Panel OKs new airport signs despite $2.2 million cost

A Metropolitan Airports Commission committee voted Wednesday to spend $2.2 million to improve signs directing travelers to the two main terminals at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

The finance, development and environment committee unanimously approved funds -- all from airport revenue, not tax dollars -- for 44 new highway signs and the new and refurbished structures to secure them over nearby roadways. The Airports Commission could buy 16 signs with the words "Terminal 1" and "Terminal 2" to replace signs that say "Lindbergh" and "Humphrey." Twenty-eight other signs would list the names of airlines at each terminal, helping travelers find the right arrival or departure location.

The changes aimed at streamlining airport traffic were initially estimated to cost $1 million, but that doubled when it was discovered that some of the current sign supports are not big or strong enough to hold the new, larger signs. In addition, five new signs are needed.

Even the lower cost had provoked criticism from some people concerned by the size of the expenditure during tight budget times.

But officials maintained that the changes were long overdue, telling committee members Wednesday that during a recent eight-day stretch, 600 travelers approached an airport information desk lost and in the wrong terminal. That would add up to about 25,000 travelers a year confused by the existing signs.

Although this is only a fraction of the 32 million arrivals and departures from Minneapolis-St. Paul, all committee members felt a more traveler-friendly experience was worth the cost.

A first for highway signs

The proposal next goes to the full Airports Commission on July 20. If it passes the full commission, Minneapolis-St. Paul International would be the first airport in the nation to include airline names on its highway signs. The committee cites the airport's unique design -- two terminals separated by miles of road -- as ample reason to set a precedent.

And the price of the project grew as the size of the signs did.

Because the new signs would be larger to fit in airline names, the structures holding them need to be bigger and stronger to withstand the increased wind resistance. A single sign could cost as much as $100,000.

Concerns about costs

A consultant at the meeting also raised concerns about the cost of the project. He asked the committee to consider simply adding signs near parking ramps where drivers could check the airlines, and then quickly get back onto the highway if they had made a wrong turn. The consultant also pushed for adding terminal directions to passenger tickets instead of the more expensive highway signs.

But representatives of the Airports Commission and the Minnesota Department of Transportation said those suggestions would not adequately inform drivers and that the commission can't force airlines to put notifications on tickets.

Committee Vice Chair Lisa Peilen called the sign changes "necessary" to ensure that fewer out-of-towners' last or only memory of Minnesota is getting lost going to the airport.

The funding discussion lasted for almost an hour, ranging from the effects of the project on the 2010 budget to the possibility of including the names "Lindbergh" and "Humphrey" on the signs. But in the end, the committee wasn't concerned about going over its 2010 budget, and MnDOT wouldn't endorse the traditional names.

When it came to votes, all members were in favor of the new signs. Committee member Mike Landy summed up the group's sentiment: "The signage is simple, clear, concise and it gets the job done."

Alex Ebert • 612-673-4264