Melbourne Airport kerbside pick-up and drop-off permanently closes as Naarm Way zones open

What closed on 6 October, and what replaced it

Melbourne Airport's Departures Drive ramp — in operation for 56 years — officially closed on Tuesday 6 October 2026, and The Age reports the closure has permanently ended kerbside pick-up and drop-off for Terminals 1, 2 and 3 (Qantas, international and Virgin Australia). Private vehicles were diverted from Tuesday morning to new dedicated zones inside the airport's undercover car park, with the launch morning described as flowing fairly smoothly with minimal traffic congestion, aside from a few slightly lost passengers and concerns about additional charges. ¹

The replacement is part of the airport's Naarm Way project. Melbourne Airport says Naarm Way is now open and provides a direct connection from the Tullamarine Freeway to new pick-up and drop-off zones for T1, T2 and T3 passengers in the new T123 Transport Hub, with the Departures Drive closure making way for the planned expansion of the T2 international terminal. ²

Concrete Playground reported in May 2026 that kerbside pick-up and drop-off was being phased out as part of the $500 million Naarm Way redevelopment — described by the publication as the biggest road network overhaul in the airport's history — designed by Grimshaw Architects, with the changes expected to land in late 2026. ³

Where drivers go now, and the walking distances involved

Drivers now take Exit 19 Naarm Way directly off the Tullamarine Freeway rather than the familiar Terminal Drive and Departures Drive route. According to Melbourne Airport, drop-off sits on Level 3 of the T123 Transport Hub and pick-up at the rear of Level 2, with a 19-metre-wide pedestrian bridge connecting the hub directly to Terminal 2 so international passengers take a covered walk in without crossing any roads. ²⁵

The walking distances are material. Melbourne Airport's own guidance puts the drop-off zone approximately 170 metres from the terminals and the pick-up zone approximately 285 metres. The Age, reporting from the opening morning, says departing travellers have a walk of between 172 and 350 metres depending on terminal, while arriving passengers heading to the pick-up zone face between 285 and 380 metres; its reporter timed the walk from drop-off to Terminal 1 at about 3½ minutes. A publication figure of close to 400 metres for pick-up appeared in Concrete Playground's May preview. ²¹³

Vehicle height limits, capacity and the airport's rationale

There is a height restriction on the new zones. Melbourne Airport says pick-up and drop-off at Terminals 1, 2 or 3 requires vehicles to be under 2.2 metres, while Terminal 4 requires vehicles under 2.5 metres. Taller vehicles must instead follow freeway signs to Exit 20 along Terminal Drive, turn right onto Centre Road and use the ground-level pick-up and drop-off bay at the back of the T123 Transport Hub — an area designated for over-height vehicles only. ²

Melbourne Airport says the new drop-off area has 74 car spaces — nearly doubling current capacity — and the pick-up area 115 spaces, nearly tripling prior capacity. The rear of the T123 Transport Hub remains available for terminal parking, with the front of Level 2 becoming new Accessible and Premium parking, both of which must be pre-booked, and the ground floor continuing to house car rental companies. ²

The Age reports the new zone's levels do not align with arrivals and departures: departing passengers are dropped off on level 3 but travel to level 2 for check-in, while those being collected exit the airport on the ground floor but travel to level 2 for pick-up. Airport chief executive Lorie Argus told the publication that 'in a perfect world, we'd like to have no level changes', explaining that Departures Drive was built in 1970 when the airport had 155,000 travellers that year, against 127,000 travellers on one day last weekend for the AFL grand final — so 'that road was exceeding capacity'. ¹

Argus also said there are no plans at this stage to install a travelator on the skybridge, citing expense, the engineering fit and the building's expansion plans. Melbourne Airport estimates more than 100,000 people travel through the airport daily, with annual passenger numbers predicted to reach 75 million by 2047. ¹

Costs, time limits and the free Wait Zone

Melbourne Airport says the new five-minute pick-up and one-minute drop-off zones are free to use, with the rest of the car park remaining free for the first 15 minutes. The Age reports that under the new system travellers have five minutes to wait in the pick-up area before being moved to another section of the car park, where they can wait 15 minutes before being charged. Its opening-day reporting noted one pick-up customer, Mark Hawes, found it unclear that the zone was five-minute parking and whether he would be charged on exit. ²¹

For drivers who arrive early, a free Wait Zone on Mercer Drive just off the Tullamarine Freeway offers the first 60 minutes of parking free, with paid rates after that. Melbourne Airport advises it is not walkable to the terminals but is about a five-minute drive from the new pick-up zone, and positions it as a safer alternative to circling the precinct or stopping on the freeway shoulder. ²⁵

Commercial vehicles, Terminal 4 and disability access concerns

The terminal forecourt out front becomes commercial vehicles only. Melbourne Airport says Skybus pick-up and drop-off remain in the forecourt, and taxis, Ubers and other rideshare will drop off in the new Level 3 zone but continue picking up on the ground-level forecourt as they do now. The Age reports the old forecourt pick-up area remained heavily congested on Tuesday morning, and one Uber driver, Fawzi Moshi, said Uber's systems were still not displaying the new pick-up and drop-off arrangements. ²¹

Terminal 4 arrangements are unchanged. Melbourne Airport says Jetstar, Rex and Link Airways customers keep the existing T4 Transport Hub pick-up on Level 1 and drop-off on Level 2, as they have since 2023, also reached via Exit 19 Naarm Way — though it notes Virgin Australia operates some flights out of Terminal 4, so drivers should check the passenger's actual terminal before heading in. ⁵²

The Age's earlier reporting, before the opening, carried warnings that the changes would make independent travel harder for people with disabilities. Traveller Suzanne Cridge, who lives with inclusion body myositis and regularly travels interstate, said the roughly 20-metre existing drop-off had made unassisted travel feasible, and she estimates the extended zone will add at least an additional 30 minutes to her travel time; Ally Scott of Disability Rights and Culture warned that leaving people dependent on an add-on assistance service is 'always a diminishment of independent travel'. An airport spokesperson told the publication the Melbourne Airport Assist program will extend its operating hours to 3am to 1am daily, and pre-bookable Disability Discrimination Act parking spaces will be introduced in the undercover carpark. ⁴

On opening day, Argus acknowledged the further walk but pointed to buggies and Travellers Aid support, saying 'we're doing absolutely everything that we can'. Melbourne Airport says Assist now runs 22 hours a day (3am to 1am) with 2 extra buggies and 8 extra powered wheelchairs available, rest stops every 60 metres along the walk, and free booking either 24 hours ahead, by phone on 0492 868 960 during operating hours, or at any of the five mobility hubs across the airport. ¹²

Concrete Playground, in its May preview of the Naarm Way project, reported the changes were expected to cut peak-hour wait times by up to 28 minutes by 2029. The Age reports the airport is hoping the relatively smooth launch morning will be replicated in a few weeks when passenger traffic builds for the Spring Racing Carnival and Christmas. ³¹