Do it yourself: Common-use check-in kiosks debut at Airport
By A.B. Snedeker

When the rental car center opened on December 8, a new technology also quietly debuted at Hartsfield-Jackson. The eight common-use self-service check-in kiosks (CUSSKs) at the facility are the first of their kind at the Airport.

Airline-specific check-in kiosks are nothing new at Hartsfield-Jackson. In 2009, an Airports Council International–North America survey indicated that Atlanta leads the world in the use of self-service check-in. However, common-use kiosks are different. They allow passengers to check in for flights, regardless of which airline they are flying, at a common kiosk.

“Passenger check-in trends have clearly changed,” said Theodore Kitchens, terminal and support facilities planning manager. “Before Sept. 11, a majority of originating passengers at Hartsfield-Jackson were checking in via an agent, at curbside or even at the gate. Over the last few years, 25 percent to 30 percent of originating passengers have been using kiosks to check in.”

The new CUSSKs at the rental car center allow passengers to return their vehicles and quickly check in for their flights before they board the ATL SkyTrain for a five-minute ride to the terminal.

“During peak times, the average check-in process using a new [common-use] kiosk takes about two minutes,” Kitchens said.

About 600 passengers a day check in at the rental car center using the new technology. That’s 600 people who do not have to use check-in facilities within the terminal, thus easing the demand on those kiosks.

Kitchens said he expects even more people to use the CUSSKs as additional airlines are added (the kiosks now support check-in for Delta Air Lines and AirTran Airways) and as the number of people traveling returns to the pre-recession level.

There are plans for eight more CUSSKs at the rental car center. The Airport likely will incorporate CUSSKs into future capital development plans as their functionality increases.

Kitchens said the kiosks soon could serve more roles than just check-in. “They could be used to verify passports and to facilitate the processing of foreign visitors through such [Department of Homeland Security] programs as US-VISIT and the Global Entry system.”