Los Angeles International Airport’s rideshare service ban, put into affect at the end of October, continues to cause travelers problems.
Jordan Frantz, a sophomore at USC, traveled home to Minneapolis over Thanksgiving. Upon arriving back to Los Angeles, he said he had to wait an excessive amount of time to return to campus.
“I landed at LAX at 8:15 p.m., got over to the LAX-it area and waited in a line that was about an eighth of a mile to a quarter of a mile long. I had to wait an hour and 45 minutes, I got back at 10:15 p.m.,” Frantz explained.
Another sophmore student, Alexandra Block, also had a tough time Uber-ing to campus upon arriving at LAX after the USC-California football game in northern California.
“Two weeks ago coming back from Berkeley I waited over an hour for an Uber," Block said. “The experience was terrible.”
USC Transportation and Lyft gave students 50% off on rides between LAX and University Park Campus from Nov. 20 through Nov. 26. Students gained access to this through a promotion code which was limited to the first 5,000 students using the code.
With the end of the semester and the next holiday season approaching, here are so tips to make travelling to and from campus a smoother experience.
Plan the commute ahead of time
In Los Angeles, there are many options for transportation to LAX including rideshare, buses, and personal vehicles. It is important to consider all options for holiday commutes and find out which one is best depending on the circumstances. While a personal vehicle is convenient, it can be expensive to park at the airport for multiple days and navigating traffic can be stressful. The metro and the bus are cheap and environmentally-friendly options, but one has have to take a bus from the metro station to get to the airport.
Arrive early
LAX advised that domestic travelers arrive three hours before their flight, and four hours early if flying international. While it is always a smart idea to arrive at the airport early, it is essential during the holidays, especially when checking a bag. Most major airlines require travelers checking luggage to do so at least an hour before boarding time.
Choose a different airport
One of the benefits of living in a big city like Los Angeles is having multiple airports. Burbank Airport is less frequented by holiday travelers and offers direct flights to airports across the country. Long Beach and John Wayne (Santa Ana) Airports are also local airports that may be better options than LAX.