Boston airport makes airlines answer to customers

Under Massport's new standards for Logan International, airlines will be held to improving customer service, including ticket check-in and baggage claim

By Thurston Hatcher
CNN.com Writer

BOSTON, Massachusetts (CNN) -- Imagine zipping through airport ticket lines, barely pausing to pass through security, and getting your luggage just minutes after your plane lands.

Boston's Logan International Airport wants to make that a routine experience by requiring airlines to meet its high standards.

Beginning February 26, the airport plans to monitor customer service from the 38 airlines that fly in and out of Logan, and will hold them accountable if they fail to meet the standards.

"This is about identifying potential problems and working with airlines to resolve them so everyone passenger's experience is good," said spokeswoman Barbara Platt of Massport, which oversees the airport.

Airlines could be penalized

The services being monitored include flight information, baggage return, check-ins at the curb and ticket counter, and security screening.

Under the new standards, the first bag would be expected to reach the carousel within 15 minutes after a plane's arrival, and there would be a maximum wait of 20 minutes in the ticket line.

Massport staff members will survey as many as 12 airlines each month to determine whether they're meeting the standards. If they aren't, they'll be given 30 days to correct the problem.

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If problems persist, Logan will penalize airlines through a variety of measures, including rescinding access to gates, waiting areas, ticket counters and offices.

"At Logan our passengers will have rights, and Massport will defend those rights," Mark Robinson, chairman of the Massport board, said in a press statement.

First of its kind

Logan officials believe the program is the first of its kind in the United States. The announcement follows a U.S. Department of Transportation report earlier this week that faulted airlines for not doing enough to address customer service problems.

The Logan program is part of a larger initiative to improve service at the airport, including an effort to build a new runway, Massport officials said. Logan, which handles 27 million passengers a year, has the sixth-highest number of flight delays in the country.

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Massport: Logan Airport

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