ATL moving its cell phone lot
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Gabriella Turrisi/Axios
The cell phone lot at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport where you could idle away time and watch planes fly into the sky is no more. At least how we've known it for the past 10 years.
Why it matters (to me): The cell phone lot has long been one of Atlanta's best under-the-radar excursions, a no-cost activity where I spent many a pandemic night eating tacos with special people or taking a break from life.
Zoom out: Putting aside the overpriced food, long security lines and an obscene number of neck pillows, airports are the most romantic places in the world. And during the early days of the pandemic, when flying wasn't at the top of everyone’s list, the cell phone lot offered a glimpse of escape.
Details: While you were sleeping early Tuesday morning, the Terminal South parking lot where people would wait for loved ones to schlep off the plane before picking them up at the curbside was closed off by crews. We weren't even given a chance to say goodbye.
- In the process, the barely a decade-old cell phone lot I knew and loved joins the giant ants, that one weird mural, the Plane Train voice and other ATL oddities that no longer exist.
Now, so-called "meeter-greeters" will be directed to a more central (yet less close to the action of the runway) lot where taxis and shuttles park, per the AJC.
The big picture: If you've got a better place to watch planes take off and land (the top of some of the parking decks works well, though it'll cost you) let us know.