As a Private Hire Taxi driver based in the South of England, a lot of my business is made up of fares to and from London’s Heathrow Airport. I thought I’d share some tips for meeting and greeting, as Airports can seem so daunting to the occasional visitor! Most non-BA flights from Europe arrive at Terminal 2. As a driver, I’m assuming that you are driving in to Heathrow, either to drop off or meet a friend or associate. When you come through the tunnel get into the middle lane at the lights and head for the Terminal 2 Short Stay car park. On the way to there you will drive past the drop-off zone, where you can stop briefly to drop departing passengers: ALWAYS stay with your car, and move on as soon as you can – this area gets congested pretty quickly, and you don’t want to be the Muppet that causes that and has to be moved on by the police!

OK, if you’re entering the car park, a good tip is to use a credit card at the entry barrier rather than pressing for a ticket – this saves time when you leave, no queuing at the ticket machine, and one less piece of paper to hold on to: just use the same card at the barrier on exit and it’ll automatically give you a receipt. Warning – these machines will let you in with a Switch / Solo card, but they won’t let you out again – to be sure, use a Credit card only for this operation! When you get into the Terminal 2 Short Stay car park, go up two floors and try and find a space – although it’s often pretty busy! The Terminal building is a short walk across the pedestrian bridge – a covered walkway, clearly signed ‘Arrivals & Departures’. On entering T2, Arrivals is at the far end of the Hall - there are always a lot of people there, so unless you know the person you’re meeting, join the crowd of people with a ‘welcome’ sign. The best thing is something distinctive and A4 sized – a logo maybe, but definitely something eye-catching and colourful.

Make it easy on the person you’re meeting – most signs have names and flight numbers on – make yours different! Stand somewhere prominent – where you’ll be seen as soon as your passenger emerges through the sliding doors (they can only turn left on exiting)! You could pre-arrange to meet under the ‘Meeting Point’ sign, of course – this is half way down the Hall away from the Arrival doors, next to Airport Information. If you’re escorting someone who’s departing, the Departure area is right in front of you as you enter the building from the car park but the Check-In desks are downstairs!

Always check the monitors when you enter the building – a good rule of thumb is that your passenger will come through T2 Arrivals about half an hour to forty minutes after landing – but always watch the screen for the ‘Baggage In Hall’ indication – this is usually a reliable indicator of their imminent emergence! If you arrive at the doors about twenty minutes after landing you shouldn’t have to wait long. If you have a mobile phone contact number, then a quick call or SMS message can help keep track of your passenger to let them know where you are, and reassure them that you’re there and waiting – takes away one more anxiety for the traveller. Once you’ve got your passenger, get out of there quick smart – the car park is expensive! Oh, and please drive carefully and considerately on the way home!

Andrew operates a private hire vehicle in South Wiltshire, UK, specialising in airport transfer work, for more information on the services offered visit the Let’s Talk Taxi website.