The new Consolidated Rental Car Facility, the goal of two years of construction at San Antonio International Airport, opened for business at midnight, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
The $165 million facility, which was approved by City Council in 2015 and scheduled to be completed before this spring's Tricentennial and Men's NCAA Final Four, will allow people who arrive at the airport to rent a car on site, without having to climb on board an annoying shuttle bus and be taken to an office a mile or more off the airport.
The facility, which was paid for by usage fees tacked onto the fees for renting cars at the airport, is actually open early, it was set to be opened by March. A planned grand opening ceremony set for Tuesday had to be postponed due to the ice storm.
The 1.5 million square foot facility will allow passengers to walk across the road in front of the terminals, rent a car, and pick it up right there. Not only will it be far more convenient for visitors, it will bring an end to a lot of the congestion in front of the terminals that the car rental shuttles, making it easier for people to drive right up to the front door to drop off and pick up passengers.
It will also end the practice of passengers getting lost as they try to find their way to Jones-Maltsburger or some other obscure street to drop off their rental car. That has been a source of much bad feeling by visitors to San Antonio.
The new facility will include room for 13 car rental companies to have offices, park, clean, and even perform minor maintenance to cars, and to have comfortable facilities for passengers to pick up and drop off rental cars.
It also returns short term parking to just steps from the terminals, with the first two floors dedicated to short term public parking.