New LAX Rideshare Fee Hike Aims to Alleviate Airport Congestion and Enhance Traveler Experience

The Board’s six members emphasized that the newly imposed fees—an extra $12 for each trip to the terminal area—should be borne by companies like Uber and Lyft, rather than being transferred to the passengers.

Prior to the decision, Commissioner Nicholas Roxborough criticized Uber for opposing the measure. “There’s only one opponent making noise,” he remarked.

Roxborough accused Uber’s leadership of prioritizing profit over transparency, urging observers to “Google the earnings of shareholders and the CEO. If you seek transparency, it’s right on your phone.”

When the long-anticipated $3.5 billion airport people mover system, known as SkyLink, becomes operational, the fee could escalate by as much as 140%.

Currently, anyone getting dropped off and picked up at LAX pays $4 or $5 in base airport access fees for each direction traveled.

If the bigger increase happens, passengers currently paying $10 in fees could potentially pay $24. By comparison, curbside pickup or drop-off at San Diego and San Francisco international airports costs $4.50 to $6.

Once SkyLink comes online, the fees could jump to $12 to hop in or out at the curb outside terminals 1 through 8, known as the Central Terminal Area.