RDU Airport, N.C. – Customer satisfaction is on the rise at RDU! This is according to a survey conducted by the Airport Authority to measure passenger services and experiences at RDU terminals 1 and 2.  Customer satisfaction is going up alongside passenger growth. June 2017 marked the 40th consecutive month of year-over-year monthly passenger gains. It also marked a record high load factor, or percentage of seats filled on flights at 89.8 percent.

The Airport Authority released the results of a comprehensive passenger satisfaction survey to its Board members July 21st. On a 5-point scale, 99 percent of respondents rated RDU a 4 or 5, an increase of 2 points from the last survey in 2014 and an 18-point increase from 81 percent, 10 years ago. The overall airport score is 4.92 compared with 4.68 in 2014. View the survey results.

“Serving our customers and connecting them to the people and places that matter most is the passion of everyone who works at the Airport Authority,” said President and CEO Michael Landguth. “We aren’t resting on our laurels, however. As we enhance our world-class facilities to keep pace with customer demand, we will continue to go above and beyond to make the experience as enjoyable as we possibly can.”

The highest rated RDU experience is terminal facilities, followed by restroom cleanliness and signage/wayfinding inside the terminal. Wi-Fi and Bag Claim rated the lowest, although still above a 4 on the 5-point scale. Enhancements to Wi-Fi are underway and the Airport Authority continues to work with airline partners to improve bag delivery times.

The survey measured 14 elements of the customer experience including parking, ground transportation, food/retail services, security screening and gate area comfort, among others.

The survey also found:

• 57 percent of travelers are flying for leisure compared with 39 percent for business and about 4 percent for other reasons including school-related travel [note: part of the survey was conducted during holiday travel periods].
• 83 percent of travelers had previously visited RDU, compared with 17 percent making their first trip from RDU.
• 48 percent of travelers reported traveling 16-59 minutes to the airport, with 28 percent traveling more than 1 hour. Additionally, 24 percent of travelers reported less than 15 minutes of travel time to RDU.

The study, conducted by Confero, Inc. of Cary, was previously conducted in 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2014. More than 1,500 passengers were interviewed in-person at RDU from November 2016-February 2017 at various times of day and locations. The survey has a margin of error of +/- 2.5 percent.

Results of the survey will be used by Authority staff in collaboration with its airline, business and governmental partners to enhance customer experiences and satisfaction. Prior surveys have guided improvements at RDU and have strengthened customer interaction standards and performance throughout the airport.

About the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority

The Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority and its 300 staff operates and manages Raleigh-Durham International Airport, the primary air travel gateway to central North Carolina. The airport served more than 11 million passengers in 2016, about 30,000 customers every day. RDU is home to more than 5,000 employees and contributes more than $8.5 billion and 20,000 jobs to the region’s economy each year.  The Airport Authority has won the Triangle Business Journal’s Heathiest Employer of the Triangle for the past three years straight and in 2017 was named the best connected medium hub airport by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s International Center for Aviation.

 

###