Space Standards for Sizing Air-Terminal Check-in Areas

The appropriateness of the current space standards (occupancy rates) for airline check-in area design is discussed. Based on a study of passenger walking patterns at the two international airports in Montreal, it is suggested that the design standards recommended in the International Air Transport Association guidelines result in an oversupply of space, sometimes in excess of twice the required minimum. This is attributed partly to the definition of capacity and the lack of a formal procedure for treating items such as luggage, carts, and stationary passengers that impede movement. It is proposed that the design occupancy rate be determined by adjusting the maximum occupancy rate to account for the impedance. Maximum occupancy rate is derived according to the relationship between occupancy rate and walking speed of passengers without baggage or carts, whereas adjustment factors are computed along the same principles as the passenger-car equivalency factors used in highway capacity analysis. The standard equivalent passenger in the present case is defined as a stationary passenger without a cart, and the space required by moving passengers with and without carts is estimated relative to the standard passenger. Application of the technique is explained using a numerical example.