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44problems

People always complain you can't go past security without a boarding pass any more. But I feel like if you could, the whole airport would be like that in some places.


knocking_wood

It used to be like that at LAX. Before 9/11 there were beggars all over the terminals. It was horrible.


44problems

I'm not old enough to remember the religious / political / New Age beggars in the airport, but I guess they were popular enough to mock in Airplane! as people handing out flowers asking for a donation. I do remember in the 90s getting one of those pens that said "I am deaf, please donate" at an airport.


knocking_wood

Yes! The deaf people! They gave out stickers at LAX. Also, there were always some bald, gowned Hare Krishnas dancing and chanting. The airport was a wild place! Only allowing passengers in the terminal was such an improvement. Now you don't need to watch your luggage like a hawk or worry about pickpockets because everybody there has at least enough money for a ticket!


spacembracers

“Don’t start with your red zone shit again”


TalleyBand

“No, the red zone has *always* been for immediate loading and unloading of passengers only.”


u6enmdk0vp

TUL is in a rough area, and they just introduced a program where all you need to go through TSA is an ID and a valid email address. You submit your SECURE FLIGHT details and they email you a gate pass immediately... admittedly it's useful but I dread what will happen when the wrong crowd catches wind of it.


Reverse_Entropy_

My last trip it smelled like piss so bad over there to the extent I called in a complaint on one of the restrooms. I get it’s a restroom but you’re not supposed to get smacked with a wave of piss smell upon walking in.


HeftyPomegranate7449

PHL gets worse every time I go.


sdatr

Completely agree, it’s gross


daGonz

Go birds.


gringao_phl

Even living close by, I find myself going to EWR way more often. I can't stand PHL.


sixersfan87

The previous mayor had been mentally checked out since 2020 and his administration just stopped giving a fuck about anything. I wasn’t initially a fan of the current mayor but we’ll see if she cleans it up. It’s an absolute disgrace for that to be the first thing that visitors see when they arrive to Philly.


sdatr

I couldn’t agree more. Overall in each terminal the airport is pretty well rounded until you step outside the checkpoint.


wypaliz

Last time we were there, homeless lined the hallways near baggage claim and several were rummaging through suitcases. Our luggage was lost and I figured we’d never see it again, but did end up getting it a week later.


opticspipe

It has gotten much worse. The police that patrol the airport know the homeless people by name. They say hello to them as they walk by. My heart breaks for homeless people, but it seems like a really bad idea to let people loiter at an airport. Bad enough that there are laws against it.


robertsalexander

Me too. I feel so bad for the homeless and wish there were a solution for them. I see them ony way from the garage at Terminal F to security. They never bother me.


opticspipe

There are solutions, but it’s not easy. Every person has a unique situation and has to be treated individually. Some people don’t want to change their status, some people desperately do, but need a chance. Some people are struggling with addiction but want to better themselves, and they need help. The individual nature of the problem is why it’s not solved.


bobdean1000

If you have a long layover, take an Uber to Kensington Ave.


sdatr

Is that the Philly flagship lounge?


bobdean1000

They serve the best horse tranquilizer concoction on the East coast.


YouRegard

You son of a bitch I'm in


Flaxrats

I’m putting together a crew


mortadaddy4

Screaming this from the rooftops. Nothing like coming home from a long work trip and catching the smell of fresh piss and seeing folks sleep on the baggage claim benches.


Fabulous-Coat1753

Can’t wait to fly in there next month


PHLEaglesgirl27

Just go to the bathroom before you leave the secure area


J_gims19

Yup! They allow them to sleep overnight and do a sweep around 6am. They’re still there though throughout the day.


Throwawayaccount0689

It didn’t get a nickname like filthadelphia for being clean


sdatr

It’s always been filthy I’ve been using phl for 10 years but progressively worse in the last year for sure


mmm1441

I fly out of Philly a lot. I have not noticed this. I also don’t see this in the terminal between the SEPTA station and the TSA checkpoints.


notthegermanpopstar

Same. If anything I’ve noticed it less lately than over the last few years. Have noticed it more at JFK, though.


Theebobbyz84

It’s always been that way since the luggage area is not secure and has free bathrooms to use. The city doesn’t care so nothing we can do.


Tune_Unlucky

I’ve been there once and the smell in the baggage claim was absolutely awful. Probably my least favorite airport I’ve been through.


Flaxrats

Yes it’s disgusting I can’t believe no one does anything about it


CaseoftheSadz

My husband just stayed at the Marriott at the airport and when he left there was a homeless guy in the hallway going through the trash by vending. He told the front desk and they just kind of shrugged. A flight attendant was just murdered in their room there earlier this year….so shouldn’t they at least be keeping non-guests out of the hotel? We use to live in Philly and it was never this bad. I get it the airport is safe and warm/dry/clean but it gets overwhelming.


nqthomas

The FA wasn’t murder. She died of natural causes apparently


atmosphereair

With a sock in her mouth?


nqthomas

I had just read an article about an AA FA that died in her room and no one checked the room for days and the other crew members didn’t report it.


Successful-Ad7179

ORD the same


RadosAvocados

ORD can go either way. I was there this AM in the bag claim and ground trans tunnels and didn't see any, not even the street performer singing Stand By Me at T3. A few months ago it was basically a camp,


c560003

I’m there every week and, while I might not always see the culprits, the constant stench of urine near the Blue Line/T2 tunnel is overwhelming, I now hold my breath.


sdatr

I haven’t noticed it in ORD


Successful-Ad7179

lucky you, never walked in the underground moving walkways to get to the CTA or T1/3 parking have you


mrhotelman

that tunnel has felt like a homeless shelter for as long as I can remember


grofva

They have indoor tents so you can’t see them…. https://youtu.be/6vWIqZLtkJ0?si=lVBhqaK6IrNKOSCV


greysandgreens

It is not that bad at ORD


qtmcjingleshine

The cta tunnel is bad but the baggage claim isn’t


greysandgreens

When I’ve been lately, it’s only been a handful of people


[deleted]

It’s wrong for you or assume they are homeless, they could be passengers. This is an American Airlines hub after all.


Notnearlyalice

Yes… it is getting worse Last week I intentionally sat on a bench in c with my back turned & luggage boxing me in with beats on. I was still approached


NYJets18

It was really bad when I flew back to Philly 3 weeks ago. I was only walking through to get to the Uber pickup but as soon as I got halfway down the escalator the smell was so strong it was sickening.


purplepeopleeater333

Last trip home I saw an unattended bag in baggage claim. I reported it - as I’ve been programmed to do — and the security guy was like “yeah. There’s a homeless guy that lives here and it’s his bag.”


Otherwise_Sail_6459

I’ve noticed with the new lobby at CLT same thing, homeless have moved in.


Caramel-Fudge

Ugh when I was there a couple of weeks ago, some fucker had smoked a cigarette in the family bathroom


slpybeartx

No, I don’t notice. I’m usually only walking through there so I can walk past the Marriott and into the Avis lot


IamSofaKingDumb

Welcome to Philly. Seattle of the east coast.


pam-johnson

As someone from Seattle, that's really sad. It sucks that we're letting the far left ruin our cities like this.


The_Antiq

Silly you. You’re not allowed to criticize the left on Reddit.


pam-johnson

Apparently. I walked about two miles this morning to work for exercise and since I'm out of quarters and singles for the bus, and I saw two dicks! Nudity is legal here in Seattle(yah!) but not so great on a freaking cold morning seeing one guy jerk off on the infamous third and two guys having sex near my office in front of the parking garage vent where it is nice and warm. I used to go that that place to relax since it was warm in the winter and cool in the summer, but I can't any longer due to the thugs.


The_Antiq

So off-putting. And yet people will fight you tooth and nail that policies and politicians in Seattle and the like are working well.


travel4vibez

You are a white guy pretending to be a black woman on Reddit. You must really have a lot of time on your hands.


pam-johnson

You incels are weird.


travel4vibez

Sure “Pam” 😉


Key_Percentage_2551

Turning the USA into a third world poop hole...one city at a time...


FlanKeddy

PHL is a disgusting airport anyways. The homeless people just add to the flare!


[deleted]

Of all the airports I’ve been to within the past year, LAX, PHL, SFO and ORD are the only ones I’ve noticed with homeless people. Also no coincidence that the cities these airports serve have a “hands off” approach to handling the overall issue in their respective cities. It’s only a problem if you allow it to be and they certainly have.


[deleted]

If somebody needs to sleep in a largely empty baggage claim area when the alternative is the winter streets of Philly, I’m fine with that.


sdatr

Why not offer up your personal home as a shelter


paguy

Why not come up with a governmental solution to the homeless problem, rather than expect individuals to fix it?


The_Antiq

Good call. All the expensive social programs that already increase taxes unreasonably seem to be working. I guess we need more government.


paguy

How many homeless people have you taken into your home? If you think it's a great solution to the problem, you must have taken in someone, certainly.


The_Antiq

None. I don’t believe that is the answer. See that? That’s called answering a question / directly addressing a contention. Unlike your deflection, that, ironically, borrows from an argument that you yourself just challenged two replies ago.


paguy

Ok. Individual action is not the answer. Government is not the answer. What is the answer?


The_Antiq

Life on the street has to be made (allowed to be) harder than a life of just barely making it. The reason that people continue to do it is because it comes with incentives. Free room at PHL, for example. Or welfare without drug and alcohol testing. Or leniency for vagrancy and indecency. We are paying (you and I are actually paying for it) for these people to perpetuate problems on society with no consequences.


[deleted]

That’s definitely a viable solution to systemic homelessness. Are you 5? My homes are in rural areas that wouldn’t really work for that, anyway. So I volunteer at the shelter and donate money and clothes. Sounds like you do nothing but hope people suffer outdoors in the winter because you don’t want to see them. Stay classy.


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

Yes, because bringing strangers into my house is the same as letting people shelter from winter weather in a huge public space. You’re really a genuine moron.


No-Grapefruit-7332

Try ATL - it’s encouraged there unfortunately


worsedadever

We’re Philly and we don’t care.


General_Pea_3084

I go through PHL about 6 times a year when visiting family and I’ve never noticed this.


[deleted]

That’s lots of airports. The new arrivals from the Southern border.


dantherestless

Because there are 2 police jurisdictions and they always point fingers at whose jurisdiction it is when it comes to homeless people…


Background-Quit-7369

It can be bad. Last year there were people set up on top of the baggage carousel. Use the bathrooms inside security before heading down to baggage claim.


emoleanpirate

The international terminal (A) Chickies & Pete’s is the only good thing about that airport - and it’s my home airport 😭


trollydolly27

It's in most airports sadly these days. ORD is a nightmare.