LAX Traffic Officers Play 'NICE' This Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is one of the busiest travel holidays of the year, so for those of you braving the roads and/or sky this November 24, we applaud you. Though hostile travelers will undoubtedly cross your path, LAX is taking extra efforts this year to make sure everyone plays nice.
LAX traffic officers have been trained to "NICE," or "Neutralize Irritations Customers Experience," this holiday season. LAX hopes the customer service initiative will help keep traffic moving in a customer-friendly manner (read: nobody loses it and ends up in handcuffs, attacked with pepper spray, punched by fellow passenger, etc.)
When people travel, their stress levels and irritations tend to soar, making the already dreaded trip even more unpleasant for the grumbling traveler and others in his enraged presence. "We just ask they take a deep breath and kind of slow down a little bit, get here early," says LAX police captain Greg Staar, reports CBS LA.
Of the 42.5 million Americans traveling this year, 3.3 million are from SoCal. An estimated 12% of those travelers will take to the skies to see family and friends for the holidays. LAX expects over 160,000 travelers to traverse the bustling airport over the next five days. LA Daily News reports that approximately 1.78 million passengers will pass through the airport from Friday, November 18 through Monday, November 28. This marks a 16% increase in travelers from 2010.
Travel control officers at LAX have reportedly pledged to maintain a positive demeanor this Thanksgiving, which requires them to pleasantly greet drivers idling in the white loading zones before politely asking them to move. Staff and travelers identified this congestion as one of their biggest LAX peeves. Officers will also be trained to embrace the holiday spirit and refrain from issuing parking citations or warnings. Instead, they will hand out information on alternative parking options. We wonder how many of said handouts will end up littering the airport or the floor mats of vehicles.
Traffic officers will also handout free coffee coupons for those drivers who keep the peace.
Good luck out there, travelers and traffic officers.
