A quiet departure lobby of a terminal at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, amid the COVID-19 outbreak. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Nov. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — Incheon International Airport, the country’s main gateway, reported higher than expected parking revenue this year despite the prolonged outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the sharp decline in the number of users, its operator said Sunday.
The number of cars that used the airport’s parking lots in the first ten months of this year totaled 3,756,533, down about 52 percent from 7,819,138 one year ago, according to the Incheon International Airport Corp.
During the January to October period of this year, the airport’s parking revenue amounted to 18.3 billion won (US$16.5 million), down 74 percent from 72.5 billion won a year earlier.
The airline industry interpreted the revenue reported as higher than expected, particularly given that the number of daily users plunged by more than 96 percent year on year since the outbreak of the COVID-19 crisis.
The airport’s higher than expected parking revenue was driven by the fact that most of the airport’s users made use of passenger cars since most public transportation means were suspended or reduced.
Another factor is the increase in the number of people who used their own vehicles rather than public transportation due to concerns about possible infection of COVID-19.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
