Denver International Airport has changed the location where Uber and Lyft drivers pick and and drop off passengers, but the transition is off to a rocky start, according to some drivers.
On Tuesday, ridesharing services began picking up and dropping off passengers on Level 5 along with the other ground transportation services. Previously, ridesharing services went to Level 6, which airport officials said had become too congested.
Airport staff have been on both levels to assist with the transition, but some drivers have complained about their behavior.
Rideshare driver Daniel King said that airport staff were yelling at Uber and Lyft drivers and passengers Tuesday and behaving rudely.
“It’s not called for,” he said.
Emily Williams, a spokesperson for the airport, said her office has received complaints from drivers, and they are working with staff to correct the issues.
“We’ve reinforced with our team that we want to do this in a friendly way,” Williams said.
King said he did not think the change was well thought out, and said that Level 5 is too crowded. He has had passengers ask him to continue to drop them off on Level 6.
Williams said despite the growing pains, the transition is going well. She said the airport has made some changes in response to driver feedback, including adding an additional pickup lane so that passengers can be picked up on both sides of the designated island of Level 5.
Part of the issue is that people are getting dropped off and picked up at the curb, Williams said. She said the process works best when drop-offs only happen at the curb and pickups only happen at the island, otherwise there are traffic flow problems.
Representatives from Uber and Lyft said they are both working closely with the airport to manage the transition.
