The Memphis Airport

Yay first post in a looong time...

Two weeks ago I got stuck at the Memphis airport alone for 10 hours. My flight landed on time, sat on the runway for 40 minutes, and I got off the plane 10 minutes before my next connection was supposed to leave... Even an Olympic sprinter would have missed it. And there are apparently few other people flying from Memphis to my hometown in South Carolina on a Monday morning, hence no other flights for the next 10 hours. This longer-than-normal airport experience gave me plenty of opportunities to figure out how airport design could be improved, even when the delays are still long and uncontrollable. These are my top three improvements, and were picked because many airports other than Memphis could do the same.

First of all, noise. I really wanted to take the 10 hour opportunity as some rare do-nothing-and-be-lazy time and read, but it was hard to find a quiet corner. I'm ok with other people on their cell phones, or random announcements telling so-and-so their plane is leaving. However, the TV screens blasting CNN at every gate are not ok. The announcers completely get rid of what could be a relaxing hour or two to yourself with a book and your iPod. And who decided I want to know about the news right then?? Why can't I choose when to find out what's going on? For some reason, TVs blasting the news seem to be very popular in US airports (Atlanta, Cincinnati have them too). The easy solution to this would be subtitles and an area for TV watchers. The other noise I'm not ok with is the "The threat level has been raised to orange." If you are trying to scare me, please just do it at the entrance and around security. At the gate, I'm already stuck inside and going nowhere no matter how high or low the threat level is. Plus, I think it's been at orange for quite awhile, so this doesn't add any new information and takes away from the announcements at the gates.

Second, food and tables. I had to search for something other than coffee at my end of the terminal and found exactly one suitable sandwich shop that would let me buy a meal and take it to sit where I would be comfortable while waiting for my flight. There were several smaller issues here: finding a meal I could take with me to a different location, finding a location to eat, and finding the food in the first place. Food courts are great, but sometimes I don't want to walk all the way out of the terminal to get food, nor do I just want coffee. The place I found was flooded with other people who also decided not to walk all the way back to the other end of the terminal. There was therefore nowhere to sit and eat leisurely with my computer. I think that a little more focus on food and its placement would change the airport experience considerably.

Third of all, free wireless. I feel a little weird listing this as my third improvement, but I'm a poor student, and free internet is a must. More importantly, I feel that there are enough travelers out there who get online to pass the time or do work, and how much does it really cost you to set up? I know plenty of people have iPhones, but I think this would be a great experience improvement for everyone with computers or both.

I actually picked these three options because my small hometown airport in Greenville SC does all three: there's little noise beyond what's needed for travel information, there's food in the main area between terminals and inside both (short) terminals, and there's free wireless. I even know a few people who go to the airport early to relax there when they're going to pick someone up. After reading so many papers about how waiting can be improved and even enjoyed (ahem, Disney), I really think airports have a lot of potential.