It has been a few weeks now and New NAIA Infrastructure Corp. (NNIC) – the new manager of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) – remained firm about the new parking rates. Prior to October 2024, parking in NAIA is priced at P40 for the first 3 hours, P15 for every succeeding hour, and 300 for every 24 hours. The new management then imposed new rates of P50 for the first 2 hours, P25 for every succeeding hour, and a massive P1,200 for every 24 hours.
According to them, the move was done to deter the use of parking by those who don’t really use the airport. Apparently customers from nearby establishments use the airport’s parking space as storage for their vehicles.
The move was certainly effective. Images of mostly empty parking areas floated in social media just a day after the new rates were imposed. Maybe there is validity in their statement that nearby establishments benefit from airport parking. There was rejoicing in the comments section of every image stating how they now have an easy time to find a spot while they wait for their passenger to arrive. The P10 peso increase for the first 2 hours is negligible since they can now find a parking space easily.
That’s the thing, they’re waiting for someone else. How about us who travel independently?
The empty slots are not a direct indication of parking abusers. There are people like me who have no parents, family members, relatives, or friends that can drive or fetch me to and from the airport. Aside from that, I live in San Rafael, Bulacan – a good 71 km away from NAIA. Before you become a genius and say there’s a nearer Clark International Airport, most of my trips are work trips. That means I am bundled with colleagues from Metro Manila so NAIA would be the ideal terminal for our flights. But unlike those from Metro Manila, I do not have the option of taking a ride-hailing app. Should I walk 2 km to the main highway at 10pm with my 2 suitcases and backpack so I can get a bus to Cubao where I can book a Grab to make it to my 5am flight? The same thing goes for those from the east and south of the metro.
The alternative for us would be Park ‘N Fly, but that’s not perfect either. I’m also a regular customer there and I’ve already seen families and individuals who complain about the waiting time for the shuttle. Those are the times the roads going to the airport are congested and so the shuttles take a lot more time to return. The worst was those who only have 30 mins to spare before their flight and they’re still there at the lounge. Imagine the travel time (10-15 mins), queue at the check-in, immigration, scanning, etc. I really hoped those people made it into their flights.
That’s what airport parking does – it lessens the factors for one to be late in their flights. Now, there are a lot of parking spaces but again, the steep 300% increase means we’ll have to find parking somewhere else. NNIC says it was not for profit. Yeah, right.
If they’re so adamant about warding off the colorum vehicles and those who mis-use the airport parking, the solution is simple – VERIFICATION. If you’re entering the parking, show an online or printed ticket. You can also limit the amount of cars that accompany a passenger (no more whole barangay for one departing passenger). More importantly, if you’re exiting the parking lot, show your arrival boarding pass or a stamped passport. That solution is a low-hanging fruit, ready to be picked. Besides, they’re already doing that with passengers who are entering the departure gates. If they can do that to people going into the airport itself, I don’t see any reason why they can’t do it in the parking lots.
This move by the NNIC and Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) shows two things. First – how anti-mobility they truly are. They only saw the situation from their perspective and didn’t make an effort to see it from another angle. These officials and businessmen rarely drive themselves to the airport so how would they know the plight of a passenger who has no relative or driver to take them to NAIA? The MIAA knows that the regular cabs and airport taxis overcharge their passengers, and yet for years they aren’t doing anything about it. Remember those times, around 2014, when ride-hailing apps can only drop passengers off at the airport. They are not allowed to pick up passengers as the airport rules state that only airport taxis can do it. Even now, they’re not doing anything to stop the price abuse of these cabs.
Add to that, there’s no public transportation available in the airport. There’s no true people-mover like a train or bus that has direct access to NAIA.
Second, it is a foreshadowing of more exorbitant and illogical fees to come. NNIC has flaunted that they already paid P30 Billion to the government and will pay P2 billion annually for 25 years. They will also remit 82.16% of revenues to the government. No wonder they won the bidding. That also meant they needed a lot of fees to recover their capital. In the MIAA Revised Administrative Order no. 1 series of 2024 (where this parking hullabaloo came from), there are a lot more unregulated charges coming the airport’s way. Some are towards passengers (like the 900% increase for the VIP service), some are on the shoulders of airlines – which will lead to increased fares because that’s how business works. One does not let the cost eat the profit margin.
The NNIC always speaks of ‘international standards’ when talking about the future of NAIA. What they fail to see is that the model airports in their eyes like Singapore’s Changi, South Korea’s Incheon, or Japan’s Narita and Haneda, are in countries with much better public transportation. If they don’t have a car, or do not want semi-private transportation like taxis, they still have an option in going to the airport directly via bus or trains. There’s none of that in NAIA.
