NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Airport Commission will rethink its badge policy after a discussion with airport users who shared their grievances regarding the current system.

 

The commissioners voted last week to approve a new fee structure for the airport — minus badge fees — as they hope to continue their discussion and craft a policy that creates fewer barriers for airport users.

 

Three years ago, former manager Bruce Goff was charged with cleaning up the badge system. At the time, it was unknown how many badges were in circulation; some airport users had multiple badges, while others had moved away or passed away.

 

Badges are required to access the airside of the airport. Under the current rules, all new badges were set to expire in three years, leaving airport users currently scrambling to obtain new ones. This process comes with a $50 fee.

 

Airport user and former commissioner Trevor Gilman said the sticking point for him was not the price, but the automatic shutdown of the badges upon expiration, as well as the process by which users must obtain brand-new physical cards.

 

"Why change out a badge for the same person? They are perfectly good badges. It is not the cost, it is the process. All of a sudden my badge expired and I can't get in. It takes forever to get one from the state," Gilman said. "If you lose a badge, certainly you should have to buy a new one because there is a cost. That is not the problem; it is the process."

 

He said other airports do not have expiration dates on their badges, adding that he has held one from another airport for 10 years. Gilman argued there should be no barriers to users obtaining a badge, suggesting that higher badge adoption allows the city to better track airport activity.