CAR RENTAL RATES LIKELY TO INCREASE.Byline: DOUG IRVING Staff Writer The cost of renting a car at Los Angeles International Airport “LAX” redirects here. For other uses, see LAX (disambiguation). “KLAX” redirects here. For other uses, see KLAX (disambiguation). Los Angeles International Airport (IATA: LAX, ICAO: KLAX, FAA LID: LAX could soon go up. Airport managers want a big, new building to bring all rental agencies together under one roof. And somebody has to pay for it. Airport commissioners are scheduled to vote Monday on a $10 surcharge An overcharge or additional cost. A surcharge is an added liability imposed on something that is already due, such as a tax on tax. It also refers to the penalty a court can impose on a fiduciary for breaching a duty. for every car rental at LAX. The money would help fund a long-standing plan to curb traffic and cut pollution by herding car-rental firms into a single location. The move would eliminate the need for each of the companies to operate its own fleet of shuttle buses. Currently, rental-car companies scattered around the airport account for an estimated 800,000 shuttle trips a year. Rental companies, however, have dug in for a fight, saying they have yet to see plans or justifications for the center. "We don't think it's legal," said Richard Broome, vice president of corporate affairs for The Hertz hertz (hûrts) [for Heinrich R. Hertz], abbr. Hz, unit of frequency, equal to 1 cycle per second. The term is combined with metric prefixes to denote multiple units such as the kilohertz (1,000 Hz), megahertz (1,000,000 Hz), and gigahertz Corp. "We are absolutely flabbergasted flab·ber·gast tr.v. flab·ber·gast·ed, flab·ber·gast·ing, flab·ber·gasts To cause to be overcome with astonishment; astound. See Synonyms at surprise. [Origin unknown. that the airport would move ahead without any idea of how the facility is going to be paid for or what it's going to look like." The new building would replace an old parking lot just east of the airport. It would bring together 26,000 parking spaces in all, as well as offices for the main rental companies that currently operate at LAX. The center is a "vital step toward the alleviation of congestion The condition of a network when there is not enough bandwidth to support the current traffic load. congestion - When the offered load of a data communication path exceeds the capacity. " at the airport, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a staff report prepared for commissioners. It would give travelers a single place to get a car and a single shuttle route to get there. That, the report noted, would reduce the number of shuttle buses spewing exhaust into the air. Airport officials have estimated it would cost as much as $800 million to build the rental center. A year could be required before construction begins, but the $10 surcharge per rental could come as early as May. "This facility is inevitable," commission President Alan Rothenberg Alan I. Rothenberg (born April 10, 1939 in Detroit, Michigan) is a graduate of the University of Michigan's law school, and an influential administrative figure in the history of North American soccer who is credited with greatly contributing to the growth of the game in the United said at a meeting last month. "The sooner we can accomplish it, the better." doug.irving@dailybreeze.com (310) 543-6649 |
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