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Driving at Bradley International Airport (BDL)

Airports can be complicated places, especially for drivers. But knowing the basics, and getting information in advance about your local airport, can help make sure you’re prepared for your first pickup or dropoff.

Airport regulations

Per airport regulations, driver-partners must adhere to the terms below. Failure to do so may result in the receipt of a citation or even restriction of access to airport trips. Please note that Uber will not pay for any citations that driver-partners may incur.

  • When on airport property, the Uber driver app must be open at all times (driver-partners must not go offline until exiting the airport area)
  • We’ve instituted a special first vehicle in is the first one out (FIFO) system at Bradley International Airport. The FIFO system only works within the designated area (Cell Phone Lot). Driver-partners waiting elsewhere will not receive trip requests through the Uber driver app.

Pickups at the airport

It is easy to receive trip requests from riders leaving the airport. However, these trips work a little differently than other requests.

Waiting for requests

Uber’s technology uses a first-in-first-out (FIFO) queue. Uber partners should wait for ride requests at the free, designated Cell Phone Lot only (see map below). You will then be placed in a virtual queue where the first driver-partner to enter will be the first to receive a trip request.

Some things to know about FIFO queues:

  • Your location within the waiting lot does not affect your position in the virtual queue
  • When you’re in the designated waiting area, you’ll be able to see your position in the queue and how many partners are ahead of you in your Uber Driver app.
  • You can lose your place in line if: you go offline on your Uber driver app, you drive outside the FIFO zone, you do not accept multiple incoming trip requests in a row, or you cancel multiple rides (if the rider cancels, you will remain at the top of the queue).

Picking up your rider

Once you accept a trip request, the pickup location at the airport is located at the outer lane of the arrivals area.

Dropoffs at the airport

Based on the operating agreement with the airport, riders can be dropped off at the terminal area. If you’d like to receive a trip request afterward, you’ll need to keep the Uber driver app on to maintain your place in the FIFO queue.

Staging information