Port Authority moves ride-app, car-service pickups from 2 JFK terminals

For some travelers, getting out of Kennedy Airport will involve an extra step after the Port Authority's decision to move ride-app and car-service pickups from Terminals 5 and 7 beginning Tuesday.

Instead, officials said, travelers will have to take the AirTrain to the Howard Beach station for pickup there.

The new format will not affect drop-offs for travelers coming to the airport, the Port Authority said. It also will not affect taxi service at the terminals. Additionally, the Port Authority said, it is working with Uber and Lyft to ensure ADA-accessible rideshares at the terminal frontages remain available. The AirTrain is free within the airport.

In a statement Monday, the Port Authority said the pickup zone relocation was to "prevent gridlock on airport frontage" during the summer travel season. It also cited "peak construction season" for the ongoing $19 billion redevelopment project underway at the airport.

As detailed by the Port Authority, travelers arriving on flights into the two terminals will need to access the Howard Beach Ride App and the Car Service pickup lot by taking AirTrain JFK to the Howard Beach station. There, vehicles hired through a passenger's choice of app will wait in assigned, numbered spaces to meet travelers for pickup.

"Through the upcoming summer travel season, the airport will face the dual challenge of higher volumes of air travelers combined with the peak of construction activities for the $19 billion redevelopment of JFK," the Port Authority said in its statement, adding that customer service representatives and baggage handlers will be stationed at the pickup lot to assist travelers.

Terminal 5 is home to JetBlue. Terminal 7 is primarily used for international arrivals and departures.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”