Parking shuffle at RDU airport: A remote lot closes to the public starting Jan. 2
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- RDU will close Park Economy 4 on Jan. 2, converting the 3,300-space lot to staff use.
- RDU will expand Park Economy 3 to nearly 11,000 spaces through end of 2026.
- Travelers can use parking decks or Park Economy 3 and ParkRDU Express at RDU.
Raleigh-Durham International Airport has more parking than ever, but soon there will be one fewer lot open to the public.
Park Economy 4, the remote lot on the north side of the airport closest to Glenwood Avenue and Lumley Road, will be closed to travelers starting Jan. 2.
People parked in the lot will be able to retrieve their cars as long as they are there, but the airport won’t allow the public to enter Park Economy 4 after Jan. 1. From that point on, the 3,300-space lot will be reserved for people who work at the airport.
Travelers and visitors will be able to park in the decks between the terminals or in one of two other remote lots: Park Economy 3 off National Guard Drive near the Aviation Parkway exit from Interstate 40; and ParkRDU Express, a smaller lot off International Drive where customers are picked up at their cars, rather than a central pickup point, and driven to the terminals.
At $12 a day, Park Economy 3 will be the cheapest option on airport property. RDU is tripling the size of Park Economy 3 to nearly 11,000 spaces, bringing on new sections gradually through the end of 2026. Travelers coming to the lot from north of RDU can avoid airport traffic by taking Interstate 540 to either I-40 or Aviation Parkway.
Up to now, airport employees were able to park in any of the remote lots. But employees wanted to have a lot of their own, and the expansion of Park Economy 3 created that opportunity, said airport spokeswoman Stephanie Hawco. The employees favored Park Economy 4 because it’s a shorter shuttle ride to and from the terminals, Hawco said.
For more information about airport parking and how to book a spot in advance, go to www.rdu.com/parking/.
