Denver
International Airport (DEN) has announced the site location for the
consolidated rental car facility (ConRAC). The rental car companies at
DEN have
outgrown their current leasehold spaces and need more room to meet
Vision 100 and Operation 2045 growth projections to serve 120+ million
passengers in the future.
DEN
has five rental car brand families on-site (Avis, Enterprise, Fox,
Hertz and Sixt), and several
others operate off-site. The existing sites have not had significant
improvement since DEN opened. The current rental car program uses 12,760
parking spaces. With the influx of passengers, DEN will need 16,130
parking spaces, a 26% increase.
Currently
at DEN, a customer must take an individual car rental company shuttle
to a surface parking
lot, where customers are exposed to the elements. A ConRAC provides a
one-stop shop for all car rental companies that is covered and more
easily accessible for the customers. Additionally, because the facility
will have multiple levels, DEN won’t need as much
land to accommodate the demand.
DEN evaluated three different sites and has determined the current employee lot located along 78th
Avenue, north of Peña Boulevard and east of Jackson Gap, provides DEN
with the most benefits for future growth. That lot will be relocated to a
nearby location. A major benefit of this location is the potential to
extend an Automated People Mover (APM) along
78th Avenue to serve additional public or employee parking, additional
transportation modes, as well as commercial development as the current
sites are redeveloped.
“Having
a ConRAC will provide much-needed room for growth, a better customer
experience and a more sustainable
program, especially if coupled with a people-moving solution to
eliminate rental car shuttles,” DEN CEO Phil Washington said.
“Introducing the ConRAC concept to DEN is a better operational system
for managing industry changes.”
DEN
has been working with the rental car industry to update the rental car
master plan as the airport
is the only airport in the top ten busiest airports in the nation that
does not have a consolidated facility for its rental car program. The
ConRAC also benefits DEN by eventually releasing the 160-acre “rental
car row” along 78th Avenue and the West portion
of the Worldport building for other DEN uses.
The
updated Rental Car Master Plan addresses the need to provide a
convenient car rental solution that
will support the airport’s projected Vision 100 passenger levels,
reduce DEN’s carbon footprint, and stabilize a significant program
contributing to airport non-aeronautical rents and revenues.
Funding
for the ConRAC project is supported through user fees paid by customers
who rent cars at DEN.
In February 2023, DEN increased the Customer Facility Fee (CFC), a fee
paid by rental car users and travelers who arrive at the airport. The
rate is currently $6 per car per day, the mid-point of the fee charged
at large U.S. airports.
DEN
is assessing the most effective financing and delivery methods for the
project and is working to
finalize cost estimates. An industry forum will be held in early 2024
with additional information. This will follow with a Request for
Proposals (RFP) or similar process in late 2024.
