Darwin Airport set for first multi-level car park

Darwin Airport is considering building a multi-level car park to deal with a growth in customers using the facility.

The announcement came in the airport’s draft masterplan, which caters for growth over the next 20 years.

It is not yet clear how many levels the car park will have, and an airport spokeswoman says it will not become a project for a number of years.

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“We expect our current provision of public car parking should suffice during the first five years of the masterplan,” she says.

“We will review the requirement for a multi-level carpark in line with demand.

“There is further detailed planning and design to be conducted before we can make (further) decisions.”

The spokeswoman says the growth in traffic is expected to be about 5% per year for the next 20 years.

“Overall, the projected increase in growth of daily vehicle trips will be from around 14,000 currently to 47,000 in 2037,” she says.

“It’s important to ensure we are undertaking all the necessary steps to plan for long-term development, to meet the predicted growth in passenger numbers for the next 20 years.”

The proposal comes as the airport announced it will support ride-sharing services such as Uber.

Also announced in the preliminary draft of the masterplan, chief executive Ian Kew says the airport “welcomed the opportunity to introduce ride-sharing services as a ground transport option at the airport”.

“We’re keen on having an airport that works with multiple modes of transport that suits different people’s needs,” Kew says.

“A vibrant, growing airport is important for a vibrant and growing community. (Uber) hasn’t started yet and the NT Government needs to approve how it will all work, but I think most Darwinites would like to be able to use ride-sharing facilities.”

This article from the Darwin Sun was originally published as “Multi-level carpark for airport“.