Miami International Airport (MIA) opens rental car center

MIAMI-DADE – Miami International Airport passengers and South Florida rental car customers now have a convenient, one-stop shop for all their rental car needs just east of MIA in the middle of Miami-Dade County.

The MIA Rental Car Center (RCC), opening July 13 at 3900 N.W. 25th Street, consolidates under one roof the operations of 16 rental car companies currently serving the area surrounding MIA. A new consolidated shuttle bus service transports travelers from MIA’s arrivals level to the RCC’s spacious fourth-level customer service lobby, where they can pick the company and vehicle of their choice from a combined inventory of 6,500 rental cars.

The RCC, projected to serve approximately 28,000 customers daily, has the capability to wash and re-fuel 300 vehicles per hour because of its multi-level fueling system – the first of its kind in the U.S. – and state-of-the-art Quick Turnaround Area, which includes 120 gas pump positions and 42 car wash bays on three vehicle storage levels.

In addition to improving the rental car experience for MIA passengers, the RCC reduces traffic congestion and air pollution at MIA as well. The new shuttle bus service cuts the combined rental car bus fleet from 120 buses to 60, decreasing total traffic at the airport’s arrivals level by 15 percent. The shuttle bus service will be replaced entirely in the fall of 2011 with the MIA Mover, an elevated, 1.25-mile automated people mover system that can transport 3,000 passengers per hour between MIA and the RCC and will reduce gas emissions at the airport by 30 percent.

“We are extremely indebted to the Florida Department of Transportation for building this facility that benefits not only MIA and its passengers, but all of Miami-Dade County,” said Miami-Dade Aviation Department Director José Abreu. “The Rental Car Center is another huge step toward making MIA a world-class entrance to South Florida for visitors from around the world.”