{"id":14786,"date":"2020-07-21T14:13:39","date_gmt":"2020-07-21T18:13:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.atl.com\/?p=14786"},"modified":"2020-07-21T14:21:48","modified_gmt":"2020-07-21T18:21:48","slug":"atl-stories-atlstrong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/atl-stories-atlstrong\/","title":{"rendered":"ATL Stories: #ATLStrong"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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By Jennifer Ogunsola<\/strong>
Communications Manager<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In early March 2020, the world began shutting down, and the world\u2019s busiest airport instantly became quiet, and for the first time ever, rather empty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On April 9, 2019 there were 62,770 passengers. This number includes originating passengers as well as those connecting through Atlanta. On that same day this year, there were only 2,621 total passengers. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) took a major hit\u2014as did every airport throughout the world\u2014and the reason why should be no surprise. No matter who you are or where you are in the world, you\u2019ve been impacted in some way, shape or form by the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe COVID pandemic has substantially impacted society as a whole, and the travel industry specifically,\u201d said ATL General Manager John Selden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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With travel down more than 95 percent at its lowest point occurring on April 9, that didn\u2019t stop ATL from focusing on passenger and employee safety from every aspect. From upgraded and robust sanitation protocols, to installed Plexiglass barriers and floor decals that denote 6-foot markings, ATL is showing the world why it\u2019s been named the most efficient airport in the world for the 17th consecutive year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the temporary reduction of services, systems and operations at Hartsfield-Jackson due to the impact of COVID-19, every employee and Airport partner agency\u2014federal agencies, law enforcement partners, airlines, concessionaires and other tenants, and contractors\u2014has stepped up in every way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOnce the impact of COVID-19 hit and we immediately implemented the shelter-in-the-place orders, our entire organization had to make an immediate pivot of how we managed our day-to-day business,\u201d said ATL\u2019s Chief Financial Officer Greg Richardson. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Together, ATL and its partners have remained strong during this uncertain and extremely challenging pandemic, and quickly implemented aggressive short-term and long-term protocols to mitigate the spread of the virus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Providing a safe environment for passengers and employees has always been a No. 1 priority for ATL. So, from the beginning, you saw more than 300 smart hand sanitizer stations installed \u00a0throughout the airport, janitors stationed in the restrooms, the Plane Trainbeing cleaned three times daily, the cleaning frequency increased in all high-touch areas, and more than 4 million face coverings on hand for passengers who need them. Social distancing requirements are reinforced with signage throughout the Airport, specifically on the Plane Train, SkyTrain, gates, checkpoints and check-in areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As for masks, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms signed a mandatory mask ordinance for the city of Atlanta, therefore Airport employees, travelers and guests are required to wear face masks while in the Airport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cOur ability to adapt to the changing environment and helping our customers feel safe while traveling has certainly helped to facilitate the recovery,\u201d explains Paul Meyer, assistant general manager of Operations and Transportation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quickly adapting is something that ATL has mastered. After months of of staying home during this year\u2019s widespread pandemic, the world is beginning to reopen. Domestic travel is picking up as states relax restrictions, countries in Europe are ending their lockdowns, and some Caribbean islands are preparing for tourists. As travelers return to the skies and observe just how ATL and its partners address COVID concerns and observe just how ATL and its partners address the pandemic, Airport General Manager John Selden hopes they will serve as ambassadors to encourage others to do the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPassengers are coming back, airlines are adding flights, and we are going to be ready for them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The pandemic recovery will be long-term, spanning many months. As COVID-19 continues to change and shift, so will operations at ATL. For more than four months, ATL and all of its partners have taken a major hit and face a steep uphill climb; however, ATL\u2019s strength has allowed it to endure and begin the roadmap to recovery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, when asked what has been ATL\u2019s source of strength during this uncertain and extremely challenging pandemic, Selden affirms, \u201cWithout question, it is our exceptional relationships with our airline and federal partners and our outstanding fiscal management of our funding, liquidity, expenses and revenue production over the past few years that enables us to weather the storm. But most importantly, our Department of Aviation employees and their dedication to ensuring ATL is the best run airport in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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For any updates, find us @atlairport on all platforms.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jennifer Ogunsola Communications Manager In early March 2020, the world began shutting down, and the world\u2019s busiest airport instantly became quiet, and for the first time ever, rather empty. On April 9, 2019 there were 62,770 passengers. This number includes originating passengers as well as those connecting through Atlanta. On that same day this […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":14788,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[109,67,111,110],"class_list":["post-14786","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-atlstories","tag-atlstrong","tag-atl-stories","tag-covid-19-recovery","tag-pandemic-recovery"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14786","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14786"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14786\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14798,"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14786\/revisions\/14798"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14788"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14786"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14786"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.atl.com\/atl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14786"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}