El Prat airport is being secured with controls to enter the terminals

El Prat de LlobregatLong before reaching the usual security checkpoint, a long queue of passengers forms at the terminal doors, confused as to why they can't get in. Private security guards are checking tickets from everyone trying to enter El Prat Airport. This is a new measure that Aena has just implemented to better control who enters the airport throughout the day, according to ARA. On Friday morning, the busiest day of a long weekend with more than 3,600 flights scheduled at El Prat, access to Terminal 1 was only possible through one door on the departures level. There were bottlenecks, such as when passengers disembarked from the Aerobus and, nervously, realized they would still have to go through security. The other doors were closed, and it was necessary to go to the central entrance to get in. On other days of the week, the side door near the Aerobús stop was opened.

Aena has also implemented similar controls on the arrivals level of Terminal 1 for passengers arriving by car or metro. Security agents from the company I-SEC follow the same procedure as on the upper level, but here they more frequently encounter people picking up family members and allow them to pass. These controls have also begun in Terminal 2, but not with the same intensity as in Terminal 1, where there is higher passenger traffic. The measure has been in place for three weeks, but has become increasingly restrictive as the days have passed, especially this week. Taxi drivers were among the first groups to encounter this new control, without prior notice. "It's worked out very well for us in preventing touts and unlicensed taxi drivers from entering," explains Tito Álvarez, spokesperson for Élite Taxi, the most representative association of the sector in the metropolitan area. Since then, all taxi drivers wishing to pick up passengers must present security agents with the customer's details, their flight information, and their taxi license.

"This is a planned action within Aena's remit," the airport operator stated, adding that it previously only carried out this type of check at night. Aena is basing its actions on the internal operating and usage regulations for airports of general interest, approved last May. These regulations stipulate that the purpose of its facilities is "to be used exclusively by travelers and their companions, as well as companies duly authorized by Aena to provide various services to passengers," and that Aena reserves the right of admission. Unions such as UGT in Catalonia indicate that the main reason for these new controls is to prevent pickpockets and homeless people from entering. However, police sources indicate that the airport's current crime situation is completely different from that of a year ago, when crime peaked, reports [report/information missing]. Cesc MaideuThe increased police presence and intensified patrols have led to an approximately 80% decrease in crime, mostly thefts. Furthermore, the same sources indicate a significant drop in the number of homeless people sleeping at the facility: from around 180 to approximately 40.

The CCOO union in Catalonia adds that the limited number of exits on the departures level may be violating evacuation regulations. Besides the resulting passenger queues, the union is concerned about the extra time workers are spending getting to their jobs.