Visual and audio paging services are both now available at Minneapolis-St. Paul International (MSP).
The two services work in tandem: When an audio page is made from the airport’s Information and Paging Office, the message is also posted in text form, scrolling across the bottom of the weather screens, which are pair with flight information displays; the message is also posted to a “paging history” screen at each of the airport’s information booths. The scrolling messages are displayed for several minutes; historical messages usually stay visible for several hours after the original page. The airport also plans to put the pages on its website in the next coming months.
“While visual paging benefits all our customers, it is particularly important to customers who are deaf or hard of hearing,” said Jeffrey Hamiel, executive director of the Metropolitan Airports Commission. “Our partnership with the Commission of Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing Minnesotans has helped tremendously in understanding better the needs of this community. We look forward to continuing our work with them to improve services for all our customers.”
One other option for sending messages for passengers who are deaf or hard of hearing is to request a page that specifically scrolls across the bottom of the CNN television monitors throughout the airport, primarily in gate hold areas and baggage claim, in addition to the weather and paging history screens.
“The beauty of MSP’s system is that it benefits all travelers, not only people who are deaf or hard of hearing,” says Mary Hartnett, director of the Commission of Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing Minnesotans. “We welcome this important added service and look forward to continuing our work with the Metropolitan Airports Commission in making MSP the most accessible airport in America for people with hearing loss.”
To request a page at MSP International Airport, call 612.726.5555 from any telephone, including Video Relay Service and TTY units, or, while at the airport, pick up any black courtesy phone, located throughout the terminal buildings, and dial 201.
