Edinburgh Airport's £1 drop-off tax

BOSSES at Edinburgh Airport have been accused of cashing in on motorists after it emerged they want to charge drivers for dropping off passengers.

Airport operator BAA is proposing to charge both taxi drivers and the general public 1 every time they drop off at the terminal as part of measures to revamp the airport's forecourt. The move was today described as "outrageous" by city cabbies, while leading motoring organisation the RAC Foundation said the move ran the risk of "irritating" paying customers.

Edinburgh is one of the first airports to look at charging for drop-off, although Glasgow is understood to be considering similar proposals.

The airport said it would retain a free drop-off area, but it is likely to be further away from the terminal, possibly in one of the existing car parks.

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Raymond Davidson, secretary of the Edinburgh Taxi Association, said the move would leave many cab drivers to drop off passengers on the "perimeter" of the airport to avoid paying the fee.

He said: "This is grossly unfair. We're taking business into the airport and this is just another way for them to raise money.

"Taxi drivers and the general public will be up in arms about this. I appeal to them now to reconsider this decision. This amounts to a major shake-up and is, frankly, outrageous."

Elizabeth Box, head of research at the RAC Foundation, added: "It might in some cases be appropriate to charge for airport drop-offs if there is very limited space available or where there is excess demand, but if this is not the case such a move runs the risk of irritating paying customers and being seen as a purely money-making scheme."

The airport said it was reviewing a number of options as part of changes to its forecourt.

The terminal building was forced to make changes to the way traffic approached following the terror attack at Glasgow Airport in 2007.

A spokesman for Edinburgh Airport said: "We are currently considering a number of options on the way we manage traffic on our forecourt.

"One of those options involves a charge for dropping off close to the terminal and all of the options under review retain a free drop-off area. We will be evaluating these plans over coming weeks, in discussion with our customers, stakeholders and other forecourt users."