RDU commuters

[XJPilot547]

Anyone commute out of RDU? I'm just wondering what my parking options are at the airport.

 

[jetexas]

I entertained the idea of commuting out of Raleigh. The port authority there are apparently "parking nazi's". To get a permit, you must live within a certain county radius of the RDU airport, with proof such as a utility bill with your name on it (Greensboro is not even close enough), and have a NC drivers license. When this is done it takes 2 - 3 weeks to process the paperwork and get your permit.
You can park at a certain area of the parking lot, which is in another time zone, for 4 dollars a day without the permit. This particular lot is useful only if you drive a rickshaw or a Vespa scooter because I understand the lot is always full and they are not shy to give out tickets. I wish I had better news for ya. good Luck.

 

[Fr8Dog]

I flew corporate out of RDU for a year and this is how most guys did it. They would park at the FBO (either Soutern Jet or Piedmont) the parking lot is one in the same and walk down to the park and ride which is less then a block from the FBO, get on the shuttle bus and that was it. The FBO's don't like it much since there isn't enough parking there to begin with and they have said if you are an airline pilot and you park your car there they will have it towed, but how will they know if you are a customer there or not. I saw plenty of guys walking from the FBO parking lot to the shuttle bus everyday so I wouldn't worry about it. That is about the cheapest way to do it.

 

[tarp]

Think Hotel Vans.

I've seen crews get on the Days Inn, Wyndham, Wingate, Marriott, Holiday and Comfort Inn vans. Talk to a driver - work out a deal. I've found if you slip the guy a fiver instead of a dollar for humping your bags, you suddenly are on his most favored list. I figure $10 for parking for a four day trip is a good deal.

I won't say who I've bribed but the hotel is across the street from the outlet mall.

 

[w8n4swa]

Fr8tdog,

You are right about the FBO's not liking airline employees to park in their parking lot. There is a camera now mounted in the window to record everyone's parking. If you park in Piedmont's parking lot, don't be surprised to find you car missing when you return. The tow is $35 and storage fee runs $20 a day. It's far cheaper to use VIP parking on the north end of the airport.

 

[XJPilot547]

Thanks to all you guys for the info. I just moved here from PBI and you're right about them being parking-nazis here. In PBI it was just a dollar a day. At RDU, it's such a process. I'll check into the hotel thing.