Long walk from VIA’s new domestic terminal to taxi queue spark complaints

Taxi queue at Velana International Airport. (File Photo/Sun/Fayaz Moosa)

The transition of domestic flight operations to the former international passenger terminal at Velana International Airport has resulted in significant logistical friction for travelers. By removing the previously accessible taxi queue near the ferry area, airport authorities have inadvertently forced passengers to navigate a substantially longer path to reach the new taxi stand. This reconfiguration requires travelers to traverse nearly 500 meters while managing luggage, creating physical barriers for elderly passengers, families, and those with limited mobility. Public feedback highlights an urgent need for infrastructure adjustments to restore convenience and improve accessibility.

Domestic flight operations were relocated to the former international passenger terminal.
The distance to the taxi queue has increased from 290 meters to approximately 481 meters.
Current traffic flow mandates a circuitous route through terminal hallways and road crossings.
Vulnerable groups including the elderly and pregnant travelers face significant physical strain.
Public demand is growing for a dedicated domestic taxi queue and additional pedestrian crossings.

The longer distance that travelers need to walk in order to get a taxi, after domestic travel at the Velana International Airport (VIA) was shifted to the old international passenger terminal, has sparked complaints.

Many of the travelers who spoke to Sun said that with the change to the airport’s traffic flow, the walk to get a taxi after exiting the new domestic terminal has become a huge nuisance.

The taxi queue had previously been near the ferries, making it a short walk from the old domestic terminal.

But with the new changes, the taxi queue near the old international terminal has been removed, and taxis banned from taking any passengers from the area.

This has forced domestic travelers to go to the taxi queue near the arrivals’ gates at the new international passenger terminal, some 481 meters away. This is double the 290 meters stretch that travelers previously needed to walk.

Velana International Airport's new international passenger terminal. (Photo/MACL)

Now, travelers need to take a long walk carrying their luggage through the hallway to the very end of the new international terminal, before crossing the road and walking back the direction they came from, to get to the taxi queue.

This has proved particularly troublesome for vulnerable groups such as elderly travelers, pregnant women, and children.

Many have been appealing to the authorities to create an additional taxi queue near the new domestic terminal, and also create a zebra crossing near the new international passenger terminal.