East Midlands Airport in U-turn over drop off tariff
- Published
Airport drop-off queues 'total chaos' after fee change
East Midlands Airport has scrapped new higher parking charges for its rapid drop off zone "gridlock" at the barriers.
The tariffs were introduced in May which meant motorists had to pay £1 for every minute they stayed over five.
However, due to congestion, fees kept rising as drivers tried to leave.
One man told the BBC he would have been charged £27 after dropping off his parents if another barrier had not been opened.
Another regular visitor, who did not want to be named, said: "Because of lengthy queues, especially in the morning, it's taking way more than five minutes.
"This is because there are only two barriers in operation and quite often one is usually broken, making the situation farcical."
The airport said changes to its rapid drop off charges were implemented to improve traffic flow.
It said the majority of passengers were out of the zone within five minutes, but admitted at peak times due to congestion, it had caused drivers to incur excess charges.
It will now revert to the original waiting time of 10 minutes for £2 until further notice.
Cars were frequently getting stuck in the zone and incurring higher charges
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