| Holiday 2007 | Issue 4 |
Volume 8 |
OAKLAND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT'S TIPS FOR HOLIDAY TRAVEL
The Christmas and New Year holidays are peak travel periods at Oakland International Airport (OAK). With a bit of preparation at home, travelers will enjoy a more pleasant experience at the airport.
HOLIDAY PACKAGES - Leave holiday gifts unwrapped, both in carry-on and checked baggage, as they may need to be inspected. ARRIVE EARLY - Plan to arrive at least 90 minutes prior for domestic departures and three hours prior for international departures to allow for increased passenger volume at airline check-in and security screening. BOARDING PASS AND I.D. - To proceed through OAK's passenger security checkpoint, travelers age 18 and older must show government-issued photo identification and ALL passengers must have either a boarding pass or other airline-approved security document. Check with your airline to see if it offers online check-in which can be done at home or the office before leaving for the airport. CHECKED LUGGAGE - Reduce the amount of baggage you're taking by mailing/shipping holiday packages and clothing in advance. Visit your local post office or use express shipping services such as DHL, FEDEX or UPS to ensure on-time delivery. CARRY-ON LUGGAGE- Travelers are limited to two carry-on bags, which include a personal item such as a handbag, briefcase, diaper bag or laptop computer. To avoid a secondary inspection which may average three minutes per person, place loose metal items such as coins, keys, cell phones, pagers and jewelry in carry-on bags, and remove coats and shoes as the Transportation Security (TSA) has made shoe screening mandatory for all passengers. PASSENGER SCREENING - Before packing, visit TSA's website, tsa.gov, for a complete list of permitted and prohibited items and learn how to "simplyFLY" travel. This means packing simply to fly through security.
TACA BEGINS NONSTOP SERVICE TO EL SALVADOR FROM OAK
Convenient Connections to Latin America
TACA began new nonstop service from OAK to its hub in El Salvador in November. TACA passengers are finding it easy to connect to a number of cities in Latin America, especially Lima, Peru, through El Salvador International Airport.
Flights leave OAK on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays at 12:30 a.m., returning to OAK on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 10:40 p.m. TACA uses
A-319 aircraft for this new service.
"Oakland, a rapidly growing city, is the new option offered by TACA to travel from the San Francisco Bay Area," said Ricardo Granillo, TACA's Sales Director for North America.
Visit taca.com or call 1-800-400-TACA for reservations and more information. Also, visit TACA's new ticketing office in the East Bay at 3411 East 12th Street, Suite 130, Oakland.HORIZON AIR DEPARTS OAKLAND FOR THE SLOPES
Horizon Air offers a daily nonstop flight between OAK and Sun Valley, Idaho (SUN), for the winter season. This is the fifth year of OAK-SUN service which operates through
April 5, 2008. Horizon operates 74-seat Q400 high-speed turboprop aircraft.
Sun Valley, home of the Sun Valley Resort, is a world-class destination ski resort encompassing 4,000 acres with 75 runs and 19 lifts. For more information and reservations, visit horizonair.com or call Horizon Air at 1-800-547-9308.
Horizon Air and its sister carrier, Alaska Airlines, together serve 92 cities through an expansive network throughout Alaska, the Lower 48, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico.
SOUTHWEST AIRLINES LAUNCHES NEW BOARDING PROCESS
Giving Customers the Gift of Time
Southwest Airlines is introducing a new way to board at all airports which they serve, including OAK. Newly designed gate areas and a new boarding process that doesn't require waiting in line gives customers the gift of time.
With this new program Southwest customers can say goodbye to the perceived "cattle call" eliminating the need for passengers to "camp-out" in their boarding line at the gate.
"Our open seating has served us exceptionally well throughout our 36-year history, and, after much research, deliberation, careful evaluation, and significant feedback from our Employees and Customers, we've decided that it is here to stay," said Gary Kelly, Southwest Airlines' Chief Executive Officer. "When we began our extensive exploration into the way our Customers board the aircraft, we set out to accomplish two things: improve the Customer Experience and increase Customer productivity. The new boarding delivers on both accounts and complements our legendary open seating," added Kelly.
Before heading out to the airport, visit Southwest's Boarding School 101 at southwest.com/help/boardingschool for more details which are delivered in a fun and friendly manner.
Terminal Improvement Program Update
ALL CURBSIDES, TRAFFIC LANES AND PARKING LOTS NOW OPEN AT OAK
Oakland International customers are now enjoying easier travel through the airport's newly renovated roadways, curbsides and parking lots. Four curbsides and additional and wider traffic lanes in front of the terminals are now open allowing more waiting area for pedestrians and improved traffic flow. Parking improvements in the Hourly and Daily lots include a new consolidated exit plaza; resurfacing and new striping with improved layout; and new lighting and improved signage, allowing customers to locate their cars more easily. Entrances have been improved for all lots and new overhead canopies are installed between the Hourly lot and terminals.
These improvements are part of OAK's $300 million Terminal Improvement Program, begun in 2004, which is designed to add convenience, security and customer service for OAK's over 14 million annual passengers.
TECHSHOWCASE OPENS FIRST STORE IN OAK's TERMINAL 2
High-Tech Retail Store Offers Travelers the Latest and Highest-Quality Consumer Electronic Brands
Oakland International is the first airport to offer Techshowcase, a high technology retail store which opened in November. Techshowcase features mobile consumer electronic devices from the world's leading manufacturers, including Motorola, Nokia and BlackBerry.
Techshowcase was created to meet travelers' demands for the latest high technology brands and incorporates multiple leading brand technology manufacturers into one easy-to-shop store. Each store is designed to convey the atmosphere of a "please touch" science museum, with live technology demonstration units mounted on interactive display fixtures.
"We are pleased to bring Techshowcase to Oakland International travelers, which is yet another innovative and in-demand airport retail store that offers a wealth of proven brands," said Steven Grossman, Director of Aviation for the Port of Oakland, which owns and operates the airport. "With our concessions partner, HMSHost, we continue to enhance the interior landscape of our airport, all part of our $300 million Terminal Improvement Program."
"Business travelers are able to put their dwell time to productive use by shopping for high-quality mobile electronic products and accessories to keep them connected while on the road," said Ilene Berman, Co-CEO, Airport Wireless. "Techshowcase also accommodates the needs of non-business travelers seeking mobile phone accessories, a high-quality entertainment device, headphones, batteries, gifts, and more."
Approximately 20 additional Techshowcase stores are scheduled to open over the next 18 months in airports such as San Francisco, Dallas, New York and Miami.
Techshowcase was developed by Airport Wireless which is known for its extensive airport retail electronics experience. Airport Wireless is a partner of OAK's concessions management company HMSHost, world-renowned for creating customized shopping and dining spaces in travel venues.
OAK WELCOMES NEW YOUTH-OPERATED CONCESSIONHMSHost, Port of Oakland and YEP Partner to Foster Oakland Students and Young Adults
Training Grounds, a new youth-run gourmet coffee shop, is now open in OAK's Terminal 2 next to baggage claim. Passengers and meeters/greeters now have convenient refreshment services before going through passenger screening or after claiming their bags.
Training Grounds is the brainchild of Oakland-based Youth Employment Partnership (YEP), a non-profit organization that has been working with more than 30,000 Oakland teens and young adults, ages 14-24, since 1973. The Port of Oakland provided the space for these youth-operated enterprises and will manage the leases with YEP.
"Kids have a greater chance of success - and believing they are successful - when they are given responsibility," said Michele Clark, Executive Director of YEP. "By putting Training Grounds in the hands of local youth, we are empowering them to learn more, do more, and expect more from themselves."
HMSHost, OAK's concession management partner in Terminal 2, designed, funded and built Training Grounds at a cost of nearly $300,000. Local HMSHost management will provide ongoing mentoring and support to the high school and young adult workers.
A second Training Grounds will open in OAK's Terminal 1 in 2008.OAK WI-FI NOW POWERED BY BOINGO, FOR LESS
Boingo Wireless Inc., which provides access to the world's largest network of Wi-Fi hotspots, is now providing Wi-Fi to OAK customers for less.
Customers of Sprint, which previously provided Wi-Fi at OAK will retain Wi-Fi access here and will gain access to 22 additional airports where Boingo provides Wi-Fi services directly. Additionally, the companies have entered into a roaming agreement that will provide Sprint customers access to Boingo's global hotspot network.
Travelers who visit any of these airports can purchase Internet access from Boingo Wireless for $7.95 per day. For frequent travelers, Boingo offers several service options for laptops and Wi-Fi enabled devices. Boingo Unlimited is a monthly access plan for laptops that costs $21.95 for unlimited access to thousands of hotspots in North America. Boingo Global is a $39-per-month flat-rate plan for access to Boingo's hotspots worldwide.
"Travelers need fast, reliable Internet access wherever they are, and they need to know they can get connected wherever they're going," said Dave Hagan, CEO and president of Boingo Wireless. "In providing the Wi-Fi service at 23 major airports, we're bringing each and every passenger an option for convenient Wi-Fi access at their point of departure; by enabling access at more than 100,000 hotspots around the world, we ensure their ability to connect again at their ultimate destination."
OAKLAND INTERNATIONAL NOW POWERED BY THE SUN
Port of Oakland and SunEdison Flip the Switch on New Zero Emission Solar Power System
The Port of Oakland and SunEdison celebrated the activation of a new 756 kW ground mounted solar power system in November. The zero emission clean solar power system is a major step in meeting the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners' environmental directives and is the Port's first utility generation plant.
The photovoltaic system, which delivers approximately 1 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of clean renewable energy annually, was deployed under a solar energy supply agreement with SunEdison, North America's largest solar energy services provider.
Port Board President Anthony Batarse said, "The Port of Oakland's mission includes promoting the environmental well-being of our region. The Port Commissioners believe that setting and meeting renewable energy goals is a way to help meet that commitment. With the Port's very first energy plant, the decision was to go solar and that contributes to a healthy community."
The Oakland Board of Port Commissioners approved a Renewable Portfolio Standard for the Port's Wholesale Electric Power in July 2004. This new solar power system will contribute to the Port of Oakland's continuing commitment to obtain 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources.
According to Port of Oakland Executive Director Omar Benjamin, "The Port of Oakland is taking a leadership role with this innovative public-private partnership. This partnership allows the Port to leverage its investment in clean energy for maximum benefit. The new solar power system is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 17 million pounds during the initial 20 years of this project."
As the private partner, SunEdison financed, built and will maintain the solar power system. The Port will purchase all the clean renewable energy generated under a long-term, predictably-priced contract.
The Port of Oakland's Assistant Director of Aviation Deborah Ale-Flint said, "We are very pleased that the clean solar energy generated by the system will provide electricity not only for the Port of Oakland but also for our Port tenants at Oakland international Airport's South and North fields."
"SunEdison is extremely proud to be part of this public-private partnership with the Port of Oakland to deploy clean renewable energy," noted Mark Culpepper, VP of Strategic Marketing of SunEdison. "This is truly a long-term partnership, where our services to the Port of Oakland will in turn support their commitment to being a good community member. The solar power system at Oakland International Airport is a sign of that commitment."
OAK, in conjunction with its public art partner, The Oakland Museum of California, features the following exhibits.
CONVERGENCE
Convergence, a celebration of the creative diversity of the California College of the Arts (CCA) cca.edu.
CCA's mission to educate students to shape culture through the practice and critical study of the arts is realized through a broad curriculum in fine arts, architecture, design and writing. The viewpoints of poets, photographers, designers, painters, furniture makers and other artists and craftspeople converge to form a vibrant artistic community that stretches far beyond the college itself.
For the past 100 years, CCA's faculty and graduates have played a pivotal role in the major developments of Twentieth Century art. The Bay Area Figurative Movement, Realism, and the rise of ceramics as a fine art medium are impossible to imagine without the influence of CCA.
From photography to ceramic sculpture, from the personal to the political, the artists featured in this exhibition - former students of both the undergraduate and graduate programs - are each making a contribution to the greater artistic voice of the Bay Area.Convergence is on display now until January 9, 2008 in the connecting walkway between Terminals 1 and 2, and in the airport's newest exhibition area in Terminal 2 by the concourse leading to Gates 26-32.
FUTURE VIEWS: ARCHITECTURAL VISIONS FOR OAKLAND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORTThe airport is at once a place, a system, a cultural artifact that brings us face-to-face with the advantages as well as the frustrations of modernity. Its history has been a recurrent cycle of anticipation and disappointment, success and failure, innovation and obsolescence. --Alastair Gordon, in his book Naked Airport.
Future Views is an exhibition of student works from Master of Architecture programs at UCLA and UC Berkeley investigating what Oakland International Airport might look like in the future. Understanding the airport as an institution of contemporary life, the students looked at how technology and design are shaping it into a new kind of human environment.
The four-part exhibit explores the characteristics of an airport through the relationship of function to design:
- The first section analyzes the plane as the primary influence on airport configuration, beginning with the layout and material aspects of the jetway;
- The second section looks at the spatial organization of the airport terminal and how its layout is impacted by the day-to-day needs airport users;
- The third section explores how the various functions of an airport terminal also influence the architecture and materials used to construct it; and
- The fourth and final section looks at the human scale of airport design and proposes interior atmospheric effects and sensations that could be experienced by the human body in the terminal.
While the traditional way of considering airport architecture is to see it as a complex circuitry of integrated systems working together to function smoothly, the students look at airport architecture from a different starting point: the development of form in relation to an airport's function, materials and atmosphere.
Future Views is on display post-security in the connecting walkway between Terminals 1 and 2 from January 25 - April 9, 2008.
