London Luton Airport has come a good way from the times when you could park your car directly opposite the passenger terminal building. There was not as much of congestion with mostly holiday charters and a few domestic flights hence parking your car was never a big crisis. With the expansion of budget air travel launched by airlines for instance EasyJet and RyanAir, Luton Airport has required to spread out considerably and the terminal building has become more like a booming shopping centre. Like many of the UK's main airports, London Luton has had to build various transformations to deal with increased traffic and sheer number of passengers although this has not always been completely successful.
The present fad of driving directly to the airport, parking your car and jetting off to your destination continues unabated and safe airport parking onsite or near the airport is becoming big business. To avoid cars from jamming up the terminal area, Luton airport introduced charges and time limits in the pick-up and drop-off areas. No waiting is permitted on the main terminal roundabout or its approaches but people continue to disrupt the flow of traffic by parking or dropping off their passengers in bus lanes and entrance routes to avoid paying £1 at the exit barriers. They are often unaware that they've already been 'clocked' by the various CCTV or number plate recognition cameras dotted around the area and an £80 parking enforcement notice arrives on their doorstep a few days later. Some have tried the dangerous manoeuvre of reversing out directly into oncoming traffic and I've even noticed pedestrians being knocked off their feet by drivers doing this just to avoid paying £1.
My current 'pet hate' is the fairly common occurence of individuals driving around the airport approaches at around 10mph, trying to find a lay-by or bus stop to wait until their passengers come through the terminal. They seem like paying more attention to the small screen on the dashboard than driving their vehicle. It is cynical that people using sat-nav devices often seem to be ones who don't know where they are going.
A assured way of eluding all these hassles is always to pre-book your secure Luton Airport parking with Airport Carparkz where you can drop off your car less than a mile from the terminal and jump on a transfer minibus that will take you to within a few yards of the terminal.