New vehicle charges to be introduced at Gatwick's south terminal
Vehicles using Gatwick's south terminal forecourt from Monday (12/04), will have to pay a charge.
The revenue from the £5 fee will go towards preserving jobs and the recovery from the pandemic.
The charge will apply to all vehicles, except for passengers holding a Blue Badge and airport staff.
What are the charges?
£5 for 10 minutes
£1 for each additional minute up to 20 minutes
£25 will be the maximum charge, with the maximum length of stay 30 minutes
Local commuters, living in areas with limited public transport, can pay a £50 annual fee for two visits to the train station each day.
Meanwhile, anyone who doesn't want to pay the charge, will be able to drop-off or pick-up passengers in the airport's long-stay car parks.
The charges will be enforced by cameras which automatically recognise number plates.
The same policy was introduced at the airport's North terminal last month.
Airport bosses say it'll help the business to recover, following a loss of £465.5M and more than 40% of its workforce because of the pandemic.
It's also hoped the introduction of the charge may reduce traffic congestion, by encouraging people to make more sustainable journeys to the airport.
Jonathan Pollard, Chief Commercial Officer, Gatwick Airport, said they are aware that the drop off charge is "not going to be popular with everyone" but said it will help to protect remaining jobs.
He said: "We are also considering how to rebuild better and this charge has a role to play encouraging more sustainable journeys to the airport using our strong public transport connections."