Luggage trolley cost at Newark Liberty Airport

Never_Enough_Money

Hoping someone can help, DD has 5 hours to kill at Newark Liberty Airport tomorrow before she can check in, she will need to find a luggage trolley / baggage cart upon arrival as she has two suitcases to carry, does anyone know if you have to pay for them and if so how much they cost and do you need particular coins?

Thanks in advance

Westin

Coins or a credit card. Something like $1.75.

shaun_from_Africa

A baggage cart now costs $5.
The person getting the cart will need a credit card as very few of the machines accept cash payments. (it's an automated system where you pay by card and the cart is released.)

If anything goes wrong with the payment process or getting a cart free from the machine, it's just about impossible to get anyone to help as the machines are installed and operated by a private company that is nothing to do with the airport authorities. (A company called Smarte Carte who have the franchise in just about all airports and shopping malls in the US)

mgdavid

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

A baggage cart now costs $5.
The person getting the cart will need a credit card as very few of the machines accept cash payments. (it's an automated system where you pay by card and the cart is released.)

If anything goes wrong with the payment process or getting a cart free from the machine, it's just about impossible to get anyone to help as the machines are installed and operated by a private company that is nothing to do with the airport authorities. (A company called Smarte Carte who have the franchise in just about all airports and shopping malls in the US)

not so; the airport authorities place the contract with Smarte Carte, who are just another service supplier of the very many which in total keeps the airport functioning. They will have an on-site office and manager, airport info desk should be able to put you in touch if necessary.

claire16c

You can check bags in 5 hours ahead. So she just needs to get the bags from the entrance to the check in desk.

mgdavid

c 16c how do you check bags in 5 hrs before checkin?

Never_Enough_Money wrote: »

....DD has 5 hours to kill at Newark Liberty Airport tomorrow before she can check in, ......

jacques_chirac

claire16c wrote: »

You can check bags in 5 hours ahead. So she just needs to get the bags from the entrance to the check in desk.

That would depend on the airline and the class of travel. Most airlines will only allow premium cabin customers to check in early, indeed if it is a non US airline they may not even have a desk open that early.

shaun_from_Africa

mgdavid wrote: »

not so; the airport authorities place the contract with Smarte Carte, who are just another service supplier of the very many which in total keeps the airport functioning. They will have an on-site office and manager, airport info desk should be able to put you in touch if necessary.

That should read "they should have an on site manager".

I transited through Newark earlier this year (which is how I know the cost of renting a cart) and had a problem with the Smarte Carte system. I paid using a credit card and no baggage trolley was released, so I took the advice of the sign on the cart terminal and telephoned the number provided. This number was for the Smarte Carte airport service agent.
All I managed to get was a recording asking for my name, address and credit card details, saying that a refund would be processed within 14 days.

I wasn't happy leaving my credit card details on what might be a totally unsecured system so I spoke to someone at the passenger assistance desk in the terminal and was told that someone from Smarte carte will call in if there is a major problem, but as they have multiple cart terminals, this doesn't happen very often.
Most of the US airports have multiple terminals, often with fair distances between them and there is no way that a company operating a fully automated system will pay to have an employee sitting on their ar5e in each terminal waiting for a problem to occur.

It might be different if there was only one cart machine in each terminal, but this isn't the case. They have multiple machines so if one fails there are still plenty to provide the service.
They probably have 1 or 2 maintenance engineers on call who look after the airport machines as well as those in the local shopping malls.

mgdavid

When I say 'on-site' I mean the airport (in its entirety). There will be a manned office at the airport - the staff need to be signed in and out, managed etc for a start. You probably didn't have time but it would have been possible to go to the office if you really wanted to see somebody face to face, and yes the multi-terminal thing is a PITA, for passengers and suppliers alike.. I know a bit about Smarte Carte as my younger son is QLD and VIC manager with them.

claire16c

mgdavid wrote: »

c 16c how do you check bags in 5 hrs before checkin?

Just go to the check in desk. I've checked in up to 12 hours early before, handed over my bags then paid to go in a lounge.

If you're not able to check in that early then I wouldn't get to the airport that early as most airports don't exactly have much to do before security.