BALTIMORE - During the busy holiday season, one private parking service offers a solution to dragging luggage through the jungle of the airport economy parking lot and waiting for the next shuttle bus to make its rounds.
While travelers are away, they can even have their car’s oil changed.

“We can get you to your gate within eight minutes of your parking your car,” said Jim McCleaf, manager of the Airport Fast Park at BWI that operates two surface parking lots — the red lot on Elkridge Landing Road and the blue lot on West Nursery Road — just outside the boundaries of Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

At Fast Park lots, buses meet parking customers at their cars, where drivers help them load their luggage. Passengers are treated to a free bottle of water and a newspaper for the quick trip to the terminal. At the Elkridge Landing Road lot, customers can even have their car washed and their oil changed while they’re gone. Free jump-start service, flat-tire repair and lock-out service are also available.

“The shuttles at the airport run every 15 to 30 minutes,” McCleaf said. “The idea is we don’t want our customers to walk any further than the door of their car to the bus.”

McCleaf declined to say how many spaces were available at the two lots, but said patrons are rarely turned away, and valet parking is used when the lots begin to fill up. Cars are parked elsewhere on the lot and moved when spaces are freed up.

The BWI Fast Park lots are part of a national chain that includes locations in New Mexico, Texas, Ohio, Tennessee and Florida. The red lot has been operating for about 10 years, while the blue lot opened in 2002.

With a coupon available online or as a member of the frequent parker program, customers receive a $2 discount on the regular parking rate — a maximum of $6 per day instead of $8 — to park in the Fast Park lot. Frequent parkers can even earn a free day by accumulating parking points.

Parking rates at the airport vary from a maximum of $8 per day in the long-term lot to $20 per day in the hourly garage.

Airport spokesman Jonathan Dean said the airport has stepped up its efforts to promote the ease and convenience of its parking facilities after the completion of major expansion projects, including the addition of 8,400 new spaces in the daily garage alone. Dean said the airport parking lots can now accommodate almost 30,000 cars.

“When time is a factor, customers should certainly consider the BWI lots,” Dean said. “They are a lot more convenient and efficient … and the daily and hourly garages are covered. During the holidays when we may experience some inclement weather, it’s always nice to have your car covered.”

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