quicker and smoother and improve traffic flow.

EMA's customer services and planning director Mike Grimes said: "We have listened to passenger feedback which has told us that the rapid drop-off area was not working as well as it should."

He said the removal of the barriers would be accompanied by a switch to cashless payment.

Under the new system, the rapid drop-off area charge - £5 for 15 minutes and £1 for each extra minute - will need to be paid by midnight the day after making the drop-off, either online or by phone.

The airport said no payments will be able to be made when exiting the area after the switch.

It said frequent users, including taxi drivers, will be able to set up an auto-pay account for future visits.

The airport said it had also recently redesigned its drop-off area to provide extra parking spaces and wider pavements.

It said further information about when the new system will be introduced and how to use it would be released in the coming weeks.