With parking spaces constrained at Logan International Airport and to promote the use of bus transportation to the airport Massport plans to build a three level garage and adjacent 6 000 square foot building at Logan Express in Shoppers World.
Massachusetts Port Authority CEO and Executive Director Thomas P. Glynn told the Daily News on Tuesday the garage would accommodate 1 100 cars doubling the current number of spaces in the open lot and overflow lots in Shoppers World. The 6 000 square foot building would replace the current 2 000 square foot building where customers purchase tickets and wait for the bus.
If the plan is approved by the town construction would begin in the spring and be completed in two years said Glynn. In addition to helping alleviate the parking space constraints at Logan the garage would be a boon to winter travelers who would return from a trip and not have to shovel snow off their cars Glynn acknowledged.
Logan Express is one of the more popular parking sites said Glynn. This (expansion) is a way to deal with the parking challenges at the airport.
Parking at Logan Express is also significantly cheaper than at the airport $7 a day vs. $27.
Massport officials conducted a preliminary walk through with the Framingham Conservation Commission last month to review the project and site plans and will be filing a notice of intent with the board next month said Richard Walsh Massport's assistant director of media relations.
Logan Express buses make 40 roundtrips daily from Framingham. The first departure from Framingham is at 3 15 a.m. Thereafter trips take place every 30 minutes from 4 a.m. to 11 p.m. Logan Express is at 1 Worcester Road (Rte. 9 west).
Regarding the parking space issue at Logan Glynn pointed to a graphic that showed Logan's acreage totaled only 2 400 compared to O'Hare's at 10 000 Dallas/Fort Worth's at 18 000 and the largest Denver's at 33 000 acres. Yet Logan handles 29 million passengers yearly compared to 65 million at O'Hare 52 million at Dallas/Forth and 31 million at Denver. Logan's acreage is about the same as Hanscom Air Force Base he added.
Glynn also discussed the arrival of JetBlue to the Worcester Regional Airport last month. The airline is now offering daily flights to Orlando and Ft. Lauderdale Fla. The flight leaves for Orlando at 7 20 p.m. and for Ft. Lauderdale at 4 05 p.m. The airline anticipates expanding that number to seven flights a day to different cities said Glynn. Those cities haven't been determined yet he said.
Glynn called JetBlue one of the fastest growing airlines in the United States noting that it already accounts for 27 percent of the flights out of Logan. That track record is why he believes JetBlue will make commercial airline traffic from Worcester succeed where past airlines have failed.
He cited JetBlue's customer service and its upbeat positive approach for its popularity. For example JetBlue doesn't charge for the first checked bag as many other airlines do.
They're very pleased said Glynn of JetBlue's reaction to passenger interest in Worcester. Flights are 80 to 70 percent full. Changing habits is a hard thing to do but they feel pretty good about how things are going.
Daily News staff writer Bob Tremblay can be reach at 508 626 4409. Email him at rtremblay wickedlocal.com.
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