Effort Will Save Airport Nearly $900,000/Year

Lambert-St. Louis International Airport will close a 12-gate section of Concourse D that links the airports Main and East Terminals. The closure was announced earlier this week at the St. Louis Airport Commission Meeting and is effective Monday, December 8.

The cost cutting move is part of an overall $2.7 million budget reduction plan to help Lambert better position itself in the wake of a nation-wide downturn in airline passenger activity.

Lambert will construct walls at either end of the section (D12-D26, E34-E40). The gates are all vacant with leases that expired as late as 2005. Frontier Airlines and Great Lakes Airlines are not affected by the closure and will continue to operate out of gates D-4 and D8/10, respectively.

Lambert already operates a free shuttle between terminals with pickups every 10 minutes. All passengers will be directed to those pick up zones (Main Terminal-Exit Door MT12; East Terminal-Exit Door ET 12).

The closing of the 12 gate section on D Concourse is projected to save Lambert nearly $900,000 a year with reduced costs for electrical usage, escalator maintenance, trash removal and cleaning services.

In the other budget reductions, Lambert is freezing 12 vacant positions, reconfiguring guard services, closing a parking lot valet service and delaying the purchase of a fire truck.

Lambert has seen a five percent drop in passenger levels so far this year, far less than other airports in the country. Still, Lambert's director told airport commissioners the airport is proactively trying to stay ahead of the curve, "It's motivated us to tighten our belts, conserve revenues and keep our costs down."

FMI: www.flystl.com