The ramps at the Chennai airport will become fully operational in January.
H.S. Suresh, Airport Director, Chennai Airport, said the last leg of the work is in progress and is expected to be completed by the first week of January.
Once the work is completed, the ramps will be thrown open to users, he said.
At present, since the central ramps of the flyover at the Chennai airport are incomplete, passengers and people who drop them off are forced to pay Rs. 60 as parking charges.
Parking is free if the vehicle is able to exit the airport within seven minutes. But in the current situation, it is not possible to enter and exit within that period, users say.
A senior Airports Authority of India (AAI) officer conceded that the AAI had to take responsibility for the delay in completion.
Work on the ramps began nearly two years ago and is yet to be completed even after a substantial period of time had lapsed.
In the last six months, work on the ramp had come to a grinding halt as it came in the line of Metro Rail station construction work.
The AAI, has meanwhile, decided to extend the time to enter and exit the Chennai airport to 10 minutes from seven minutes.
However, even that will be implemented only in January, officials say.
When implemented, the move may provide a respite for a lot of passengers who have been struggling for months now to leave the airport within the stipulated time.
S.V. Gopalan, a frequent flier based out of Chennai said, “It is particularly difficult for wheelchair-bound passengers to leave the airport within this time since they need assistance to enter the terminal.”
